Global Foresight Wiki - Recently Updated Pages

Foresight Students and Alumni - Global List

Creatingchange — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 01:44:52 CST

Graduate Students
People presently engaged in a Master's or PhD in a Foresight-related field.

(Name, Institution, Degree, Expected Graduation Date. Please link to an online webpage/social network so colleagues can find you.)
Please also feel free to add a single summary line of interests or specialties below your name. Thanks.)

Individual Listings (Please add yourself here):
Sean Daken, University of Houston, Masters in Futures Studies in Commerce, Grad. est. 2012
Karen Arvidsson, AGSE Swinburne University, Hawthorn Victoria, Australia. M. in Mgmt Strategic Foresight, Grad. est. Mid-2010

Student Listings - By Program
University of Houston (MS in Futures Studies in Commerce) Current Student Roster (incomplete)

Alumni
People who have completed a Master's or PhD in a Foresight-related field.

(Name, Institution, Degree, Graduation Date. Please link to an online webpage/social network so colleagues can find you.)
Please also feel free to add a single summary line of interests or specialties below your name. Thanks.)

Individual Listings (Please add yourself here):
John Smart, University of Houston, Masters in Future Studies, 2007.
Foresight Education and Community, Acceleration Studies, Evolutionary Development Studies, Policy Studies.

Alumni Listings - By Program
University of Houston (MS in Futures Studies in Commerce) Current Alumni Roster (incomplete)

Research and Collaboration Tools and Databases

JohnMSmart — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 20:32:19 CDT

Research and collaboration tools and databases that are particularly helpful for strategic foresight or futures research.

Top Web Tools We Recommend (a very incomplete list).
DOAJ. Directory of Open Access Journals, scientific and scholarly. Full text. Free.
Docstoc. Sharing business, legal, and other professional documents. Free.
GDocs and Spreadsheets. Good basic collaboration platform. Free.
GMail and GCalendar. Clean, fast, reasonably full-featured. Free basic.
GModerator. Good tool to gather and prioritize opinions and voting on talks, presentations and events. Free.
GReader. Great tool for organizing RSS feeds and tracking site updates. Free.
iGoogle. Fast, customizable, reasonably useful home page. Free.
LibraryThing. Catalog & find others with the same books. Free basic. 200K users.
Linqia. Search tool to find global online groups and social networks, by keyword interest.
Ning. Create your own full-featured social networks. Free.
Plaxo Pulse. FB-like business network. Free. 13M Plaxo users (not Pulse).
Slideshare. Largest community for publicly sharing your presentations. Free.

SendSpace. Free file downloading. Sends large files easily.
SmugMug. Best fee-based online photosharing. Document your life. $40/yr. 300K users.
Spock. A search tool for finding people by interest. Free. 80M "indexed" people.

Vimeo. Free video uploading and channels. 350MB/day free uploading limit (in 2010).
Wetpaint. Easy personal or enterprise wikis. Free basic. 600K wikis (+ this site).
Xing. For business networking. Free basic. 4M users.
Yelp. Good reviews of local businesses and services. Democracy in action! Free.

Open Citation Management
CiteULike
A free online service to organise and share references to academic papers. Easy to use. RIS, RSS, BibTeX output.
Zotero
A free, easy-to-use Firefox extension to help you collect, manage, and cite your research sources.

Reference
CIA World Factbook
Authoritative source for country estimates, updated annually.
Congresspedia
Community-developed citizens encyclopedia wiki on congress
FedStats
Statistical data from over 100 U.S. agencies, and by topic.
Library of Congress (Online Catalog)
Can look up LC classification numbers for any valued book in your home library. Look it up here, see what else with a similar title you are missing! Even more extensive than Amazon's database (for now at least).
Sourcewatch
Community- developed wiki on public relations firms influencing public policy.
U.S. Census Bureau's Statistical Abstract of the United States
Authoritative statistics on the social, political, and economic organization of the United States. 125 years.
Wikipedia
The largest online collaborative encyclopedia.

Research
DataThief
Great tool for reverse-engineering graphics to get the data points.
Journal Experts
PhD editors will review and improve your paper prior to journal publication.

Search
Google
Your best link to the emerging digital universe. Try all the cool beta sites.
Google Scholar
Search scholarly literature across many disciplines and sources, including theses, books, etc.
NLM Gateway/Medline
National library of medicine. Vast database of health, nursing, and biomedical science research.

Free Databases
arXiv.org
Electronic preprint archive for physics, math, computer science, quant. biology, and other subjects. Over 100,000 articles.
Cordis
Collaboration database linking much of European Science and Technology R&D and funding.
Pub Med Central
NIH's free database of life sciences publications.
Scientific Commons
Free archive of scientific publications. Over 22 million.

Subscription Databases
Hundreds of quality subscription databases can be accessed at any large university or public library. Here are a few:
ABI/INFORM
A database covering business, management, economics and related fields. Journals, magazines, dissertations, newspapers, etc. ProQuest.
JSTOR
Rapidly growing online database of multidisciplinary and discipline specific journals. Insitutitional access, limited individual access.
LexisNexis
Comprehensive legal, news, business and public record information.
PsycINFO
An abstract (not full-text) database of psychological literature from the 1800s to the present.
ScienceDirect
Largest fee-based electronic collection of science, technology and medicine full text and bibliographic information. Elsevier.
Scopus
Large abstract and citation database of research literature and quality web sources. Elsevier.
Social Science Research Network (SSRN)
Large collection of online social science research. Free abstracts, some free papers, many paid.
Web of Science/Science Citations Index
Track any paper and see who else has referenced it since publication. Surf the memespace of idea evolution. Free access only at major research libraries.

Know any others that should be on this list? Log in and add them yourself. Please follow the same formatting and style you see on these pages, with very brief explanatory sentences. If you can't do that, please put them in the threads section at the bottom of the page, thanks.

Foresight Professionals, Researchers, and Educators - Global List

dilhanake — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 02:04:01 CDT

A project of the ASF nonprofit.

This is a global, community-developed list of:
1. foresight professionals (sometimes also called professional futurists) who look to and analyze the long-term (10+ year) future for paying clients (education, for-profit, non-profit, government, military) in any of 90+ different primary, secondary, and other foresight specialties.
2. foresight researchers, who publish on long-term foresight in peer-reviewed primary foresight journals, and any other academic and trade journals. [Those who publish only in non-peer-reviewed magazines (Wired, Nat Geo, etc.) are better classified as foresight professionals rather than researchers].
3. foresight educators, who teach courses (secondary (HS), tertiary (university) or non-degree) that contain substantial portions (20%+) of long-term (10+ year) foresight curricula.

Foresight Professionals, Researchers, and Educators - A Global List

We would guess that there are perhaps 100,000 living individuals that have given talks or done serious work in various areas of long-term (10+ year) scientific, technological, business, or social foresight. Perhaps 20,000 of these have published peer-reviewed foresight research in academic or trade journals, and perhaps 5,000 have given university or other courses significantly focused on long-term foresight. How soon can we get this starter list of professionals, researchers, and educators above 1,000 (1%)? How soon can we get it above 10,000 (10%)?

Do you know any foresight professionals, researchers, or educators that should be listed here? Please add them, in the following two-line format:
First Line: Name with link to an online bio, Title (if any), Institution name (if any), Location(s), and Email (if public, in a mailto: format).
Second Line: Brief description (one line maximum!) of their foresight specialties/interests, as far as you know them.

Format: Alphabetical order by last name, with name in bold, and your entry in 10 point Arial type, in the appropriate location.

This list is a stub. It is ready for your additions. Thank you!

1. North America
(Canada, Caribbean Nations, Central America, Mexico, USA)
Canada (Please Use Two Letter Province Abbreviation Codes for All Provinces in Canada)
Lynn-Elen Burton, Emeritus Prof, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, BC
George Dvorsky, Founder, BetterHumans, Toronto, ON
Ruben Nelson, Foresight Canada, Calgary, AB
Mark Walker, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON
Richard Worzel, Futuresearch.com, Toronto, ON
Futurist, speaker, consultant. Very nice general audience website.
Costa Rica
Maurice Strong, President, United Nations University for Peace (UPEACE), San Jose, Costa Rica.
Strong has held two UN conferences on the environment. UN-Sanctioned UPEACE offers eight one year masters degrees in Peace Studies at their Costa Rica campus.
Mexico (Please Use Two - Two Letter State Abbreviation Codes (MX - ??) for All States In Mexico)
Leonel Casanova, Monterrey Institute of Technology, Monterrey, MX-NL
Nicaragua
Ariel Zuniga, Instituto Nicaraguense de Energia, Managua, Nicaragua
Developing Nicaragua's vast geothermal resources (currently supplying 9% of national electricity) for energy independence. Currently 77 MW installed geothermal plants and 1,000 MW estimated first-tier resources.
Panama
Jorge Arosemana, Ciudad de Saber (City of Knowledge), Clayton, Ancon, Panama.
Sociologist, engineer, philosopher, and head of the Ciudad de Saber, Panama's largest business, scientific, and technology park.
United States of America
See USA - Foresight Professionals By State (Subpage)

2. South America
(Columbia to Argentina)
Brazil
Arnoldo J. de Hoyos, Sao Paulo Catholic Univ. (PUC-SP), Sao Paulo, Brazil
Colombia
Francisco Mojica, Universidad External de Colombia, Bogota, Colombia
Lucio Mauricio Henao ProSeres prospectiva estratégica, Medellín, Colombia
Peru
Fernando Ortega, Alas Peruanas University, Lima, Peru
Venezuela
Jose Cordeiro, University Central de Venezuela, Caracas, Venezuela

3. Europe
(EU plus Regional Nations, Iceland to Turkey)
Belgium
Francis Heylighen, Free University of Brussels (VUB), Brussels, Belgium

Denmark

Daniel Karpantschof, The Danish Academy for Futures Studies, Copenhagen, Denmark
Finland
Juha Kaskinen, Finland Futures Academy, Turku, Finland
Mika Maanerma, Maanermaa Futures Studies, Piispanristi, Finland
Anita Rubin, Finland Futures Research Centre, Turku, Finland
Sari Söderlund, Finland Futures Research Centre, Turku, Finland
Markku Wilenius, Turku School of Economics, Turku, Finland
France
Michel Godet, Conservetoire Nat'l des Arts et Metiers (CNAM), Paris, France
Germany
Dr. Heiko A. von der Gracht, Center for Futures Studies and Knowledge Management, European Business School, Wiesbaden, Germany
Focuses on foresight methodology research and logistics / mobility foresight
Pero Micic, Future Management Group, Eltville, Germany
Hungary
Zoltan Galantai, Technical University of Budapest, Budapest, Hungary
Erszebet Novaky, Corvinus University, Budapest, Hungary
Eva Toth, Technical University of Budapest, Budapest, Hungary
Ireland
John Ratcliffe, Dublin Inst. of Technology, Dublin, Ireland
Italy
Eleanora Masini, Gregorian University, Rome, Italy
Netherlands
Remco Buisman, Futureconsult, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Jos de Mul, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Daniel Erasmus, Leiden University, Lieden, Netherlands
Norway
Helge Hasvold, Futurist and CEO of Strategier for Framtiden, Fredrikstad, Norway
Portugal
Antonio Alvarenga, Inst. for the Devel. of the Economic, Financial, and Mgmt Sciences (IDEFE), Universidade Técnica de Lisboa (Lisbon)
Focuses on strategic foresight and european affairs. Strategic foresight methods, scenario planning and thinking, European integration. Teaches SF at IDEFE-UTL.
António B. Moniz, Universidade Nova de Lisboa-FCT, Caparica, Portugal

Romania
Trajan Rotariu, Babes Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Spain
Jordi S. del Pino, Centre Catala de Prospectiva, Barcelona, Spain
Sweden
Bo Karlsson, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Stockholm, Sweden
Jacob Palme, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Stockholm, Sweden
Switzerland
Roberto Vitalini, Editor, Wheii.com Knowledge and Futures Portal (email)
Media futures, information technology futures, global and market trends.
United Kingdom
Barbara Adam, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom
Stephen Aguilar-Millan, The Greenways Partnership, Ipswich, United Kingdom
Jeremy Bentham, VP Global Business Environment and Head of Strategic Projections, Royal Dutch Shell (London, UK and Hague, Netherlands)
Bentham is a wicked-smart oil industry futurist, chaired Shell's Energy Scenarios to 2050 study. A strong supporter of industry and institutional foresight and scenario planning.
Nick Bostrom, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
Jeff Gold, Leeds Metropolitan University, Leeds, United Kingdom
Adam Gordon, Turning Foresight into Value, Cardiff, UK
Susan Greenfield, Prof. of Synaptic Pharmacology, Lincoln College, Oxford, United Kingdom. Science popularizer. Future of human and machine interaction and thought.
David Hicks, Bath Spa University, Bath, United Kingdom
Alec Howe, Breaking Trends in the Global Village, London, United Kingdom
Michael Jackson, Shaping Tomorrow's Foresight Network, Bishops Wood, UK
Denis Loveridge, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
Mike Keenan, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
James Martin, James Martin 21st Cent Sch, Oxford U, Oxford, United Kingdom
Graham May, Leeds Metropolitan University, Leeds, United Kingdom (Emeritus or Retired)
Ian Miles, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
Maria Nedeva, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
Martin Raymond, Strategy and Insight Director, The Future Laboratory (21 employees).
Specialist in consumer trends, fashion, retailing, brands. Editor of Viewpoint magazine.
Anders Sandberg, Oxford, United Kingdom
Wendy Schultz, Infinite Futures, Oxford, United Kingdom
Ralph Stacey, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, United Kingdom
Steve Woolgar, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
Brian Wynne, Lancaster University, Lancaster, United Kingdom

4. Middle East
(Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Quatar, UAE, Oman, Yemen)
Iran
Alireza Hejazi, Founder & Developer of Futures Discovery, Tehran, Iran

Ali Shamaee, Atinegaar Think Tank, Tehran, Iran

Israel
Aharon Hauptman, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
David Passig, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel
Yair Sharan, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

5. Africa
(Morocco to Egypt to South Africa to Madagascar)
South Africa
Barbel Haldenwang, University of Stellenbosch, Stellenbosch, South Africa
Andre Roux, University of Stellenbosch, Stellenbosch, South Africa

6. North Asia
(Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyz Repub., Tajikistan)
Russia
Igor Bestuzhev-Lada, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia (Emeritus or Retired)
Nadezhda Gaponenko, Russian Institute of Economics, Moscow, Russia

7. Central Asia
(China and Mongolia)
China
Marcus Anthony, MindFutures, Hong Kong, China
Zhouying Jin, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing, China

8. South Asia
(Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Bengladesh)
India
Anandhavalli Mahadevan, Professor and Head, Centre for Futures Studies, Madurai Kamaraj University, Madurai 625021
V. Nandamohan, Chair, Dept of Future Studies, University of Kerala, Kerala
Ashis Nandy, Political psychologist and social theorist. Former Director, Center for the Study of Developing Societies, New Delhi
Lallan Rai, Agricultural marketing advisor, sustainable agricultural development, New Delhi.
Sanal R.P. Civil and transportation engineer, transportation planning, and future studies. Runs foresight website SanalNair.org, Kerala.
Mohan Tikku, Co-Chair, ACUNU Millennium Foresight Project - India Node. Gurgaon 122002
Pakistan
Ikram Azam, Pakistan Futuristics Foundation, Islamabad, Pakistan

SRI LANKA
Chaminda Hettiarachchi Regional Center for Strategic Studies (RCSS), Colombo, Sri Lanka

9. East Asia
(Japan, North and South Korea, Taiwan)
Japan
Kaoru Yamaguchi, Osaka Sangyo University, Osaka, Japan
Korea
Youngsook Park, South Korea Chapter of WFS, Seoul, Korea
Taiwan
Clement C.P. Chang, Tamkang University, Taipei, Taiwan
Chien-Fu Chen, Tamkang University, Taipei, Taiwan
Jui-Guey Chen, Tamkang University, Taipei, Taiwan
Kuo-Hua Chen, Tamkang University, Taipei, Taiwan
H.W. Cheng, Fo Guang University, Yilan County, Taiwan
Shun-jie Ji, Tamkang University, Taipei, Taiwan
Mei-Mei Song, Tamkang University, Taipei, Taiwan
Yu-Ying Teng, Tamkang University, Taipei, Taiwan

10. Australasia
(Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand, Oceania)
Australia
Maree Conway, Thinking Futures, University Futures, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
Philip Daffara, Future Sense, Brisbane, QLD Australia
Peter Hayward, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia
Sohail Inayatullah, University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia
Ivana Milojevic, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD Australia
Rowena Morrow, Owner, Prospective Services, Melbourne, Australia (email)
Jose Ramos, Action Futures, Brisbane, QLD Australia
Richard Slaughter, Foresight International, Indooroopilly, QLD Australia (Emeritus or Retired)
Joseph Voros, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia (email)
Prof. of strategic foresight, Swinburne MBA, MS and PhD. Strat. planning, entrepreneurship, theory&practice of foresight, integral inquiry.
New Zealand
Dennis List, Audience Dialog, Auckland, New Zealand
Singapore
Kumar Ramakrishna, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Thailand
Michel Bauwens, Chang Mai, Thailand
Integral futurist. Champion of decentralization. President, Foundation for P2P Alternatives.

Notable Deceased Foresight Professionals - Global List

Rashmi Mayur (India)
Indian futurist and urban planner, early champion of sustainable development with minimal industrialization, at least at first.
H.G. Wells (Wikipedia) (United Kingdom)
Early science fiction author and nonfiction futures author (Anticipations, 1901), early champion (1930's) of the global need for "Professors of Foresight".

Key Foresight Specialties (24 primary and 25 secondary)

Below are ASF's list of primary, secondary, and other foresight specialties. Primary specialties are taught most extensively in foresight MS and PhD programs. Secondary specialties may also be taught in foresight MS's or PhD's, but one can get primary degrees in them from other academic disciplines. Other specialties (a very partial list) are areas where foresight is commonly applied, using a range of primary and secondary specialties.

Primary Foresight Specialties (24)	Secondary Foresight Specialties (25)
Alternative Futures Competitive Intelligence Critical Futures and CLA Development (Systemic) and Acceleration Studies Emerging Issues, Cross Impact and Pattern Analysis Emerging Technologies Analysis Ethnographic Futures Forecasting and Modeling/Simulation (basic) Foresight Frameworks and Foundations History and Analysis of Prediction Horizon Scanning and Weak Signals Images and Artifacts of the Future Personal Futures/ Foresight Development Prediction Markets Predictive Surveys/ Delphi Roadmapping Scenario Development and Backcasting Strategic Foresight and Scenario Planning Strategy Games, Serious Games, and Wargames Systems Thinking Transhumanist/ Ethics of Emerging Tech Studies Trend Extrapolation and Learning Curves Visioning, Intuition, and Creativity Wildcards	Actuarial Science and Risk Assessment Anthropology and Culture Studies Cognitive and Positive Psychology Collaboration, Facilitation, and Peace/Conflict Studies Critical and Evidence-Based Thinking Demographics and Sociology Ethics and Values Studies Evolution, Complexity and Systems Studies Forecasting and Modeling/Simulation (advanced) Futures, Sci-Fi, Utopian, and Dystopian Lit Studies Innovation and Entrepreneurship Studies Integral Studies and Thinking Investing and Finance (Long-Term) Leadership Studies and Organizational Development Library Sci, Data Mining, and Knowledge Management Long-Range and Urban Planning Marketing, Public Relations, and Consumer Behavior Political Science and Policy Studies Probabilistic (Statistical) Prediction Religious Studies (Future Beliefs) Security/Defense Studies and International Relations Science and Technology Studies and Technology Analysis Socially Responsible / Triple Bottom Line Management Strategic Planning, Decision Analysis and Support Sustainability and Development (Economic) Studies
Other Foresight Specialties (40, a partial list)
Architecture \| Astrobiology \| Biological Sciences \| Bioethics \| Biotechnology \| Business Administration \| Chemical Sciences \| Cliometrics \| Computer Modeling and Simulation \| Computer Science \| Cybernetics \| Disaster/ Catastrophic Risk Management \| Economics and Econometrics \| Education \| Engineering \| Evolutionary Biology \| Game Theory \| Gambling Studies \| Generational Studies \| Geography \| History \| History and Philosophy of Science and Technology \| Information Science \| Investing and Finance (Short-Term) \| Library Science (general) \| Management \| Media and Communications \| Mathematics \| Operations Research \| Philosophy \| Physical Sciences \| Psychology (general) \| Psychographics \| Statistics (general) \| Technology Policy \| Tourism \| Urban Studies

Foresight and Futures Speaker Databases

AEI Speakers Bureau, Futurists and Future Trends, (48 entries)
All American Speakers, Futurists (29 entries)
A Speakers International, The Future/Futurists (25 entries)
Barber USA, Futurists (10 entries)
Blue World Speakers (Australia), Futurists/Trends (60 entries)
Capital City Speakers (IL, USA), Futurists & Future (27 entries)
Celebrity Speakers (New Zealand), Futurists (6 entries)
IMG Speakers, Technology & Futurists (22 entries)
International Speakers Bureau, Futurist (62 entries)
Keppler Speakers, Future Trends (31 entries)
London Speaker Bureau (UK) , Futurist & Technology (45 entries)
Macmillan Speakers Bureau
MCP Speakers, Future,Technologies & Trends (7 entries)
O2 Speakers (Australia, Asia Pacific), Future Trends / Tech (3 entries)
PFP Celebrity Talent Agency, Futurist (20 entries)
Premiere Speakers, Futurists (57 entries)
Promenade Speakers, Futurists (12 entries)
Shaping Tomorrow, Future Voices (51 entries)
Speak, Inc, Future (68 entries)
Speakers.com, Futurists and Future Trends (33 entries)
SpeakerSite.com, Search "Futurist". (7 entries) "Foresight" (2 entries)
Sterling International Speakers, Future & Trends (8 entries)

Networks for Foresight Educators and Researchers (and membership or network size, if known)

ACUNU Millennium Project (35 country 'nodes')
Association of Professional Futurists (400 members)
Association for Strategic Planning (Unknown)
Australasian Futures and Foresight Association (Unknown)
European Foresight Monitoring Network (59 global correspondents, thousands of foresight documents)
Foresight Education and Research Network (200 members)
Shaping Tomorrow's Foresight Network (1500 members)
World Future Council (Unknown)
World Future Society - General / Professional (25,0000 / Unknown)
World Futures Studies Federation (200 members)

Resources for Foresight Educators (a very incomplete list)

Foresight Education and Research Network (FERN)
Are you a foresight educator, education researcher, or student? Would you like to join a network specifically for advancing the state of foresight/futures education? Please our FERN Group on Shaping Tomorrow's Foresight Network. We look forward to working with you to advance our field!

World Future Society has established a Futures Learning Section "committed to all forms of futures learning." On the academic side, Peter Bishop (Director, U Houston MS in Futures Studies) has started a Futures Learning listserve. Also, David Stein of the Wash, DC WFS publishes FutureTakes, a great newsletter that has 2-3 dedicated pages covering futures educators globally. WFS also publishes Future Times and Learning Tomorrow, occasional newsletters for those interested in "Futures Education and the Future of Education."

World Futures Studies Federation, A professional society of futures researchers, academics, and consultants. Founded in 1967 they have a "mission to promote futures education and research." WFSF has been less active in promoting academic FS than one might expect given their long, and in other ways distinguished, tenure in the field. As a result, a number of futures educators felt the need to develop other complementary and more narrowly focused networks specifically for promoting futures education, curricula, and methodology.

Foresight Education Frameworks

See Foresight Frameworks for a list of specialties (methods, theories, disciplines, skills, learning outcomes ) presently being taught by strategic foresight / futures studies academic programs (M.S. and Ph.D.) in universities and other institutions around the world.

Political and Public Policy NGOs

JohnMSmart — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 20:40:52 CDT

Futures-oriented political and public policy nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) around the world. Categorized as Left of Center, Centrist, and Right of Center (left or right in either social or economic policy). Listed alpha by organization name.

Left of Center

Academy for Futures Studies (Denmark)

The non-profit NGO that founded The Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies (in 1970).

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
Defending individual rights and liberties through work in courts, legislature, and communities.
Americans for Democratic Action (ADA)
Nation's oldest independent liberal political organization.
Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence
Helping greatly to create a post-gun society.
Campaign for America's Future
Progressive agendas for corporate accountability and political change.
Center for Ecoliteracy (Fritjof Capra)
Reconnecting children to the natural world to promote sustainable communities.
Center for American Progress
Promoting strong government, strong defense, more protected and regulated enterprise, extended social programs, and individual welfare.
Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR)
Leading legal institution of the progressive movement.
Center for Digital Democracy
Preserving the openness and diversity of digital communications and public interest programming.
Earth Institute (at Columbia University)
Sustainability in science and public policy.
Economic Policy Institute
Wide ranging education and research promoting fair living standards and prosperous economies.
Electronic Frontier Foundation
Maintaining civil liberties in an increasingly digital world.
ETC Group
Technology assessment and regulation, corporate technological control.
Fabian Society
British Labour Party think tank, historically advocating slow change in social systems.
Foundation for National Progress
Social justice reporting (Mother Jones).
Greenpeace
Environmental and go-slow technology activism.
Institute for Policy Studies
Oldest U.S. multi-issue progressive think tank.
Institute for Public Policy Research
Britain's leading progressive think-tank.
Metafuture.org
Global, multicultural, and macrohistorical futures perspectives. Academic (Sohail Inayatullah, Ivana Milojevic).
National Network of Grantmakers
Social justice network, not a funding agency.
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
Aggressive pro-environmental activism.
New College of California
Educational university with training in social advocacy.
Nuclear Control Institute
Significantly more alarmist than IAEA.
Nuclear Policy Research Institute
Dr. Helen Caldicott's nonproliferation group.
People for the American Way
Litigation and action for civil liberties.
PolicyLink
Working to advance policies to achieve economic and social equity.
Progressive Policy Institute
Seeking to modernize progressive politics and government for the information age.
True Majority
Collaborative social justice project (Ben Cohen).
United for a Fair Economy
"The richest 1% own 38%, the poorest 40% own 0.2%." Advocates of economic democracy.
Urban Institute
"Social security will fail in 2041." Singularity unaware.
War Resisters League
Antimilitarism and Ghandian nonviolence advocates.
World Future Studies Federation
Multicultural, inclusive, moderately anti-West, anti-technological.
Worldwatch Institute (and Earth Policy Inst.)
Global assessment, environmental sustainability and social justice.

Centrist
American Enterprise Institute
Advocating limited government but with interventionist foreign policy and strong defense.
Annenberg Public Policy Center (at U. Penn)
Media, communication, and public policy research.
Brookings Institute
Oldest and largest U.S. nonpartisan public policy research institute.
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Centrist group focusing on researching and improving policies that affect middle and low income Americans.
Center for Media and Democracy
Improving democracy by promoting citizen-developed media, including SourceWatch and Congresspedia wikis.
Center for Public Integrity
Monitoring the abuses of the lobbying industry, the little-known and lightly-regulated "fourth branch" of government.
Center for Responsive Politics (OpenSecrets.org)
Promoting transparency in government activity. Citizen-led unearthing and sharing the hidden activities of power. Ideologically nonpartisan, but default progressive (in today's politics).
Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
Nonpartisan, strategic policy solutions for global issues (John Hamre, Sam Nunn). Seven Revolutions 20 year futuring program (Erik Peterson).
Center on Philanthropy (at Indiana University)
Improving the understanding and practice of voluntary giving, association, and action.
Center for Responsive Politics
Nonpartisan group that tracks money in politics and its effect on elections and public policy.
Citizens for Global Solutions
Building peace, justice and freedom through local activism with national and international institutions.
Civitas
Think tank for the study and improvement of civil society (UK).
Committee for Economic Development (CED)
Independent, nonpartisan org of business and education leaders dedicated to policy research on major economic and social issues. 60 years old.
Committee to Encourage Corporate Philanthropy
A community of CEOs improving corporate giving.
Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)
Nonpartisan, independent, national membership organization for foreign policy analysis and recc's. Publishes Foreign Affairs (since 1922).
FairVote.org
Bringing democracy to voting, by eliminating winner-takes-all and moving to ranked choice voting (RCV) at local, state, and federal levels.
Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI)
Bringing scholarship to bear on policy development to advance U.S. national interests. Since 1955.
Judicial Watch
Nonpartisan reform of the legal and judicial systems. Watchdogs monitoring government corruption and nontransparency of all types.
Institute for International Economics
Analysis and solutions for key international economic problems.
Long Now Foundation
Promoting very long term individual and cultural thinking.
Lowy Institute for International Policy (Australia)
An independent international policy think tank generating ideas and dialogue on international developments and Australia’s role in the world.
Meridian Institute
Nonpartisan collaboration, mediation, and assessment services.
National Institute on Media and the Family
Improving the impact of mass media on children through research, education, and advocacy.
Network for Good
Leading national e-Philanthropy site, helping improve voluntary community activity.
New America Foundation
Independent, nonpartisan public policy institute focused on leaders under 40, using venture capital and discourse.
Public Knowledge
Advocating a fair and balanced approach to copyright and technology policy.
Resources for the Future
The leading centrist U.S. environmental, energy, and natural resource analysis group. Since 1952.
Social Welfare Research Institute (Boston College)
Studying wealth, philanthropy, spirituality, and other dimensions of cultural life "in an age of affluence."
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (WWICS) and Foresight and Governance Project
Wilson was the only U.S. pres. with a Ph.D. Wanted public service and scholarship to be unified. "Policy dialog in a Moore's Law World." (David Rejeski)
World Bank
World's leading international development bank. Pro-technology, acceleration-unaware.
World Resources Institute
Sustainability, economic development, information access, social equity.

Right of Center
American League of Lobbyists (ALL)
Professional organization representing special-interest political lobbying.
Americans for Prosperity
Aggressive conservative advocacy, funded largely by the Koch brothers.
Bradley Foundation
Conservative advocacy (freedom, private enterprise, limited government).
Cato Institute
Technology aware but unrealistically libertarian at times. The late Julian Simon was a Cato Senior Fellow.
Center for Bioethics and Culture
Christians advocating biotechnological policy debate.
Center for Genetics and Society
Bioconservative, anti-IGM (inheritable genetic modification) public policy org.
Center for Technology and National Security Policy
Examines technological innovation for U.S. national security policy and military planning.
Discovery Institute
Free-market policies and regional development (Northwest U.S.)
Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC)
Connecting "Judeo-Christian moral tradition" and the public debate over domestic and foreign policy issues.
Heartland Institute
Market-based approaches to environmental protection and public services and regional development (Midwest).
Heritage Foundation
Conservative public policies of limited government, strong defense, more globalized and free enterprise, limited social programs, and individual liberty.
Hoover Institution
Promoting freedoms, private enterprise, and representative government.
Hudson Institute
Appreciates the crucial role of technology in accelerating progress. Founded by the late Herman Kahn.
Independent Institute
Fostering government reform, entrepreneurial innovation, and liberty.
Manhattan Institute
Improving economic choice and individual responsibility in civic society.
National Rifle Association
Defenders of the individual right to bear anonymous arms, a position becoming anachronistic in our increasingly transparent society. Expect mandated networked lethal and nonlethal defensive weapons to replace today's anonymous gun sales within a generation.
National Taxpayers Union
Advocates of simplifying federal and state tax codes that have become an unjustifiable sink of human effort.
Pacific Research Institute
Championing free-market policy and personal responsibility and regional development (Northern CA).
Progress & Freedom Foundation
Market oriented policy think tank studying the digital revolution.
Reason Public Policy Institute
Promotes choice, competition, and dynamic markets.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Major conservative and big-business advocacy group.

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Technology and Innovation

JohnMSmart — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 12:33:38 CDT

Futures-oriented technology and innovation organizations around the world. Listed alpha by organization name.

Categories
General
Technology Roadmapping
Consumer Products

General
21st Century Airships
Prototypes for "stratellites" at 50,000 ft. for continuous city monitoring, border defense and broadband (Hokan Colting).
ABI Research
Technology market research for manufacturers and service companies.
Ackoff Center for the Advancement of Systems Approaches (ACASA at U Penn)
Dedicated to advancing Systems Thinking research worldwide (Russ Ackoff)
Advanced Design Institute
Facilitating advanced design thinking and practice.
Alignent
Technology and product roadmapping software for product development and innovation.
American Association for Artificial Intelligence (AAAI)
Excellent generalist coverage of the A.I. field.
American Council for Technology (ACT)
Networking industry and the government IT community in initiatives to improve government.
American Electronics Association
Nationwide non-profit trade association representing all U.S. technology industries, from software and semiconductors to electronics and telecom.
American Society for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T)
4,000 librarians and information professionals searching for new and better theories, techniques, and technologies to improve access to information.
American Technology Research
Independent research on technology and growth companies.
APEC Center for Technology Foresight (CTF) (Thailand)
Improving foresight capability and leading-edge planning tools for APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) nation economies and businesses.
Archimedes Project (Stanford University)
IT assistance project for the disabled, elderly, illliterate, and all users of information appliances. Linguistic user interface oriented.
Artificial Development
Building CCortex™, the largest simulation of the human cortex and peripheral neural systems to date (Marcos Guillen)
Association for Computational Linguistics (ACL)
Leading computational linguistics/NLP society. Conversational Interface here we come!
Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
Oldest and largest computer science society in the U.S.
BBN Technologies
Very creative contract innovator. One of the original developers of the internet. Today they do a lot of security innovation for the DoD and industry.
Bridges.org
International nonprofit promoting effective use of ICT in the developing world.
Buckminster Fuller Institute
Anticipatory design science. Sustainable technologies for Spaceship Earth.
CacheLogic
Leading research on the bottom-up growth of P2P networks.
Center for the Development of Technological Leadership (CDTL)
Bridging the gap between engineering, strategy, and foresight for high-tech businesses (U. of Minnesota).
Center for Responsible Nanotechnology
Considering near and longer term issues and implications of nanotechnology development.
CommunityNetworking.org
Low-cost IT networks and open source tools for community empowerment.
Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT)
A center of Internet security expertise. Carnegie Mellon U.
Computing Research Association
Strengthening research and advanced education in computing.
Computer Security Institute
Leading membership organization training information, computer and network security professionals.
DARPA Grand Challenge
Autonomous vehicles competition, L.A. to Las Vegas. $1 million prize.
Edison Electric Institute (EEI)
The association of U.S. shareholder-owned electric companies, industry associates, and international affiliates (60% of US electricity).
Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)
A nonprofit center for public interest energy and environmental research.
Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW)
Innovative development solutions for the third of the world still in poverty.
Engineers Without Borders
Linking engineering students with projects in developing countries for clean water, renewable energy, appropriate and sustainable technology.
Evolved Machines
Pioneering the synthesis of 3D artificial neural circuits via programmable GPUs. For olfaction and visual object recognition (Paul A. Rhodes)
Firefox (Mozilla)
Award-winning free open source browser. Preserving choice and innovation on the internet (Blake Ross)
Franklin Institute
Formed in 1824 to promote science, technology, and the legacy of Benjamin Franklin. Oldest and prestigious annual US awards in S&T.
Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research (Karlsruhe, Germany)
A leading institute investigating how innovation and technical productivity shape the global future.
Global Academic Innovation Network - Litman Law
Nice directory of academic innovation and tech transfer groups, maintained by Litman Law, a patent law firm.
GRID Alternatives
Providing subsidized solar panels for low income communities in need, allowing them to sell their excess energy back to the grid. $600,000 annual budget, donation-based.
Human Productivity Lab (Arlington VA, and Germany)
Leaders in simplifying and explaining the rapid global advance of telepresence technology.
Hypercar
Amory Lovin's CFRP (carbon fiber reinforced plastic) auto body design and production group. Radical lightweighting and fuel saving.
IDEO
Leading product design consultants (Tom Kelley)
Information Technology & Innovation Foundation
Bipartisan, advancing a pro-innovation, pro-information technology public policy agenda (Wash, DC)
Innovation-TRIZ
Forecasting and planning tool based on the study of invention patterns in global patent literature (Jack Hipple).
Institute of Transportation Studies (U.C. Berkeley)
Funded at $25M/yr. One of the world's leading centers for transportation research and futures.
Insititute on Biotechnology and the Human Future (Chicago-Kent College of Law)
Assessments of the scientific benefits and risks, and cultural and ethical issues of new developments in biotechnology (Nigel M. de S. Cameron)
International Association of Nanotechnology (IANANO)
Fostering global research and business collaboration in nanotech. Roadmap.
International Center for Technology Assessment (ICTA)
Nonprofit exploring the economic, ethical, social, environmental and political impacts of technology (Washington, DC).
International Federation of Robotics
Annual ISR conference, maintains comprehensive list of companies in robotics.
International Informatics Institute
ICT and electronic media research, education and consulting (Jack Powers).
International Technology Education Association (ITEA)
Leading professional organization of technology teachers. Promoting technological literacy by improving the teaching of tech and the professionalism of tech teachers.
International Traffic Medicine Association (ITMA)
Working to reduce automotive fatalities worldwide. 42,000 such deaths annually in the U.S. (15th worst per million vehicles in 2004). Vast majority are due to driver behavior.
International Society for Genetic and Evolutionary Computation
Leading society exploring genetic algorithms and early evolutionary computation. Not yet biologically-inspired or evolutionary developmental, but a worthy start.
ITM Power
Low-cost home electrolysers (use water and electricity to make hydrogen for H2 cars and scooters). H2's very low power density makes this practical only for scooters in 2008 Electric scooters are even more convenient today, but because of battery replacement (short duty cycles), H2 scooters are more affordable and sustainable at present.
KnowledgeContext
Giving young people the ability to make the best choices in a world where computers, telecommunications, and biotechnology change with greater and greater speed.
MITRE
Nonprofit charted to do systems, IT, and operations R&D in the public interest. 5,700 scientists.
National Association of Manufacturers (NAM)
The nation's oldest and largest broad-based industrial trade association, represents 14,000 companies in every industrial sector in every state.
NeuroInsights
Investing and strategy coverage of the emerging neurotechnology industry (Zack Lynch).
Optobionics
Investigational Artificial Silicon Retina (ASR) implants to help retinitis pigmentosa patients see (Alan Chow, MD).
Outsell
Market analysis for the information industry. Leading analysts of the IT analysts (IDC, Gartner, Forrester, etc.).
Planetary Society
Leading nonprofit space advocacy group. "Outer space, not inner space."
Practical Futurist
Technology futures weblog and conference keynotes (Michael Rogers).
Probabilistic Logic Learning
Tutorial on a major new automated machine learning tool, integrating probability models with first-order logical or relational representation languages (L. De Raedt, K. Kersting)
Red Team Racing (Carnegie Mellon Robotics)
Blog for CMU's autonomous Hummer, Sandstorm.
Society for Artificial Intelligence and the Simulation of Behavior
The U.K.'s largest A.I. society. London A.I. mailing list (U. Sussex).
Strategic Futures International
Long range forecasting, strategy, planning for industry, institutions, and govt.
Strategy Analytics
A leading employee-owned international research and consulting firm in the information, communication, and entertainment technology industries.
Technology Foresight Center
Part of the United Kingdom's Foresight Program. Providing challenging visions of the future to ensure effective strategies now.
Technology Futures
Consulting for market and business implications of technological change, with special experience in IT (John Vanston, Austin, TX)
TunnelBuilder.com
Leading portal for the world's tunnelling industry. Expect underground urban automated highway and parking systems by mid century. (Mike Smith)
Vulcan Power
Leading geothermal (renewable energy) developer in the Western U.S. 20 years and 700 megawatts (MW) of successful geothermal power production.
World Energy Council (WEC)
Leading research consortium exploring the supply and use of energy worldwide.

Technology Roadmapping
Centre for Technology Management, Institute for Management, University of Cambridge
Top U.K. business school. Nice set of links on technology roadmapping.
International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS)
The leading global consortium for roadmapping semiconductor devices. Fascinating reading.
Management of Accelerated Technology Innovation (MATI), Kellogg School of Mgmt, Northwestern U. Kellogg is the #1 U.S. business school. Run by Mike Radnor, Professor.

Consumer Products
Brondell
Next generation toilet seats (bidets, deodorizing, eco-friendly) (Mark Cuban, Angel Investor).

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Foresight Social Networks - Global List

rubenfwnelson — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 11:21:32 CDT

Top Social Networks and Meet Ups (Free and low cost)

Free Online Foresight Social Networks to Consider Joining

1. Global Foresight - Facebook
For general futures and foresight networking. Free. 132 million general users.
2. Global Foresight - LinkedIn. Join us by clicking http://www.linkedin.com/e/gis/3037/535E6A2B648E
For business futures and foresight networking. Free basic. 23 million business users.
3. Shaping Tomorrow's Foresight Network (STFN)
For professional futures and foresight networking. Free. Great discussions.
4. Foresight Education and Research Network (FERN)
For foresight/futures educator networking, and improving foresight education. See FERN Wiki.

Other Free or Low-Priced Foresight Networks in Primary Foresight Specialties to Consider Joining
ACUNU Millennium Project (35 'country nodes')

They publish the annual State of the Future report and the occasional Futures Research Methodology report.
Meet annually. (Founders, Jerry Glenn and Ted Gordon)

Association of Professional Futurists (APF)

$195/$50 per year. 400+ members. Active. Great discussion list, great professional network. For those who:

Know the tools and perspectives of futures studies, and use them to enable others to identify options, decisions, and actions in the present
Employ long-term thinking and planning and encourage others to do so
Encourage the application of the tools and perspectives of futures studies in public, private and professional endeavors

Australasian Futures and Foresight Association (AFFA)

$330/165 per year. 40+ members. Started Feb 2008. Same joining criteria as APF.

European Foresight Monitoring Network (59 global correspondents, thousands of foresight documents)

For those doing government or industry foresight work in Europe or elsewhere to share research publicly (Mike Keenan).

Foresight Canada

Free network of Canadians with a serious interest in futures research and strategic foresight. Sign up at www.foresightcanada.ca

Foresight Education Project (50+ members).

For foresight/futures educators to share and improve foresight education curricula. See FEP Wiki.

World Future Society (WFS)

$49/$20 per year. 25,000+ members, but no known online discussion groups.
The oldest and largest futures organization. Nonpartisan, broad-based.

World Futures Studies Federation

$70/$45 per year.200+ members, active lister discussion among the world's scholarly-minded practitioners.
For persons and organizations "committed to futures studies, strategic foresight and future-oriented societal change."

World Transhumanist Association

$50/$20 per year. 4,840 members. Active. Many free discussion lists.

Higher-Priced orSecondary Foresight Specialties Networks to Consider Joining
American Academy of Actuaries (Unknown size)
American Statistical Association (Unknown)
Association for Strategic Planning (Unknown)
Global Business Network (Unknown)
Institute of Business Forecasting & Planning (Unknown)
International Actuarial Association (Unknown)
World Future Council (Unknown)

Free General Futures/Foresight Social and Discussion Groups to Consider Joining
ASF Future Salon Network (1,530 members, 15 Yahoo!/Google/MeetUp/Facebook Groups)

Free local social salons that regularly discuss futures issues in 15 cities around the world so far (start your own!):
China
* Beijing Future Salon (aka Beijing Futurists Society) (Facebook Group, 23 members, active)
Philippines
* Manila Future Salon (Yahoo Group, 211 members, active)
USA
* Atlanta Future Salon (Yahoo! Group, 25 members, presently inactive--needs moderator)
* Bay Area Future Salon (Yahoo! Group, 815 members, active)
* Boulder Future Salon (Yahoo! Group, 63 members, active)
* DC Future Salon (Yahoo! Group, 92 members, semiactive--needs co-moderator)
* Honolulu Futures Salon (Yahoo! Group, 13 members, active)
* Las Vegas Future Salon (Yahoo! Group, 210 members, active)
* Los Angeles Future Salon (Yahoo Group, 651 members, presently inactive--needsmoderator)
* New York City Future Salon (Meetup Group, 168 members, active)
* Philadelphia Future Salon (Google Group, 115 members, active)
* Phoenix Future Salon (Yahoo! Group, 28 members, presently inactive--needs moderator)
* Seattle Future Salon (Yahoo! Group, 59 members, semiactive--needs co-moderator)
* San Diego Future Salon (Yahoo! Group, 165 members, semiactive--needs co-moderator)
* Santa Cruz Future Salon (Yahoo! Group, 86 members, active)
* Second Life Future Salon (Yahoo! Group, 137 members, presently inactive--needs co-moderator)
* Tucson H+ Future Salon (Facebook Group, 132 members, very active--weekly meetings)

ASF North American Future Salon Network - Talk (163 members, semiactive). (USA, Canada)

Open discussion group for attendees of US and Canadian future salons, of any type. Free.

ACUNU Millennium Project (Jerry Glenn and Ted Gordon)

They have thirty five "country nodes," from Argentina to Venezuela. These folks contribute to Millennium Project (State of the Future) foresight work. Great contacts for setting up local foresight groups in these countries!

Applied Foresight Network (254 members, semiactive. Canada, global.)

Broad discussions of "big picture" futures topics (sustainability, ethics, vision). Free.

European Foresight Monitoring Network (EFMN) (59 correspondents. Global.)

Excellent EU-funded foresight materials aggregation community! Includes results of over 1,200 (so far) European and other national foresight studies. Great contacts for meeting foresight researchers.

Extropy-chat (unknown number of members, active. USA, global).

Oldest transhumanist discussion list. Some futures studies, deep thinkers. Mild libertarian bias. Since 1991.

Long Now MeetUps (318 members, 5 groups, global).

Prompting "Slower/Better" foresight thinking globally. Based in SF, USA. See Long Now Foundation for blog, videos, and more.

World Transhumanist Association (4,840 members. Active.)

WTA Discussion lists. Topical and regional. WTA Talk is is the main list. Moderate volume.
Transhumanist Student Network Facebook group. (1,353 members. Active.)
Roughly fifty free local chapter lists, from Argentina to Venezuela. Fourteen in USA. Most onmailman platform).
Roughly eighteen WTA chapters meeting monthly. WTA-affiliated online groups and members:
Croatia
* Croatia Chapter (Yahoo! Group, 15 members,active)
Germany
* Munich/Berlin/Bonn Chapter De:Trans (37 members, active)
Mexico
* Mexico City Chapter (Yahoo! Group, 77 members, semiactive)
Russia
* Moscow Chapter. RTD website. (Google Group, 117 members, active)
SloveniaSlovenia
* Slovenian Chapter (Yahoo! Group, 15 members, semiactive)
Uganda
* Kampala Chapter (Yahoo! Group, 15 members, semiactive)
United Kingdom
* Cambridge, Cambridge U. Ethics & Emerging Tech. Society (14 members at FB group, active)
USA
* Phoenix, H+ Club (30 members, active)
* Tucson, H+ Club at U. of AZ (100 members, very active: weekly meetings)

Fee-Based General Futures/Foresight Social and Discussion Groups to Consider Joining
WFS Chapter Lists (Africa/Middle East, Asia/Pacific, Europe, No. America, So./Central America)

A number of futurists are listed as "chapter heads" with contact emails. Small annual chapter fees.
Chapters with websites (and any known online discussion groups, if any).
South Korea
* Seoul (Korea Node of the UN Millennium Project, size unknown, activity unknown)
USA
* Austin (Central Texas Chapter, size unknown, semiactive)
* Boston (Boston Chapter, size unknown, presently inactive)
* Colorado Springs (Colorado Springs Chapter, size unknown, presently inactive)
* Dallas (Dallas Chapter, size unknown, presently inactive)
* DC (National Capital Region Chapter, size unknown, active)
* Madison (Madison Chapter, size unknown, semiactive)
* New York (New York Chapter, size unknown, activity unknown)
* Philadelphia (Philadelphia, size unknown, semiactive)

Know other active general futures or foresight groups or networks, anywhere in the world? Add them here!
Email the GF administrator (johnsmart{at}accelerating{dot}org) if you are uncertain where they go.

Top Foresight Orgs

rubenfwnelson — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 11:11:14 CDT

Some of the top foresight and futures-oriented organizations presently operating around the world. These organizations have distinguished themselves in methods or theory in one or more of ASF's Primary Foresight Specialties, or take alternative foresight approaches, as seen in the variety of Foresight Frameworks on the FERN wiki.

Top Foresight Organizations (most with Experience in Primary Foresight/Futures Specialties)
List alpha by organizational name.

Acceleration Studies Foundation
Outreach, education, research, and advocacy with respect to communities and technologies of accelerating change. (John Smart)
ACUNU Millennium Project for Global Futures Studies and Research
Global research think tank of futurists, scholars, business planners, and policy makers (Jerry Glenn, Ted Gordon).
Adizes Institute
Leading change management/organizational development consultancy (Ichak Adizes).
AECOM
A global provider of leadership, innovation, and management support services for industry and government.
African Futures Institute
Pan-African foresight (prospective studies) and development thinking (Cape Town, South Africa)
AIR Worldwide (AIR)
Leaders in catastrophe and terrorism modeling, risk modeling and decision modeling (Karen Clark).
American Planning Association
Oldest U.S. association of practicing urban, policy, social, and business planners. Since 1935.
Arlington Institute
Surfacing and preparing for surprise in the technological future (John Peterson).
Association for Strategic Planning
Helping organizations to succeed through improved strategic thinking, planning, and action.
Association of Professional Futurists
Improving methodology and practice in the nascent future studies field (Randy Scheel, Andy Hines)
Battelle
Technology development and assessment for industry and government.
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs (JFK Sch of Govt, Harvard U)
Long term futures work on International security, climate change, nuclear issues, Middle East issues.
Bell Labs
Historical leader in blue sky U.S. R&D. Lucent's innovation group.
Booz Allen Hamilton
A global strategy and consulting firm, strong on forecasting and analysis.
Boston Consulting Group
One of the oldest and most diverse business consulting firms. Nice publications archive.
Breaking Trends (UK)
Global trends intelligence from 'alpha' cities and leading innovators (Alec Howe).
Brint Institute
Leading knowledge management portal applying systems research to business (Yogesh Malhatra).
BTexact, (and Ian Pearson, Futurologist)
Acceleration-aware futures articles and conference keynotes (Ian Pearson).
Center for an Urban Future
NYC-based think-tank considering the future of cities.
Center for Future Consciousness
Writings, Presentations, Workshops, Programs, and Resources on the Future (Tom and Jeanne Lombardo)
Center for Futurism in Education at Ben-Gurion University
Developing innovative educational ideas and online delivery systems, integrating ICT with humanistic values (Roni Aviram, Chair)
Center for the Study of Science Fiction (CSSF)
Resources for teaching and navigating the fascinating, future-oriented world of science fiction (James Gunn). See also Science Fiction Research Assn (SFRA), the oldest professional org. for study of sci-fi and fantasy lit. and film.
Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
Nonpartisan think tank of semi-indedependent analysts, all focusing on strategic insights and policy solutions to current and emerging global issues (John Hamre, Sam Nunn). See for example their Seven Revolutions 20 year futuring program (Erik Peterson).
Central Intelligence Agency
Independent civilian intelligence agency responsible for providing national and international security intelligence to senior United States policymakers.
Clarium Capital Management
Exceptional future-oriented global macro hedge fund with a contrarian bias. (Peter Thiel)
Cognitive Edge (Singapore)
Tools for systematically exploring organizational foresight with complexity and network methods (David Snowden)
Conferenza
News and commentary on technology's most important executive conferences (Shel Israel)
Community Futures Network (Canada)
A network of 268 community economic development and visioning centers. Great example of government foresight and participatory democracy.
Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies (Denmark)
Strengthening decision-making in public and private organisations by improving awareness of the future.
Datamonitor
Leading broad-based market research company.
DaVinci Institute
Entrepreneurship, innovation, and futurism. Membership organization. (Thomas Frey)
Decision Strategies (Houston, TX)
Foresight, uncertainty, and decision analysis strategy and consulting, primarily for large oil and energy corporations.
Decision Strategies International
Leading global consulting firm to Fortune 1000 in strategic decisionmaking, scenario planning, and scanning/weak signals.
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
R&D agency tasked with maintaining the technological superiority of the U.S. military.
Defense Intelligence Agency
A major producer and manager of military intelligence for the US Department of Defense.
Deutche Bank Research
A leading global think tank for trends in business, society, and finance.
Draper Fisher Jurvetson
Premiere IT and nano venture capital for accelerating technological change (Tim Draper, John Fisher, Steve Jurvetson).
Economist Intelligence Unit
World leading resource for global intelligence and analysis.
Edge.org
Leading site for deep social, technological, and scientific commentary (John Brockman).
Estonian Institute for Futures Studies
Foresight and development studies for the future of Estonia.
European Foresight Monitoring Network
Fantastic portal for global foresight project activities. Run by Mike Keenan of U. Manchester, PREST (United Kingdom).
Fast Future
UK-based change management, innovation, incubation, and venturing group (Rohit Talwar)
FBI Futures Working Group
Law enforcement foresight community. Collaboration between FBI and Police Futurists International.Finland Futures Research Center (Turku, Finland)
Leading European academic futures studies center. 17 member universities.
Finnish Parliament's Committee For the Future
Conducts foresight research, advises lawmakers on development, technology assessment, and social effects of technology.
Finnish Society for Futures Studies
Futures research and development studies for Finland.

Foresight Canada

We nurture, teach and practice strategic foresight 2.0 at a high professional level in all sectors of Canadian society/economy. We include a research centre, consultancy and service to the field. Join the largest network of Canadian futures researchers and strategic foresighters.
Forecast International
Market research and intel group serving aerospace, defense, and power industries.
Forecasting International
Global trend analysis, futures consulting and speaking (Marvin Cetron)
Foresight Institute
Understanding the future of nanotechnology (Eric Drexler, Christine Peterson).
Foresight & Innovation (Stanford University)
Egineering and design research, education, and scenario development.
Forrester Research
Technology trends, strategy, and investment research.
Founders Fund (San Francisco, CA USA)
Venture capital and seed startup/angel investing in groundbreaking technology startup companies. (Peter Thiel)
Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research (Karlsruhe, Germany)
A leading institute investigating how innovation and technical productivity shape the global future.
Frost & Sullivan
Enabling clients to accelerate growth and achieve best-in-class positions in growth, innovation and leadership.
Future Foundation - Experian (London, UK)
Consumer trends, market research, new product research (Melanie Howard, Michael Wilmott).
Futures Foundation (Melbourne, Australia)
Tools and perspectives for indiv. and organizational futures (Charles Brass).
Futures Group International (and Futures Group Europe)
International health and development planning.
Future Skills (West Yorkshire, UK)
Presentations and workshops on all aspects of futures studies (Graham May).
Future Trends
IIR USA’s community and conferences on brands, marketing, and social trends.
Futures Lab
Consumer and business futures consultancy (Derek Woodgate, Wayne Pethrick).
Futuribles
Prospective studies/foresight research since 1960's (Michel Godet)
Futurist.com
Futures retreats, seminars, and conference keynotes (Glenn Hiemstra, Brenda Cooper).
Gallup
Global polling, political, market, and well-being research and consulting organization.
Gartner
A leading consultancy and research firm on information technology in business.
Global Business Network - Monitor Group
Scenarios, strategy, and risk management for global business (Peter Schwartz).
Global Change
Trends analysis and conference keynotes (Pat Dixon)
Global Ideas Bank
Repository for edited public domain tech, policy, and business ideas for the taking.
Global Insight
World's leading econometric forecasting think tank.
Global Future Forum
Independent partnership of futurists, academics, and businesspeople for futuring, strategic planning and change management (Rohit Talwar).
Global Innovation Index (INSEAD Business School, France)
Benchmarking country innovation on an annual basis.
Global Vision Consulting Ltd.
Helping organizations understand and respond effectively to accelerating change (David Forrest).
GLOCOM, International U. of Japan
Social science analysis of the information society.
Going Global Ventures (New York, NY USA)
Foresight, management and globalization consulting for businesses competing in the knowledge economy (Mark Minevich)
Henley Centre
International strategic futures and marketing consultancy (UK).
IBM Almaden Research Center, IBM Research
Developing visionary products and platforms for intelligent technology.
Ideo
A leading product, systems, and organizational design and innovation firm.
In-Q-Tel
DARPA/VC arm of the U.S. Intel Community. Communicating intel needs, reviewing business plans, funding companies, delivering tech solutions. Founded 1999.
In-Stat/MDR
Leaders in market research and forecasts for semiconductor and digital devices.
Intertraffic Innovation Awards (Netherlands)
Annual recognition of the most important innovations in intelligent transportation systems, cooperative systems, infrastructure, parking, safety, and environment.
Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA)
Promoting the practice and education of industrial design
Industrial Research Institute
Association of business leaders in R&D, working to enhance the effectiveness of technological innovation.
Infinite Futures
Forsight consulting, futures research, and strategic planning (Wendy Schultz).
Information Technology & Innovation Foundation
Bipartisan, advancing a pro-innovation, pro-information technology public policy agenda (Wash, DC)
Institute for Alternative Futures (IAF)
Health care futures, governance and public policy consultancy (Clem Bezold, Jonathan Peck).
Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies
Mission is to shape public policies that distribute the benefits and reduce the risks of tech advancement (James Hughes)
Institute for Future Studies (Innsbruck, Austria)
Applied research on the future of education and work.
Institute for Futures Research (IFR) (Bellville, South Africa)
Corporate strategy support. Affiliated with the U. of Stellenbosch futures studies graduate program.
Institute for Futures Studies (IFS) (Stockholm, Sweden)
Futures studies, long-term analysis, and related activities.
Institute for Futures Studies and Technology Assessment (Germany)
Evaluating the development of emerging technologies, with a focus on sustainability (Rolf Kreibich)
Institute for Global Futures (IGF)
Business strategy, outreach, and forecasts for the digital future. (James Canton)
Institute for Operations Research and Management Sciences (INFORMS)
Serves scientific and professional needs of OR/MS investigators, scientists, students, educators, and managers. OR is optimization theory and practice, "the science of better." Institute for the Future at AACC
Excellent example of the kind of futures organization that should exist at every institute of higher education in the U.S. Has a speakers bureau for the faculty at this Community College that like to speak on the future, not just the past or present.
Institute for Scientific Research (ISR)
Advanced research and development for NASA, DoD, govt., and commercial clients (George Pederson).
Institute for the Future (IFTF)
One of the oldest and most respected futures consultancies (Paul Saffo).
Institute of Business Forecasting & Planning (IBF)
Demand forecasting and operations planning education and professional development.
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
"Eye-triple-E" is a non-profit, technical professional association of 380,000 individual members in 150 countries.
International Data Corporation (IDC) and International Data Group (IDG)
A leading technology media and information technology market research firm.
International Network for Engineering Education and Research (INEER)
A networking professional organization (engineers, educators and researchers in 98 countries) to help advance global engineering education and research.
International Institute of Forecasters (IIF)
Stimulating the generation, distribution, and use of knowledge on forecasting.
International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE)
Globally improving teaching and learning by advancing the effective use of technology in education.

Kedge (Savannah, GA)
Foresight, Innovation, Creativity, & Strategic Design consultancy & think tank. Frank Spencer, Principal (MA, Strategic Foresight)
KurzweilAI.net
Leading long-term technology and artificial intelligence futures portal (Ray Kurzweil, Amara Angelica).

Leading Futurists LLC
Futures consultancy serving government, corporations, non-profits, Jennifer Jarratt and John B. Mahaffie, principals
Lifeboat Foundation
Encouraging scientific advancement and better characterization of existential risks (Eric Klein).
Linden Lab
Creators of Second Life, the award-winning 3D online world where users create, inhabit, and own all digital content of their own design (Philip Rosedale, Cory Ondrejka)
LIPSOR (Laboratory for Investigation in Prospective Strategy and Org) (France)
Strategic foresight in emerging technologies. Strong PhD tech foresight program through CNAM.
Long Now Foundation
Promoting long-term thinking and action. Excellent Seminars About Long-Term Thinking. See Long Bets for publicly-accountable long-term predictions (Jeff Bezos, Stuart Brand, Kevin Kelly).
Long Future Research Group (Hungary)
An attempt to look at the future on cosmological timescales (Eva Toth).
Maker Faire
The world’s largest DIY festivals, celebrating prototyping and design innovation.
ManyWorlds
Strategy, innovation, futures, and collaborative process management (Steve Flynn).
Markle Foundation
Accelerating communications media and information technology development to improve civic life.
Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science
Interdisciplinary and innovative research in the physical sciences, life sciences, social sciences, and humanities. 21,000 staff.
McKinsey Global Institute
Economic research think tank of McKinsey & Co. Excellent broad reporting.
Mercer
Leading global HR, strategy, and financial consultancy. Strong foresight focus.
Monitor 360 (San Francisco, CA)
Foresight on complex and ambiguous geo-strategic challenges for governments, policy makers, multinational businesses, and NGOs.(Doug Randall, Peter Schwartz)
NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts (NAIC)
Seeks proposals for revolutionary aeronautics and space concepts from outside thinkers and researchers. Model for eliciting high-leverage public foresight.
National Academy of Sciences (Washington, DC)
National Academies perform an unparalleled public service by bringing together committees of experts in all areas of scientific and technological endeavor. These experts serve pro bono to address critical national issues and give advice to the federal government and the public.
National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST)
Japan's largest public research organization. Bleeding edge.
National Intelligence Council of the CIA
The U.S. intelligence community's center for mid- and long-term strategic thinking. Excellent futures publications.
National Security Agency
A cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States government, administered as part of the US Dept. of Defense.
Norwich University Applied Research Institutes (NUARI)
Foresight research in learning technologies, advanced sciences, defense technologies, and cyber conflict.
OECD PISA (Program for International School Assessment)
Rates the OECD countries annually in the competitiveness of their 15 year olds. The US is now average in the OECD rankings, and on a declining trend at present.
Office of Naval Research (ONR)
To foster, plan, facilitate and transition scientific research.
PA Consulting Group
One of the oldest and largest global mgmt, systems, and tech consulting groups.
Palantir Technologies (Palo Alto, CA USA)
Provide analytics platforms for top financial and intelligence clients.
Panopticon
Innovative visioning and alternative futures group in Antwerp (Belgium).
PARC (Palo Alto Research Center)
Xerox subsidiary. Interdisciplinary R&D in physical, comp., and social sciences.
Pardee Center for the Study of the Long Range Future, Boston U.
Exploring the world's long-term political and social future.
Principia Cybernetica Project
Leading portal for exploring concepts in cybernetics, systems theory, and complex adaptive systems (Francis Heylighen)
Program for the Human Environment, Rockefeller University
Exploring how long-run technical change relates to productivity and efficiency of energy, materials, land, and other resources, and the consequences for human populations. Elucidating our progression toward a micro-emissions society.
PSFK
Trends, innovation and market consulting, publishing, and conferences (Piers Fawkes)
RAND Corporation (and RAND Pardee Center)
Trend extrapolation, policy studies and tech assessment pioneers.
Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS)
Advancing risk management globally. Serves 10,000 risk and insurance management professionals.
Rocky Mountain Institute
Innovation and technology oriented sustainability organization. Natural capitalism paradigm (Amory Lovins).
Royal Dutch Shell
Pioneers of scenario foresight methodology. Foresight, forescasting and scenario planning are deeply imbedded in Shell culture (Jeremy Bentham)
SAMI (St. Andrews Management Institute) Consulting
Scenario planning, strategy, and risk management consulting to deliver resilient decisions in uncertain times (Gill Ringland).
Santa Fe Institute (and SFI Business Network)
Leading quantitative complexity studies institution (George Cowan, Murray Gell-Mann).
Shaping Tomorrow
Subscription-based trend analysis and futures database community. Free newsletter. (Michael Jackson).
Shell Scenarios Group
Scenario planning pioneers. Long term energy and technology futures.
Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence
Essays and projects on artificial intelligence and transhumanism (Eliezer Yudkowsky).
Social Technologies
Corporate and institutional futures consultancy (Tom Conger).
SRI International (Menlo Park, CA) and SRI Consulting (Chemical, Health, etc.)
With RAND, one of the oldest and largest foresight consulting think tanks. More research than policy oriented today. 2,000+ employees.
Strategic Foresight Group (Sundeep Waslekar) (India)
Excellent sociopolitical foresight work. Cost of conflict, Western-Islamic relations, geostrategic issues.
Stratfor
Private intelligence for global business, economics, security, and geopolitics.
Sunlight Foundation
Making government transparent and accountable by focusing on the digitization of govt data and the future of networked democracy.
Tech America
Trade assn representing many U.S. IT industry leaders, promoting U.S. IT competitiveness.
TechCast
Expert-based (Delphi) tech trend forecasting and analysis community (Bill Halal).
Technology Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce
Maximizing technology’s contribution to economic growth, high-wage job creation, and the social well being of the United States. Includes NIST, NTIS and OTP.
Technology Futures
Technology forecasting methods, specializing in telecommunications, depreciation and valuation, and general forecasting. (Lawrence Vanston)
TED
Top conference series on Technology, Entertainment, and Design for business and social leaders. Great videos.
The 451 Group
Technology-industry analysts focused on enterprise IT innovation and M&A forecasting
The Future Laboratory (UK)
Fashion, consumer, and retail trends consultancy (Martin Raymond, Tom Savigar).
TNO (Org. for Applied Scientific Research) (Netherlands)
Very large independent research organization improving competitiveness and innovation for governments, companies, and organizations.
Trendburo
Social and marketing trend consultancy (Matthias Horx, Oona Strathern).
Trendirama
Collaborative platform for writing and rating articles about the future of a variety of topics (Javier Marti)
Trends Research Institute (TRI)
A network of 25 multidisciplinary experts who forecast, analyze and track trends (Gerald Celente).
Trend Union
A leading fashion, brand and social trends consultancy. Paris based. (Lidewij Edelkoort)
TTI/Vanguard
Five conference/year forum for evaluation of emerging and breakthrough information technologies for Fortune 500's and top institutions. $30,000/seat. (Hal Levin)
Umberto Veronesi Foundation for the Progress of Science
Great annual conference on the Future of Science. (Venice, Italy).
U.S. Air War College - Future Studies
Futures perspectives on security, warfighting, strategy, sci-tech, counterproliferation, innovation adoption, and other topics. (Ted Hailes)
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (WWICS) and
Foresight and Governance Project at WWICS
Center is a living memorial for President Wilson, the only U.S. president with a Ph.D., who believed public service and scholarship should be unified. Acceleration-aware "policy dialog in a Moore's Law World." (David Rejeski)
Woodside Institute
Complexity-inspired (resilience and innovation) strategic planning (Gary Hamel, Liisa Valikangas).
Worldchanging.org
Models, tools and ideas for building a bright green future. Worthy successors to Whole Earth Review and Whole Earth Catalog.
World Future Council
The first well-funded effort (5 million Euros) at creating an international consortium of futures researchers. Focused on sustainability over innovation, yet a good balance to Western views. New HQ in 2007.
World Future Society - Professional Forum
World's oldest professional foresight organization. (Ed and Jeff Cornish, Cindy Wagner, Sue Echard).
World Futures Studies Federation (WFSF)
The oldest (1968) truly global association of scholarly futurists committed to a better future of humankind. Welcomes scholars, practitioners, students, organizations and all serious users of futures research and strategic foresight. New work: the next generation of the work. (Jennifer Gidley, Jim Dator, Eleonora Masini, Ruben Nelson)
World Technology Network
Multidisciplinary association of scientists and technologists creating new technologies and business processes. Invitation only.
World Transhumanist Association
Considering technological changes to the human condition in the near and longer-term future (Nick Bostrom, James Hughes).

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Gov, Security, Peace, Environment

JohnMSmart — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 14:11:34 CDT

Futures-oriented governmental, governance, security, peace, and environmental organizations around the world. Listed alpha by organization name.

Action Against Hunger (AAH)
Specializing in emergency situations of war, conflict, and natural disasters.
Alidade
Information age consulting to defense and corporate clients using complex systems, process innovation, and futures methodologies. (Jeffrey Cares, David Jarvis)
American Evaluation Association
Assessing the strength and weaknesses of programs, personnel, and technology. Great complement to futures studies.
Berkana Institute
Leadership development, community development, and sustainability initiatives. Complex systems theory inspired (Margaret Wheatley).
Beyond War
A revitalization of the Beyond War movement of the 1980's that had 24,000 participants in 23 states in the USA and worldwide.
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Nonpartisan promotion of international cooperation and U.S. engagement for peace.
Center for Energy and Climate Solutions
Championing solutions to improve energy sustainability and reduce greenhouse gases (Joseph Romm)
Center for Advanced Defense Studies (CADS)
Promoting research, innovation and education in the fields of information sciences, cognitive studies and global security.
Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions (CSDI)
Pioneering American think tank on democratic issues from 1959 to 1987. Great archives (Robert Hutchins).
Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS)
The largest NGO devoted to curbing WMD proliferation, and training grad students in nonproliferation studies. Part of the Monterey Institute of International Studies (MIIS).
Center for Responsive Politics (OpenSecrets.org)
Exposing and counting all the lobbying money that each US politician gets from corporate special interests. Making politics more transparent and accountable to voters.
Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments (CSBA)
Research institute established to promote innovative thinking about defense planning and investment strategies.
Centre for Counterintelligence and Security Studies
Counterintelligence, counterterrorism and security training and analysis. (David Major).
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Center for the Study of Intelligence (CSI)
The CIA conducts foreign intelligence, and their CSI conducts public and private research on intelligence.
Change Congress
Internet activist Lawrence Lessig's site to improve US congress. Promotes four platforms for stopping special interest money, transparency, and campaign reform.
Computer TakeBack Campaign
Aggressive NGO using anti-corporate public relations policy to promote computer recycling (Robin Schneider)
Congress.org
A one-stop site helping US citizens to communicating with elected officials (and vice versa).
Conservation International
Broad range of programs aimed at sustainability and maintaining Earth's natural heritage.
Club of Budapest
A systems theory-oriented community for improving sustainability and "planetary consciousness." (Ervin Laszlo).
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
The central research and development agency for the Department of Defense.
Department of Homeland Security (DSH) and Transportation Security Administration (TSA)
DSH is tasked to organize the US to "secure the homeland" from terrorist attacks. The TSA is chartered to protect the nation's transportations systems.

DNA Print Genomics
Using DNA Forensics for a physical profile of crime suspects. Can do skin, eye, hair color, height, earlobe type, etc. Working on predicting facial structure!

Ecological Design Institute
Perhaps the earliest institute pioneering sustainable architecture (Sim Van Der Ryn).
Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)
The UK's leading research funding and training agency addressing economic and social concerns. Business and public sector.
Electronic Frontier Foundation
The leading civil liberties group defending your rights in the digital world.
Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) (Mark Rotenberg) (Washington, DC USA)
Public interest research center working since 1994 to protect individual and consumer privacy, the First Amendment, and constitutional values.
European Commission's Forward Studies Unit, Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (IPTS) (Spain) and Foresight on Information Society Technologies in Europe (FISTE)
Long range forecasting studies on European Integration and Technology
Federal Forecasters Consortium
Interdisciplinary group of governmental leaders seeking to improve forecasting for public policy decisions.
Federation of American Scientists and Project on Government Secrecy
Monitoring government secrecy, the global arms trade and the control of weapons of mass destruction. Inc
ForestEthics
Redirecting the U.S. marketplace toward more sustainable forestry management.
Friends of the Earth
Network of grassroots environmental groups in 70 countries. Founded in San Francisco in 1969 by David Brower.
Future Positive (Synearth)
Sustainability-oriented approach to understanding accelerating change. (Timothy Wilken)
Global Scenario Group (GSG)
Sustainability-oriented scenarios for world resource governance (Paul Raskin).
Green Belt Movement
Kenyan and international movement for tree planting and women and child empowerment (Wangari Maathai)
GreenMotion
Ideas, action, and partnerships to advance a green U.S. future (Leah Thompson).
H.L. Stimson Center
Practical, nonpartisan, creative solutions to the problems of national and international security.
Intnat'l Assoc. of Directors of Law Enforcement Stds & Training (IADLEST)
Assist U.S. states in establishing effective and defensible standards for employment and training of law enforcement officers.
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
Main nuclear nonproliferation enforcement group. Multinational, U.N. independent.
International Crisis Group (ICG)
Field-based analysis and high-level advocacy to prevent and resolve deadly conflict.
International Energy Agency (IEA)
Formed in 1974 by OECD members, to prevent a repeat of the oil shock of 1973-4. The world has been dramatically more conservation oriented since, even as global energy use continues to grow slower every year since. (Humans, vs. the ever more energy-efficient technologies we create, are becoming a saturated planetary computational substrate).
National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA)
An all volunteer industrial-government network driving the future of defense through education, access, and influence.
National Science Board
Legislative and executive advisory body. Established by congress in 1950. NSF director is on the board.
NESTA FutureLab (Nat'l Endowmt for Sci, Tech & Arts)
Leveraging IT to accelerate educational innovation (United Kingdom)
Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy
Supporting pluralistic political party formation and participation in young democracies around the world.
Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI)
Working to reduce the global threat from nuclear terrorism and weapons proliferation (Ted Turner, Sam Nunn)
Ocean Alliance
Dedicated to the conservation of whales and their ocean environment through research and education (Roger Payne).
OpenCongress
Very nice transparency platform for congressional bills, senators, representatives, committees, etc. Start of collaborative democratic feedback.
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
Thirty member countries sharing a commitment to democratic government and the market economy. Active relationships with 70 other countries.
Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC)
Innovative USG agency that helps US businesses invest in emerging markets by providing loans and risk insurance, in support of US foreign policy and global development. Has earned a profit since its inception in 1971.
Police Futures International
Law enforcement, criminal and social justice, and the future of the policing profession.
Policy Futures
Forecasting political change using voting and utility models (Stanley Feder, Alan Schwartz)
Population Connection
Education and advocacy to reduce global population to sustainable levels (formerly Zero Population Growth).
POST Command College (California)
Training law enforcement for the challenges of the future.
President's Council on Bioethics
Anti-interventionist biotechnology advisory body for the Bush administration. "We don't need human interventions beyond therapy."
Project Vote Smart
Community-constructed nonpartisan information on the backgrounds and records of countless US political officials, ballot measures, issues, and legislation.
Pugwash
Interdisciplinary conferences on science, social responsibility, and world affairs.
Search for Common Ground
Fostering independent radio stations and peaceful conflict resolution in 15 countries. 30% funded by USAID.
Sierra Club
America's oldest and largest (700,000 members) grassroots environmental organization. Often acceleration-unaware.
Software Freedom Law Center (SFLC)
Providing legal support to the free and open source software (FOSS) movement.
Technology Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce
Maximizing technology’s contribution to economic growth, high-wage job creation, and the social well being of the United States. Includes NIST, NTIS and OTP.
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
U.S. foreign assistance for disaster recovery, escaping poverty, and democratic reform.
U.S. Air War College
Strategic thinking about security, warfighting, sci-tech policy, counterproliferation, leadership, innovation, and futuring.
U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command
Investigative services for Army, including computer crimes and cyber security.
U.S. Army War College
Preserving peace by the study of national defense and effective command.
U.S. Dept. of Education. National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES)
The primary federal entity for collecting and analyzing data related to education.
U.S. Dept. of Transportation. Intelligent Transportation Systems
Using advances in information technologies and electronics to improve our nation's transportation network.
U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA, DoE)
Providing data, forecasts, and analyses to promote sound policy making, efficient markets, and better public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment.
U.S. House Committee on Science
Jurisdiction over non-defense federal scientific research and development. Since 1958.
U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP)
DC-based nonpartisan think tank doing studies on peace, conflict resolution, democracy and development.
U.S. National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) (DoC)
The President's principal adviser on telecommunications and information policy issues.
United Nations
World's main international governance discussion group. Frequently visionary but also very politicized, bureaucratic, and often ineffectual.
UN Global Compact
Bringing companies together with UN agencies, labor, and civil organizations to support nine principles in international human rights.
UN ICT (Info and Communications Technologies) Task Force
Help harness the power of information and communication technologies for advancing the global development goals of the Millennium Declaration (particularly, halving the number of people living in extreme poverty by 2015).
UN ITU (International Telecommunications Union)
Helping governments and the private sector coordinate global telecom networks and services.
World Conservation Union (IUCN)
World’s largest and most diverse conservation network (Gland, Switzerland).
World Court (International Court of Justice)
Legal arm of the U.N. The U.S. sometimes ignores its findings, as it is still influenced by countries that have not developed modern legal standards.
World Economic Forum (Davos, Switzerland)
International organization where the world's corporate and opinion leaders discuss world economic development and global citizenship.
World Privacy Forum
Non-partisan research, advocacy, and consumer education in the intersecting areas of technology and privacy.
World Social Forum
Annual meeting of the anti-globalisation (or more charitably, sustainable globalization) movement to coordinate world campaigns.
World Technology Evaluation Center (WTEC)
Cutting edge international technology assessment studies. NBICS, simulation, etc.
World Trade Organization (WTO, Geneva, Switzerland)
Global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between 146 member nations.
World Wildlife Fund
Promoting biodiversity, renewability, and the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption.

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Social, Educ, Ethics, Compassion

JohnMSmart — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 18:02:34 CDT

Futures-oriented social, educational, ethics, or compassion-centered organizations around the world. Listed alpha by organization name.

Alliance for Excellent Education
Promoting U.S. middle school and high school transformation to make it possible for every child to graduate prepared for postsecondary education and success in life.
American Creativity Association
Improving creativity, innovation, problem-solving, and ideation in personal and professional environments.
American Philosophical Practitioners Association (APPA)
Offering philosophical and ethical couseling, moderating socratic dialogs, improving workplace culture.
American Sociological Association
Advancing sociology as a scientific discipline and profession. 14K members.
American Teilhard Association
Continuing investigation of the developmentalist world view described by paleontologist and theologian Pierre Teilhard de Chardin.
Amnesty International
Working impartially to protect human rights worldwide. 1.8M members.
Ashesi University (Ghana, Africa)
Educating a new generation of "ethical and entrepreneurial" leaders for the African continent. Excellent model business school!
Ashoka: Innovators for the Public
A global association of the world's leading social entrepreneurs in emerging nations. Started by former McKinsey consultant Bill Drayton.
Aspen Institute
Fostering leadership development, appreciation of timeless ideals and values, and nonpartisan analysis of contemporary issues.
Audience Dialog (Adelaide, Australia)
Dennis List's audience research and futures consultancy
Camp Amelia
Creates open-source ed. software and provides free after-school and summer computer camps for youth and teachers in underserved communities. Teaching kids technological literacy.
CARE
Empowering individuals and families in the poorest communities in the world.
Center for Ethics in Science and Technology (UC San Diego)
Resources for understanding the ethical implications of new developments in science and technology. (Lawrence Hinman)
Center for Futurism in Education at Ben-Gurion University
Developing innovative educational ideas and online delivery systems, integrating ICT with humanistic values (Roni Aviram, Chair)
Center for Science and Medical Journalism (Boston University)
Producing scientifically proficient and ethically grounded journalists.
Center for Human Emergence
Applying spiral dynamics for global transformation (Don Beck).
Center for the Study of Technology and Society (Wash DC)
Social implications of technological innovation (Adam Keiper)
Chaordic Commons
Creating practical, innovative orgs that blend competition and cooperation to address critical social issues (Dee Hock).
Committee for Democracy in Information Technology
Brazil-based international nonprofit working to end "digital apartheid" in the developing world.
Consumer Reports
Objectivity and accuracy in consumer product recommendations since 1936.
Context Institute
Researching issues in creating humane sustainable culture.
Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE)
Serving advancement professionals at 3,000 schools. Awards for nation's best teachers.
Council for Research in Values and Philosophy (CRVP)
Investigating the way culture and values influence personal action.
Davidson Institute for Talent Development
To recognize, nurture and support unusually intelligent young people and to provide opportunities for them to develop their talents to make a positive difference.
Degree Confluence Project
Early world mapping. Shows the extreme sparseness of humanity on the planet.
Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres)
Providing medical aid where most needed worldwide, championing the plight of the medically indigent.
Education Sector
Nonprofit, independent educational policy think tank and research group.
Foundation for a Better Life
Public service announcements (billboards, TV ads) promoting values-based living.
Foundation for Global Community
Future-oriented spiritual growth, social action, and conflict mediation.
Friendship Force International
Breaking global barriers by building personal friendships. 60 countries, 275 orgs.
Galef Institute/Different Ways of Knowing
Research-based tools, services, and partnerships that improve broad based (science and arts) child development.
Games2Train
Developers of serious games (educational games) for military and commercial purposes (Marc Prensky)
Hastings Center for Bioethics Research
Exploring questions in health care, biotechnology, and the environment since 1969. Examining their 35 year history one realizes these technology areas, while important to our present quality of life, will nevertheless provide far fewer accelerating benefits than infotech in coming years.
Higher Education Research Institute (HERI) at UCLA.
Home of the CIRP, the oldest and largest US study of higher education demographics, economics, social trends, etc.
History Shots
High quality visual information graphics presenting historical dynamics (politics, technology, etc.).
Human Rights Watch
Challenging governments and other power groups to end abusive practices and respect international human rights law.
Innocence Project (Northern CA and Southern CA)
Reversing occasional cases of improper functioning of the policing and prosecutorial systems, primarily using DNA evidence.
Institute for Future Studies (Austria)
Focusing on selected topics in the future of education and work.
Institute for Regional Education (IRE)
Makers of the Quatsi film trilogy on the nature of technology. Very acceleration-aware. (Godfrey Reggio, Ron Fricke)
International Federation of Red Cross
World's largest humanitarian organization, helping refugees, victims of natural disasters, victims of poverty from socio-economic crises, victims of health emergencies.
JD Power and Associates
Providing consumer satisfaction information for help with the buying decision (autos, electronics, etc.) since 1968.
Lawyers Without Borders
Supporting the work of NGOs and advancing the rule of law worldwide.
League for Innovation in the Community College
Catalyzing the community college movement.
Malaria Vaccine Initiative (of PATH)
Accelerating development and distribution of promising malaria vaccines worldwide. Funded by the Gates Foundation.
Massive Change and Institute Without Boundaries
A long term project on the future of multidisciplinary global design culture. Affiliated with Toronto City College. (Bruce Mau)
MediaRights.org
Helping media makers to use documentaries to explore key social issues.
National Education Association
Main federal US organization promoting and funding public education.
OECD PISA (Program for International School Assessment)
Rates the OECD countries annually in the competitiveness of their 15 year olds.
Omidyar Network
Helping people discover their own power to make good things happen (Pierre Omidyar and associates).
Online Ethics Center for Engineering and Science (Case Western U)
Providing researchers with resources for understanding ethically significant problems that arise in their work. NSF funded.
On the Horizon
Informing educators about the challenges that they will face in a rapidly-changing world (James Morrison)
Oxfam International
Finding solutions to poverty, suffering, and injustice in 100 countries worldwide.
Pegasus Communications
Leading publisher of books on systems thinking and general systems analysis.
Poynter Institute
A think tank and school for journalists, future journalists, and journalism teachers.
Programme for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH)
Improving global health by advancing technologies, strengthening systems, and improving behavior. Funded by the Gates Foundation.
Project for Excellence in Journalism (Columbia University)
Research, resources, and ideas to improve the fourth estate (media, journalism).
Point Foundation
Former publishers of Whole Earth magazine, Whole Earth Catalog. Icons of 1960's and 1970's vision of a self-empowered, personally creative, green, globally responsible future.
Prospective Foresight Network
French Node of the Glenn/Gordon Millennium Futures Studies Project (Saphia Richou, Michel Godet).
Rick Ross Inst. for the Study of Destructive Cults, Controversial Groups, & Movements
Database of information about cults, destructive cults, controversial groups and movements. Well-organized public resource on poorly transparent, coercive groups.
Society for Utopian Studies (SUS)
Academic center studying utopianism in all its forms (literary to experimental) (U. Toronto).
Southern Poverty Law Center
Exposure of and litigation against hate speech and racial, sexual, and other forms of intolerance.
SustainUS
U.S. youth network for sustainable development.
ThinkCycle
MIT Media Lab non-profit initiative exploring "open collaborative design." (Boston, MA)
Thomas Lucas Productions
Producers of science educational video, and the commendable PBS futures documentary, Beyond Human (2001).
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
Promoting health, education, equality, and protection for every child, worldwide.
United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
A "laboratory of ideas" and a standard-setter to forge universal agreements on emerging ethical issues among 192 UN Member States.
United Nations World Food Programme (WFP)
Pursuing the UN's Millennium Development Goal of halving the proportion of hungry people in the world by 2015.
World Game Institute
Simulated earth system for classroom play. Bucky Fuller's original idea. Expensive and non-computer based.
Zero to Three
The nation's leading educational resource for the first, most critical years of human development.

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Biz, Econ and Development

JohnMSmart — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 18:00:49 CDT

Foresight-oriented business, consumer, economics, and development organizations around the world. Listed alpha by organization name.

Sections
General
Services - Finances for Entrepreneurs
Services - Emerging Nations Development
Boutique Firms & Sole Practitioners
Incubators

General
American Academy of Actuaries (AAA)
Public policy and professionalism organization for U.S. actuaries.
American Marketing Association
A leading source for information, knowledge sharing and development in the marketing profession. 38,000 members. See also Silicon Valley chapter.
American Productivity and Quality Center (APQC)
Provides businesses with expertise in benchmarking and best practices research.
Aon/Albert G Ruben
Innovative global insurance and long- and short-term risk management.
ApproTec
Appropriate technologies for African enterprise development.
Bureau of Economic Analysis (US Dept of Commerce)
Promoting understanding of the U.S. economy by providing timely, relevant, and accurate economic accounts data.
Business Software Alliance
A piracy-fighting and cyber security consortium of key software companies. Early internet immune system.
Center for Regional Innovation
Advancing an innovation-based economic development model in regional U.S. economies.
Cliometrics Society
Using historical data, economic theory, and statistical techniques to study historical economic change, and inform the present and future..
Comprehensive Crisis Management
Pre-identification and management of human-created organizational crises. In important example of applied futurism.
Corbett and Associates
Leaders in global outsourcing consulting and education. Producers of the Outsoucing World Summit. (Michael Corbett)
Council on Competitiveness
A leading business, academic, and labor forum for elevating national competitiveness to the forefront of national consciousness (Wash, DC).
Decision Analyst
World-class market research and innovation (creative consumer panels) services. (Arlington, TX)
Encore Software (Bangalore, India)
Makers of the Simputer, a scalable, open source computing platform used in India.
Ernst & Young
Leaders in accounting, tax, risk, technology, and human capital services and consulting.
Foundation on Economic Trends
Lobbies for federal legislation, studies trends in science and technology and their impact on the environment, economy, and society. Alarmist, utopian. (Jeremy Rifkin)
Glocal Vantage
Innovation, futures, and systems consultation for business, nonprofit, and municipalities.
Graduates Club
Networking and learning group for MBAs and other business professionals.
Harvest Plus
Breeding bioengineered crops for better nutrition in emerging nations.
Human Resource Institute (at the University of Tampa)
Human resources trends, issues, strategy, and futures.
IC2 Instititute (U Texas at Austin)
(Innovation, Creativity & Capital). Devoted to accelerating wealth and job creation at home and abroad.
Intellectual Ventures
Nathan Mhyrvold's IT R&D and acquisition group. Patent trolls, largely.
International Monetary Fund
Intergovernmental organization that oversees the global financial system and brokers loans to countries.
International Schumpeter Society
A German research center for evolutionary and developmental economics, in the spirit of J. A. Schumpeter. 400 members.
International Society of Six Sigma Professionals (ISSSP)
Promoting the advancement of Six Sigma efficiency and quality initiatives in business.
iRobot
Creating realistic robotic solutions to real-world problems (Colin Angle, Helen Greiner, Rodney Brooks)Milken Institute
Focusing on the effects of economic, political, technological and regulatory changes on the world economy and its societies.
National Investment Banking Association
Regional and independent brokerages, investment banking firms, and related capital market service providers.
National Venture Capital Association
Supporting entrepreneurial activity and innovation.
Nomura Research Institute
Japan's leading IT consulting and systems solution firm.
NPD Group
Global consumer marketing research for manufacturers and retailers.
Plexus Institute
Improving the health of individuals, families, communities, organizations, and the environment by helping people use concepts in complexity science.
Project Management Institute
Project management’s leading global professional association (100,000 members).
SAP
The world's largest inter-enterprise software company.
Six Apart
Leading low-cost tools for publishing weblogs (Randy and Mena Trott)
Society of Actuaries (SOA)
Leading professional society promoting methodologies for the modeling and management of financial risk and contingent events.
Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals (SCIP)
Leading organization teaching the value of competitive intelligence in forecasting and adapting to business change.
Society for Organizational Learning
Achieving profit, equity, and sustainability in "learning organizations." (Peter Senge et. al.)
Tower Group
World's leading research and consulting firm focused on trends and issues in the global financial services industry.
United Nations Millennium Project
Action plan to achieve the global Millennium Development Goals.
Urban Land Institute
Professional association for the entire spectrum of land use and real estate development disciplines. (40,000 members, Global)
VitalSmarts
Training solutions for helping individuals and organizations to learn and practice better leadership, supervision, and communication, and to improve individual and corporate ethics.
Wall Street Journal Online
Excellent website for domestic business activities. Superior coverage and analysis.
WGSN
Consumer and cultural trends and design inspiration for the fashion industry.
World Bank
Loans and advice to more than 100 developing countries.
World Economic Forum
International organization committed to global socioeconomic development.
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
Promoting global use and protection of intellectual property. Specialized agency of the U.N. (Geneva, Switzerland)

Services - Finances for Entrepreneurs
Grants.gov and SBA.gov
SBIR and other Government Grants for Innovation. $100K Phase I, $750K Phase II.

Services - Emerging Nations Development
Equity Bank
A leading microfinance bank in Kenya. 3.4 million account holders in 2009.
M-PESA
First cellphone-based peer-to-peer money transfer service in the world (Safaricom and Vodaphone). Has taken off in Kenya (12 million subscribers by end of 2008). Banks are predictably trying to shut it down.
Obopay
Cellphone-based payment service. 25 cents to send money. High transaction costs, so of limited ultility in emerging nations.
PlayPumps
Water pumps that double as merry-go round play devices for children, being installed in rural Africa (Malawi). Goal of 4,000 by 2010.
Wizzit
South African cellphone-based banking service, started in 2005. Popular with lower income South Africans.

Boutique Firms and Sole Practitioners
JALA International
Telework, telecommuting, and applied futures research. Keynote Systems
Measurement and monitoring services to improve internet and e-business performance.
ON World
Market research for emerging markets in wireless technology (San Diego).
Themis Group
Online and interactive entertainment research group and consultancy.

Incubators/Startup Support Programs

Capital Factory (Austin, TX)
Startup incubator. $20K for 5% equity.

Curious Office (Seattle, WA)
A seed stage investment and technology development organization.

DreamIt Ventures (Philadelphia, PA)
Seed stage investment and incubator.

Idealab (Pasadena, CA | Bill Gross)
Technology business incubator.
iVentures10 (Chicago, IL)
Technology incubator.
LaunchBox Digital (Wash, DC | Sean Greene)
IT business incubator. $20K/company in exchange for 6% of common stock. Pitching to angels and VCs at end of summer.
Seedcamp (London, UK)
YCombinator style incubator. Funds ideas to prototypes, which are then pitched to angels and VCs.
Shotput Ventures (Atlanta, GA)
Technology startup accelerator that focuses on capital-light web services companies and assists in the conception phase.
Singularity University (Mountain View, CA)
Ideation and startup support for businesses using exponential technologies to solve Grand Challenges. 80 students/9 week summer program (Peter Diamandis, Ray Kurzweil)
TechStars (Boulder, CO and Boston, MA |
Seed capital and mentorship for startups. $18K in seed funding, pitching to angels and VCs at end of summer.
Unreasonable Institute (Boulder, CO)
Helping social entrepreneurs with their startups. 25 students/10 week summer program (Daniel Epstein, Teju Ravilochan)
Venture 51 (Scottsdale, AZ)
Helps startups with minimal seed capital and active involvement in executing the launch strategy. Interested primarily in game changing social web technologies.
YCombinator (Mountain View, CA | Paul Graham, Jessica Livingston)
Software and web services incubator. The first to fund ideas to prototypes, which are then pitched to angels and VCs.

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Health, Mind and Spirituality

JohnMSmart — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 17:55:05 CDT

Futures-oriented health, mind, and spirituality-centered organizations around the world. Listed alpha by organization name.

Alcor Life Extension
The leading non-profit organization focused on cryonics preservation
American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR)
Funding anti-aging research nationally. Promoting careers in geriatric medicine.
Blue Mountain Center of Meditation
Books and retreats on meditation and self-aware living (Eknath Easwaran)
Commonwealth Fund
Private foundation working toward a high performance global health care system.
EraNova Institute
Improving mind and consciousness in an era of accelerating technology (Dick Swanson)
Immortality Institute
An online community formed to advance the fight against involuntary death.
Institute on Religion in an Age of Science (IRAS)
Seeking to bring human values and religious practice into the modern age. For those having an interest in religion, philosophy, and the natural and social sciences (Star Island/Portsmouth, NH)
Kronos Science Laboratory
The most extensive clinical eval available for biomarkers and protectors of aging. Very expensive service, but will provide marginal gains for those seeking vital longevity (Chris Heward).
Life Extension Foundation
Funding supplement and life extending medical research. Publishers of Life Extension magazine.
Methuselah Foundation
Non-profit organization funding the Methuselah Mouse Prize and research in Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence
Metanexus
Research, education, and outreach on the engagement of science and religion.
National Institute of Aging (NIA)
NIH center dedicated to anti-aging research funding.
Positive Psychology Center
Research and publications on positive psychology, learned helplessness, depression, optimism and pessimism (Martin Seligman).
The New Farm, Rodale Institute
Resource for small farms, community supported agriculture, and organic farming.
World Database of Happiness
Scientific research on the subjective evaluation of life. Columbians and Costa Ricans, earning 1/5 the income ($7K vs $35K/year), self-express as "happier" than Americans with their lives. A function of the interplay between goals, resources, and cultural influences on self-expression.

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Top Academic

JohnMSmart — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 17:52:12 CDT

Top academic centers and universities advancing either 1) the understanding and use of foresight methods, or 2) understanding and use of accelerating science and technology to address global human problems. Very partial list. Alpha by center or university name.

See also the full list of universities that offer primary and secondary foresight degrees in Foresight Graduate Programs - Global List.

California Institute of Technology (Pasadena, CA)
One of the worlds leading basic sciences and engineering research universities.
Carnegie Mellon University (Pittsburgh, PA)
A top research institute. Exceptional in robotics, computer science, engineering.
Finland Futures Research Centre @ Turku School of Economics, University of Turku (Turku, Finland)
Foresight, environmental and energy research, innovations, social and cultural research and research on creative industries.
IMD (Switzerland)
Business school focusing on research, strategy, and foresighted leadership.
KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) (Daedeok Science Town, Korea)
Korea's first university specializing in science and engineering education and research. Very strong foresight focus.
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (Jeddah, Saudi Arabia)
Excellent research foci include desalination, solar, nano, hydrocarbon sustainability. See their Global Research Partnership.
Singularity University (NASA Ames, CA)
Ten week Graduate Studies Program covers exponentially convergent technologies, and focuses on grand challenge solutions.
Stanford University (Palo Alto, CA)
One of the world's preeminent basic sciences, entrepreneurship, and innovation centers.
The Futures Academy @ Dublin Institute of Technology (Dublin, Ireland)
Applying foresight methods to better organizational and national management, with emphasis on Ireland's future (John Ratcliff, Director)

Periodicals - Top Foresight

JohnMSmart — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 18:11:20 CDT

Primary peer-reviewed journals and editor-reviewed magazines on foresight or futures studies specialties (using ASF rubric). These publications have distinguished themselves at some level in more than one (and ideally several) of ASF's Primary Foresight Specialties. Secondary foresight specialty journals and magazines are listed separately, under the Sci-Tech, Business, and Social, Political, and Humanist periodical groupings.

I. Top English-Language Primary Foresight Journals (identified to date)

1. Contingencies (American Academy of Actuaries)
Good data-backed forecasting and risk analysis models and process. Actually a magazine, but prestigious and with solid editorial criteria for publication.
2. Foresight: The Journal of Futures Studies, Strategic Thinking, and Policy (Emerald)
Important social, economic, political and technological issues which are shaping all our futures and a source of information about futures activity from around the world.
3. Foresight: The Internat'l Journal of Applied Forecasting (IIF)
Applied forecasting design, management, model building, case studies.
4. Futures: The Journal of Forecasting, Planning, and Policy (Elsevier)
Broad coverage of medium and long term futures trends and scenarios.
5. Info (Emerald)
Technological changes shaping the information infrastructure, economy, and society of the 21st century. Good foresight focus.
6. International Journal of Forecasting (Elsevier)
Quantitative and occasional qualitative forecasting methodologies.
7. International Journal of Foresight and Innovation Policy (Inderscience)
Knowledge creation, diffusion and utilisation in foresight, strategic intelligence (SI) and innovation policy.
8. Journal of Business Forecasting (IBF)
Practical analysis and skill development for business-forecasting practitioners.
9. Journal of Evolution and Technology (H+)
e-journal on contemporary research into future science, ethics of emerging tech, and philosophy.
10. Journal of Forecasting (Wiley)
Theoretical, practical, computational and methodological issues in forecasting. Ops research, management science, decision analysis, statistics, and economics.
11. Journal of Futures Studies (Tamkang U)
Foresight, forecasting, long-range planning, visioning and futures research.
12. Journal of the American Planning Association (APA)
Leading U.S. journal for social and policy planning. Since 1935.
13. Journal of Prediction Markets (U Buckingham Press)
Articles on all aspects of Prediction Markets, a promising new field of foresight research and policy analysis.
14. Journal of Social Change (Walden U)
Applied research and theory on social change that improves the human condition and progresses people, groups, organizations, cultures, and society.
15. Long Range Planning (Elsevier)
A leading international journal of strategic management, aimed at senior managers (UK).
16. NanoEthics: Ethics for Technologies that Converge at the Nanoscale (Springer)
Forum for consideration of ethical and social issues of nanotechnology. Nicely augments and grounds popular discussion of these issues.
17. Policy Futures in Education (Symposium)
Promoting foresighted debate in education among academics, government, think-tanks and agencies on education policy and and theory. Innovative and experimental.
18. Technological Forecasting and Social Change (Elsevier)
Method and practice of technological forecasting, tech foresight, and futures studies and planning. Leading journal of its type.
19. World Future Review (WFS)
Referreed journal of transdisciplinary futures research.
20. World Futures: The Journal of General Evolution (Taylor & Francis)
Study of system-structuring, evolutionary and developmental change in nature and society.

For an abstracts database of several of these journals, see Futurum, Finland Futures Research Center's new platform for searching academic futures research journals.

II. Top Non-English Primary Foresight Journals (a starter list)

Futuribles (Futuribles Group) [French]
Journal of prospective studies and foresight. 40 year history. (Bertrand and Hugues de Jouvenel)

III. Top Primary Foresight Magazines (a subjective and starter list)

Big Ideas in Technology (Goodwin Proctor LLP)
A legal and practical guide for innovative tech companies. Twice a year.
Discover
Award-winning general interest science and technology reporting.
IEEE Spectrum
Current and future tech trends and developments. From autonomous machines to video games, they cover a very broad spectrum (hence the name) and are backed by a trusted organization.
Popular Science
Current and emerging tech, including latest (and mostly faddish) gadgets. Always looking a little ahead of the curve, though usually not more than 5-10 years.
Seed: Science as Culture
Explores the deep ideas, personalities, and cultural effects of science.
Strategy + Business (BoozAllen)
Great U.S. business strategy quarterly. Strong foresight focus.
Technology Review
A leader in technology innovation reporting. Exemplary future awareness.
The Futurist (WFS)
Futures-related scanning magazine. Reasoned global and technological optimism.
Wired
The digerati's culture, opinion, and technology magazine. Trendy, strong commercial, freedom, and style focus. 8M circulation.
Yes!
Concerned with building a more just, sustainable, and compassionate future with articles about economic alternatives and peace options.

IV. Top Primary Foresight Journals or Magazines No Longer Publishing (Read the Archives!) (a starter list)
Future Survey (WFS)
An excellent monthly abstract of books, articles and reports concerning forecasts, trends, and ideas about global, national, societal, organizational, and personal futures.

Do you know any other top futures/foresight journals or magazines employing several of the primary specialties above that should be on this list? Please log in and add them yourself.

Secondary specialties foresight/futures journals and magazines should be added to the following secondary periodicals pages:

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Periodicals - Sci-Tech

JohnMSmart — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 17:06:13 CST

Science and technology academic and technical peer-reviewed journals and editor-reviewed magazines that are helpful for strategic foresight and futures research with respect to universal, global, societal, organizational, and personal futures.

I. Sci-Tech Academic and Professional Foresight/Futures Journals

Complexity
Bi-monthly, serious cross-disciplinary journal on the rapidly expanding science of complex adaptive systems.
Complexity International
A referreed journal dealing with the generation of complex behaviour from the interaction of multiple parallel processes. Monash University (Australia)
Cybermetrics
e-Journal of scientometric, bibliometric and informetric research, with emphasis on the Internet. CINDOC (Madrid, Spain)
Developmental Science
Research advances in human developmental cognitive neuroscience.
Endeavour
Classic quarterly on hist&philos of science. Est 1942.
Foresight: The Internat'l Journal of Applied Forecasting
Applied forecasting design, management, model building, case studies.
Futures: The Journal of Forecasting, Planning, and Policy
Broad coverage of medium and long term futures trends and scenarios.
Futures Research Quarterly
Referreed journal of transdisciplinary futures research. Uneven, sometimes excellent. World Future Society (Bethesda, MD)
IEEE Intelligent Systems
Good bimonthly reporting on real-world developments in AI.
IEEE Robotics and Automation
Broad quarterly coverage on practical robotic and automation technology applications.
Information and Organization
Understanding the relationships between information technologies and social organization, and the social construction of IT.
Information Society
Impacts, policies, system concepts, and methodologies related to information technologies and changes in society and culture.
Innovation: The European Journal of Social Science Research
Science and technology futures and innovation articles.
InterJournal
Refereed journal on complex systems. New England Complex Systems Institute (Cambridge, MA).
International Journal of Astrobiology
Coverage includes cosmic prebiotic chemistry, planetary evolution, the search habitable zones, extremophile biology, experimental simulation of extraterrestrial environments, life detection in our solar system and beyond, intelligent life and societal aspects of astrobiology. Cambridge U Press.
International Journal of Forecasting
Quantitative and occasional qualitative forecasting methodologies.
International Journal of Systems Science
Quantitative and qualitative methods for performance and reliability engineering for a range of autonomous and intelligent systems.
Journal of Advancing Technology
University of Advancing Technology's journal on technology studies and the social dimensions of advancing technology.
Journal of Documentation
Scholarly articles, research reports and critical reviews in the information sciences.
Journal of Dynamical and Control Systems
Leading journal of mathematical analysis of dynamical systems and geometrical control theory.
Journal of Forecasting
Multidisciplinary coverage of the forecasting profession: theoretical, practical, computational and methodological. Includes operations research, management science, decision analysis, statistics, and economics.
Journal of Futures Studies
Tamkang University's journal on foresight, forecasting, long-range planning, visioning and futures research.
Journal of Memetics
Evolutionary models of information transmission. Principia Cybernetica Project (Brussels, Belgium)
Journal of Nonlinear Science
Applying nonlinear science and math to engineering, geophysics, physics, and astronomy. Springer-Verlag.
Journal of Prediction Markets
Publishing articles on every aspect of the study of Prediction Markets.
Journal of Robotic Systems
Basic and applied research on the analysis, design, realization, and use of robots, robot components, and robot systems. Emphasis on robot system design and integration.
Journal of Scientific Exploration
Investigation of speculative and anomalous subjects usually ignored by science. Since 1987.
Journal of World Systems Research
Scholarly research relative to the analysis of world systems. UC Riverside/UC Santa Cruz.
Manufacturing Automation and Advanced Manufacturing
Canada's leading industrial automation magazine.
Metascience
Covering history of science and technology (HoST) philosophy of S&T (PoST), and science, technology and society (STS) disciplines.
Nanotechnology Perceptions
Technical issues and social implications of nanotech and ultraprecision engineering. Collegium Basilea in Basel, CH.
R&D Management
Articles address the interests of both practicing managers and academic researchers in R & D and innovation management
Research Technology Management
Covering industrial innovation, from R&D, through product development to marketing.
Science, Technology, and Human Values
Journal of the society for the social studies of science (4S).
Speculations in Science and Technology
Speculative papers on physical, math, biol, med and engrg sciences. Pub. to 1998.
Systems Dynamics Review
Applying system dynamics (modelling, simulation, feedback systems) to societal, technical, managerial, and environmental problems.
Systems Research and Behavioral Science
New theories, experimental research, and applications relating to all levels of living and non-living systems. A classic systems theory journal.
Technology Analysis & Strategic Management
Analysis and assessment of technologies, their potentialities and impacts, and methodological tools to identify and analyze key scientific and technological developments.
Technological Forecasting & Social Change
The methodology and practice of technological forecasting and future studies as planning tools. Excellent futures/forecasting emphasis.
Technology and Culture
Quarterly interdisciplinary journal of the Society for the History of Technology.
Technometrics
A journal of statistics for the physical, chemical, and engineering sciences. Improving quality and understanding of the mfg & R&D processes. American Statistical Assn.
Theoretical Biology
Leading forum for interdisciplinary theoretical papers that give insight into biological processes.
Time & Society
Journal for the transdisciplinary study of time and temporality (Barbara Adam).
Trends in Ecology and Evolution
The most exciting current research in all aspects of ecology and evolutionary biology, from molecular to global.
World Futures: The Journal of General Evolution
Study of system-structuring, evolutionary and developmental change in nature and society. Promotes the transfer of evolutionary models from the natural to the social sciences.
Zygon
Focuses on questions of meaning and values that challenge individual and social existence today. Joins physical, biological, and social sciences insights with ideas from philosophy, theology, and religious studies. Seeks to unite what may often become disconnected: values with knowledge, goodness with truth, religion with science.
See also: Amazon's Magazines: Science and Technology: Professional & Trade

II. Sci-Tech Academic and Professional Foresight/Futures Magazines (and Newspapers)

American Heritage of Invention and Technology
Unparalled coverage of American history of technology. Great writing, beautiful photos. (Forbes)
American Scientist
Sigma Xi's Bimontly Magazine (Frosh: Join this Society!). Great Book Reviews.
Big Ideas in Technology (Goodwin Proctor LLP)
A legal and practical guide for innovative tech companies. Twice a year.
Catalyst
Magazine of the Union of Concerned Scentists. Data-backed, conservative sustainability policy. Semi-annual.
Dataquest India
Covering IT development in the emerging Indian outsourcing market.
Discover
Award-winning general interest science and technology reporting.
IEEE Spectrum
Flagship publication of the Inst. of Electrical and Electronics Engrs. Good engineering coverage.
Information Society Journal
Good broad coverage of sociocultural impact of IT.
Issues in Science and Technology
Public policy in science, engineering, and medicine. Using science for social goals. NAS quarterly.
Leonardo
Journal of the International Society for the Arts, Sciences, and Technology.
Make: Technology On Your Time
Celebrating your right to tweak, hack, and bend any technology to your own will (O'Reilly Publishers).
Natural History
Very accessible coverage of natural history, including new theories of evolutionary development. Famous debate in December-January 1998 issue between Simon Conway Morris and Stephen Jay Gould about evolutionary convergence (developmental convergence, in alternative language).
Nature
The leading British newsmagazine of science. A bit more accessible than Science.
New Scientist
Science and technology coverage, with a speculative edge. Sometimes implausible, often intriguing.
New York Times
Excellent popular coverage of sci-tech. Tuesdays: Science, Thursdays: Technology.
Probe
Pro-science investigative reporting promoting science, rationality, and democracy.
Psychology Today
Good popular, intro-level discussion of psychological sciences and their applications.
R&D Magazine
Leaders in covering the world of research and development. Commercial and institutional.
Science
The top weekly newsmagazine of science. A bit heavy on specialist language.
Science News
Weekly digest of research findings in science and medicine. Short, accurate. 75 year history.
Scientific American
The traditional benchmark in science reporting. Nice, technical focus, with top authors
Seed: Science as Culture
Very hip. Explores the deep ideas, personalities, and cultural effects of science.
TRN: Technology Research News
Covers breakthroughs at University, Government, and Corporate Labs.
Technology Review
The leader in technological innovation reporting. Exemplary future awareness.
The Bent
Magazine of the U.S. national engineering honor society, Tau Beta Pi.
Wired
The digerati's culture, opinion, and technology magazine. Trendy, excellent future focus.

III. Lists of Top Sci-Tech Academic and Professional Foresight/Futures Magazines By Category

Top Urban Planning Magazines and Newsletters (in Print)
Planetizen's great list of top print-based planning magazines and newsletters (Chris Steins).

See also: Amazon's Magazines: Science & Nature and Magazines: Computers & Internet

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Periodicals - Business

JohnMSmart — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 01:51:01 CST

Business peer-reviewed journals and editor-reviewed magazines that are helpful for strategic foresight and futures research. Some relevant areas: business IT, e-commerce, economic development, entrepreneurship, knowledge management, supply chain automation...

I. English-Language Business Foresight/Futures Journals (a starter list)

Harvard Business Review (Harvard U)
National and global management thought and practice, analyzed by top scholars and executives.
International Journal of Innovation and Sustainable Development (Inderscience)
Nice balance between the two great political forces, innovation and sustainability, applied at the organizational and policy/social levels.
Journal of Business Forecasting (IBF)
Practical analysis and skill development for business-forecasting practitioners.
Journal of Organizational Change Management (Emerald)
Venue for alternative philosophies of organizational change and development, including critical theory, postmodernism, qualitative analysis, ecology, rhetorics and theatrics.
Journal of Organizational Transformation and Social Change (intellect)
Broad scope relative to OD and SC, including the learning organization, knowledge management, human resources, cybernetics and systems theory, sociology.
Long Range Planning (Elsevier)
A leading international journal of strategic management, aimed at senior managers (UK).
Organization Science (INFORMS)
Broad scope of interest relative to the organization. Organization theory, strategic management, sociology, economics, political science, history, information science, systems theory, communication theory, artificial intelligence, and psychology.
Organization Studies (Sage)
Multidisciplinary study of organizations, organizing, and "the organized in and between societies." Diverse and pluralistic in scope.
Strategy + Business (BAH)
One of the best U.S. business strategy quarterlies. Strong foresight focus.

II. English-Language Business Foresight/Futures Magazines (and Newspapers)

Advertising Age/American Demographics
Market research and consumer trends insights.
Business 2.0
Introductory coverage of the new economy. Breezy writing, poor science knowledge.
Business Ethics
Real-life management and policy dilemmas, socially responsible solutions.
Bloomberg BusinessWeek
America's leading business news magazine. Comprehensive, great writing, good analysis.
Chief Executive
Broad, high level analysis of corporate management, innovation, and growth issues.
Chief Learning Officer
Covering the new workforce e-Learning and employee training technologies.
CIO
Great information technology coverage. Senior level, accessible.
Contingencies
Magazine of the American Academy of Actuaries. Good data-backed forecasting models and process.
Economist
Best weekly news and business analysis for top execs and opinion leaders. Great international coverage. Quarterly technology review.
Fast Company
Discovering the new rules of business in a world of accelerating efficiency and innovation.
Forbes
Personalities and issues of modern business. Good lists, future trend exploration.
Fortune
Innovative business ideas, wide and deep business coverage, sophisticated writing.
Inc.
Small business resources for the entrepreneur.
Information Week
Excellent broad converage of commercial events in the information economy. News over analysis.
Inventor's Digest
Leading magazine for developing, protecting, and marketing your new idea.
KM World
Leading magazine for content, document, and knowledge management issues. Future focused.
OR/MS Today
Operations research and the management sciences. "The science of better."
Red Herring
Business of technology reporting. Insider and strategic focus.
Supply Chain Management Review
Art and science of moving goods to market. SCM automation. Reed.
Wall Street Journal
Perhaps the best daily newspaper of U.S. domestic business activities. Superior coverage and analysis.
See also: Amazon's Magazines: Business & Finance

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Weblogs

jdhoch — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 15:44:01 CST

Weblogs that are helpful for strategic foresight or futures research.

Top Foresight
Accelerating Future
Intriguing reporting from the transhumanist frontier (Michael Anissimov)
AGI-World
Bruce Klein's blog on artificial general intelligence
APM's Future Tense
American Public Media. Daily "five-minute capsules" on the latest technology topics (Jon Gordon)
A Thousand Tomorrows
Panopticon's incisive and integral blog on foresight and futuring (Belgium).
Black Belt Bayesian
Methodical rationality and accelerating technological trends
Brian Johnson's Zaadz Blog
Brian Johnson's CEO-blog on Zaadz, a social change network.
Broader Perspective
Insights into personal, societal, and technological transformation (Melanie Swan).
Depressed Metabolism
The latest in cryonics research (Aschwin de Wolf, Chana de Wolf)
Existence is Wonderful
Life Extension and Neurodiversity (Anne Corwin)
Fight Aging!
Weblog on developments in radical life extension
Foresight Culture
Thoughts on improving organizational foresight by John Mahaffie, Leading Futurists LLC
FringeHog
Futurist ideas on the verge (Sandra Burchsted, Michele Bowman, Jamais Cascio, Wayne Pethrick)
Future Current
Transcripts from futurist conference talks and interviews
Future Pundit
Science and tech trends and their likely effects on society, politics, and evolution (Randall Parker)
Gates Notes
Bill Gates' blog on global issues, highlighting his interests and work in with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (Bill Gates)
Global Voices Online
A global community of bloggers, video bloggers, and citizen journalists speaking out about social justice and humanitarian issues (Berkman Center, Harvard U)
IFTF's Future Now
Alex Pang's blog on the future of technoly, health, and organizational change.
Integral Singularity
Lion Albaugh's vision for a balanced, human-championing approach to biology-surpassing technological intelligence. Great title.
Institute for Energy and Environmental Research
Promoting the democratization of science and the advancement of sustainability policy and technologies (Arjun Makhijani)
KedgeForward
Organizational and social strategic foresight, with an emphasis on transformation and change management (Frank Spencer and Mike Morrell)
Kevin Kelly Cool Tools
Great books, gadgets, software, videos, maps, hardware, and websites you should know about.
KurzweilAI.net's Accelerating Intelligence News
Ray Kurzweil's updates on leading-edge and bleeding-edge tech advances.
Lessig Blog
Lawrence Lessig on building the creative commons, a user-centric cyberspace.
Lifeboat Foundation Blog
Weblog on existential risk mitigation
Medgadget
Internet journal of emerging medical technologies. Nicely futuristic.
Michael Graham Richard
Futurism weblog by Michael Graham Richard
Minding the Planet
Nova Spivak's thoughts on the emerging high-tech planet.
Next Big Future
Brian Wang on nanotechnology, space travel and many other technologies
Next Nature
Exploring how culture and technology are becoming autonomous (Koert Mensvoort, Netherlands)
Oligopoly Watch
Charting the rise and influence of MNC oligopolies globally. Insightful.
Open The Future
Cultural observations from a leading professional futurist (Jamais Cascio)
Paleofuture
Excellent lookbacks to "the future that never was." Prediction analysis (examining strengths and weaknesses of past prediction).
Retrofuture
Short, insightful essays on previous future predictions. Valuable for prediction analysis.
Ross Mayfield's Weblog
Thoughts on markets, technology, and digital culture.
Self-Aware Systems
Steve Omohundro's posts on self-improving AI technology
Sentient Developments
Award-winning blog by Toronto-based futurist George Dvorsky
SIAI Blog
Seeking a sooner, safer transition to generalized artificial intelligence (Tyler Emerson, Eliezer Yudkowsky)
Sonia Says...
Blog on technological developments, lately focusing on radical life extension (Sonia Arrison)
Speculist
Thoughtful reporting on positive trends and future developments (Phil Bowermaster)
The Future of Things
Community blog on AI, longevity, technology, futurism, etc. (Iddo Genuth, Israel)
The Global Transition
Chronicling the Journey to the Singularity
Unreliable Futures
Blog by author of The Rough Guide to the Future - a work in progress. (Jon Turney)
WorldChanging
Alex Steffen's blog on ways to create a "bright green" future.

Science
Evolving Thoughts
Philosophy of biology, science, and systematics (John Whitfield)
Sandwalk
Rationalist, naturalist discussion of evolution, nice critiques of 'Intelligent Design' folks (Larry Moran, Prof. of Biochem at U. Toronto).
Structure & Strangeness
Network analysis (social, economic, technical), ev. biology, constraints on morphological diversity computer science (Aaron Clauset)
The Inverse Square
Science and public policy. (Thomas Levenson)
The Reference Frame
Physics and world events from a conservative superstring physicist (Lubos Motl)
Three Toed Sloth
A gifted polymath's thoughts about life, the universe, and everything (Cosma Shalizi)

Technology - Nanotech

Technology - Infotech

Technology - Sociotech

Technology - Cognotech

Technology - Biotech

Environment

Economics

Politics

Social (Culture, Media, Education, Religion, Art, etc.)

Organizational

Personal
Study Hacks
Tips for student success. "Do less, do better, know why." (Cal Newport)

Know any others that should be on this list? Log in and add them yourself. Please follow the same formatting and style you see on these pages, with very brief explanatory sentences. If you can't do that, please put them in the threads section at the bottom of the page, thanks.

Home

JohnMSmart — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 15:54:00 CDT

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Welcome! Are you a foresight advocate? GlobalForesight.org is an ASF initiative to find and connect foresight students and alums and foresight professionals, researchers, and educators, and steer them to the best current social networks and meet ups, events, orgs, and resources for advancing global foresight culture. [About this site].

Major pages on this wiki:

1. Foresight Social Networks and Meet Ups (Free or low-cost foresight networking opportunities)
2. Foresight Graduate Programs (English-language MS & PhD programs in foresight education)
3. Foresight Students and Alumni (Currently at or graduated from one of the primary ed. programs listed above)
4. Foresight Professionals, Researchers, and Educators (engaged in long term (10+ year) foresight work)
5. Foresight Organizations (Science, tech, biz, govt, policy, social, philanthropy, and other orgs)
6. Foresight Resources (Scenarios, forecasts, audio, blogs, periodicals, books, conferences, and other resources)

Top Things You Can Do
1. For general foresight discussions, join our GF Facebook group (presently 1,204 members). Visit Facebook on at least a monthly basis. Post to the GF wall, forums, share events, pictures, videos, etc. Facebook is presently the leading edge of global online community. Make it better by using it!
2. For business foresight discussions, join our GF LinkedIn group (presently 1,005 members), by clicking http://www.linkedin.com/e/gis/3037/535E6A2B648E.
3. If you are a foresight professional or strategist, or want to learn to be one, join STFN (Shaping Tomorrow Foresight Network) (presently 2,313 members), and find or or start a group there for your interests.
4. If you are a foresight student,educator,or advocate, join Academia.edu, a global network for foresight academics (join the Futures Studies and Foresight research interest there), and join our FERN (Foresight Education and Research Network (presently 205 members, a group inside STFN), our group networking the global foresight education community.
5. You may contribute to this wiki by sharing info on quality foresight networks, programs, people, organizations, and resources that the world should know about. If you contribute regularly, feel free to add your profile (real name please) and picture, and start a wiki-related conversation in the discussion forum. Interested in volunteering on this project? Visit our About page and meet the rest of the GF gang. Send us an email and let's talk!

Thanks for visiting!

Philanthropies

JohnMSmart — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 18:52:08 CDT

Foresight-oriented philanthropies around the world. Listed alpha by organization name

General
Alfred Mann Foundation
Developing innovative bionic solutions for medical disabilities.
Andrew W. Mellon Foundation
Grants for higher education, museums, performing arts, population, environmental conservation, and public affairs.
Annenberg Foundation
Improving communication, education, culture, the arts, and civic life.
Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation
Grants to non-profit institutions to promote cutting-edge research in chemistry and life sciences. Beckman was the world's leading science philanthropist, and a 20th century renaissance man.
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Initiatives in global health, education, public libraries, and local support for at-risk families.
Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
Policy center strengthening teaching and learning in America's colleges and schools.
Cisco Systems Foundation
Integrating effective information technology into community organizations.
David and Lucile Packard Foundation
Providing grants in conservation and science, population, children, families, and communities.
Ford Foundation
Major source of grants to "strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation and advance human achievement."
Foundation for the Future
Support for envisioning the long and very long term future.
GE Foundation
Programs to create quality education, especially for underrepresented groups.
Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation
Focusing on major health care issues facing the nation.
Horatio Alger Association and Awards
Annual list of America's most distinguished business success stories. $5 million annually in college scholarships.
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Individual fellowships (average grant, $37K) for advanced professionals in all fields (natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, creative arts) except the performing arts.
Lasker Foundation
Supporting innovation in medical science. Lasker awards.
Lawrence Foundation
Supporting educational, environmental, health and other causes (Jeff Lawrence).
Legler Benbough Foundation
Improving civic life for San Diego and the U.S.. Funded the Center for Ethics in Science and Technology at UC San Diego.
MacArthur Foundation
Supporting security, sustainability, community and human development, public interest media, and unrestricted MacArthur Fellow grants.
Markle Foundation
Accelerating communications media and information technology development to improve civic life.
National Science Foundation
U.S. government agency promoting the progress of science and the nation.
Noyce Foundation
Strengthening K-12 math and science and other high-leverage content education.
Omidyar Network
Helping people discover their own power to make good things happen (Pierre Omidyar)
Open Society Institute / Soros Foundations Network
Promoting open and democratic societies by global initiatives in education, media, public health, human and women's rights, social, legal, and economic reform.
Paul G. Allen Foundations
Funds IT in K-12 education, medical research, music, arts, and conservation.
PEW Charitable Trusts
Information, policy solutions, and support for the improvement of civic life.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Promoting active living and health for all Americans.
Russell Sage Foundation
Principal U.S. foundation for social sciences research. Future of work, society.
Skoll Foundation
Advancing systemic change around the world by investing in, connecting and celebrating social entrepreneurs (Jeff Skoll).
Sloan Foundation
Major support for research, history, and education in science and technology, and the impact of technology on society.
Templeton Foundation
Support for debate and empiricism at the boundary between theology and science.
Time Warner Foundation
Improving youth literacy for school, work, and community.
Turner Foundation
Improving water, toxin remediation, energy, transportation, population, and habitat.
Waitt Family Foundation
Creating better futures for communities, bridging the digital divide.
Wallace Foundation
Improving education leadership, arts participation and out-of-school learning.
W.M. Keck Foundation
Supporting medical research, science, engineering, and higher education.

Film
Pacific Pioneer Fund
Awards to emerging documentary filmmakers in nonprofit organizations.
Roy W. Dean Film and Video Grants
Funding socially valuable unique small film productions. L.A. and N.Y.

Know any other orgs that should be on this list? Log in and add them yourself. Please follow the same formatting and style you see on these pages, with very brief explanatory sentences. If you can't do that, please put them in the threads section at the bottom of the page, thanks.

Foresight Methods

JohnMSmart — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 03:09:14 CDT

This page provides links to particular foresight methods pages on the web.
See also:
ASF's current list of primary and secondary foresight methods.
FERN's list of foresight frameworks.

Foresight Planning for Business Development (Greater Stavanger Economic Development, Stavanger, Norway)
An approach to foresight as the intersection of futures studies, strategic planning, and policy analysis.

Books

JohnMSmart — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 02:58:33 CDT

Book compilation sites and individual titles that are helpful for strategic foresight and futures research.

Books - Compilation Sites (Free and For Pay)
Amazon.com
Largest collection of for-pay books online.
ASF's Top 50 and Top 500 Books on Accelerating Change
Recommended titles for your Futurist Bookshelf.
ASF's Top 150 Books for Foresight Development
Recommended titles from ASF's university course on foresight development.

Books - Individual Titles (Free)
(None listed yet. Add your finds here!)

Books - Individual Titles (For Pay)
In Top, STEEPS3 Nonfiction, and Fiction Categories
STEEPS3 is a futures categorization system that stands for:
Science, Evolution, and Development
Technology and Information
Environment, Energy, Resources, and Global
Economics, Globalization, and Capitalism
Politics, Security, and Democ
Society 1 (Big Society): Culture, Media, Education and Religion
Society 2 (Medium Society): Business and Organizations
Society 3 (Small Society): Personal & Careers
Please place books in alpha order under each category. Feel free to include your initials ( - JS, etc.) after any commentary that is your subjective opinion. Please provide at least one line of commentary per book and no more than six lines per book. Thanks!

Top Nonfiction Futures Books
CIA World Factbook 2008, Central Intelligence Agency, 2007
Great source of country information. Also available online for free.
Science and Human Values, Jacob Bronowski, 1990
Science today is largely silent on human values, a subject it remains a long way from understanding. Religion, tradition, and ideology powerfully fill this void today, speaking to issues of great value and importance to each of us. Yet science is a profoundly humanizing enterprise, and has been central to the elevation of human culture. Bronowski helps us understand both left-brained logic and right-brained creativity, both subjective introspection and objective science as complementary habits of truth.
50 Facts That Should Change the World, Jessica Williams, 2004
Perhaps 35 of these 50 stats are offensive or angering to varying degrees. The stats and their associated commentary make you motivated to change them. The other third (things like plastic surgery rates) are offensive or not depending in your values and political persuasion. Many of these problems will very likely be greatly improved in coming decades. Thanks to Disinformation.com for this cool book!
State of the Future 2006, State of the Future / "Millennium" Project (an Annual)
An annual book that analyzes and evaluates possible global prospects for humanity. It would likely be useful students wishing to find more sources for an essay or paper as well as for students who wish to learn more about future global scenarios, sciences and environmental scenarios.

Science, Evolution, and Development Books
A Brief History of Time, Stephen Hawking, 1988
This popular science book explains a wide range of topics in cosmology and modern physics. Although it is mainly a book about the "present", it also discusses the future of the field of physics and how it might affect humanity as a whole.
Complexity: Life at the Edge of Chaos, Roger Lewin, 2000
Global Brain: Mass Mind from the Big Bang to the 21st Century, Howard Bloom, 2001
Quantum: A Guide for the Perplexed, Jim Al-Khalili, 2004
Soul Made Flesh: The Discovery of the Brain and How it Changed the World, Carl Zimmer, 2005
How the theory of mind has slowly progressed from immaterial, residing in the heart, to material, residing in the embodied nervous system. A fantastic story, ranging from Aristotle to the present day. It centers around the work of 17th century anatomist and early scientist Thomas Willis.
The Elegant Universe: Superstrings and Hidden Dimensions, Brian Greene, 2000
The Holographic Universe, Michael Talbot, 1991
What if all the separate images we see virtually every moment of our waking lives were actually part of the same whole? What if every mind was connected and inseparable from every other mind? And what if the universe were a projection of our consciousness? Michael Talbot argues for the idea that what we see in our limited three-dimensional view is actually a hologram created by interactions occurring in a broader set of dimensions (in the multiverse). This book bridges the worlds of science and metaphysics and offers at least a plausible hypothesis for their reconciliation.
The Lady Tasting Tea: How Statistics Revolutionized Science in the Twentieth Century, David Salsburg, 2002
Great intro to the way statistics and probability math and models have led to great leaps in the search for scientific truth over the last hundred years. These mathematical methods are nothing less than humanities first great successful effort at building a "prediction science." Discovering and verifying probability distributions in complex systems is an excellent way to discover hidden order in the universe. The actuarial industry is just one of many that have been able to use these tools, approximate as they are, to very effectively manage the future in our partially chaotic world.

Technology and Information Books
Human Genetic Engineering: A Guide for Progressives, Pete Shanks, 2005
A nice intro to the many limits of biotech, and the social values that limit its adoption as well.
Massive Change and the Institute without Boundaries, Bruce Mau, 2004
Somewhat utopian but inspiring and very nicely illustrated manifesto on how better design can fundamentally improve our world.
Robot: Mere Machine to Transcendent Mind, Hans Moravec, 1998
The Future of Technology, Tom Standage, Ed., 2005
Insightful but circumscribed survey of the 10-year future of consumer, info, nano, and biotech, from an insightful editor at The Economist.
The Spike: Impact of Rapidly Advancing Technologies, Damien Broderick, 2002
Visions of Technology: A Century of Debate about Machines, Richard Rhodes, 2000
What Will Be: How Information Will Change Our Lives, Michael Dertouzos, 1997
Why Things Bite Back: Unintended Consequences of Tech, Edward Tenner, 1997
How technology trades big life-threatening problems with slower-acting, more complex ones.

Environment, Energy, Resources, and Global Books
An Inconvenient Truth: The Crisis of Global Warming, Al Gore, 2006
Cool It: The Skeptical Environmentalist’s Guide to Global Warming, Bjorn Lomborg, 2007
Global Warming: A Very Short Introduction, Mark Maslin, 2004
Quick intro to the complexities of global warming forecasts, and the political positions involved.
Limits To Growth, Meadows, Meadows and Randers, 1979
Limits to Growth: The 30 Year Update, Meadows and Randers, 2004
Silent Spring (Special Edition), Rachel Carson, 1974/2002
The 2030 Spike: Countdown to Global Catastrophe, Colin Mason, 2003
The Bottomless Well: Why We Will Never Run out of Energy, Huber and Mills, 2006
The Long Emergency: Surviving the Catastrophes of the 21st Century, James Kunstler, 2006

Economics, Globalization, and Capitalism Books
Bobos in Paradise: The Upper Class and How they Got There, David Brooks, 2001
Capitalism 3.0: A Guide to Reclaiming the Commons, Peter Barnes, 2006
Development as Freedom, Amartya Sen, 2000
Globalization and its Discontents, Joseph Stiglitz, 2003
Miniatlas of Global Development, World Bank, 2004
Very small handbook of goals and progress in global development per the World Bank.
The Commanding Heights: The Battle for the World Economy, Yergin and Stanislaw, 1999
Epic account of the 20th century battle between governmental control and the free marketplace.
The Long Boom: A Vision for the Coming Age of Prosperity, Peter Schwartz, 2001
A leading futurist gives his rationale for why it's reasonable to expect unrivaled economic expansion all over the planet over the next 20 years. This scenario seems reasonable for New Asia, but is quite optimistic for the US given trends in recent decades.
The Future of Money, Benjamin Cohen, 2006
This book chronicles the steadily decreasing number of global currencies. Like languages, weaker national currencies have been progressively disappearing or "dollarizing" them (pegging their currency to a stronger global currency in fixed ratios). Cohen (of the Cato Institute) proposes that this currency contraction trend may soon reverse. I disagree with this prediction on many levels, but he makes a reasonable argument that should be at least listened to carefully. - JS
The Future of Work: The New Order of Business, Tom Malone, 2004
Explores how networks are flattening, distributing, and virtualizing business, and implications.
The Origin of Wealth: Evolution, Complexity, and Economics, Eric Beinhocker, 2006
Masterful look at the economics ofchange and innovation, in the tradition of Joseph Schumpeter.
The World Economy: Historical Statistics, DCS, Angus Maddison, 2003
Thousand-year estimates on global economic growth, around the world. Amazing topsight on the accelerating engine of change, since 1850, that is capitalism. Angus Maddison isa rare expert in this topic.

Politics, Security, and Democracy Books
Deception: Pakistan, the US, and the Secret Trade in Nuclear Weapons, Levy and Scott-Clark, 2007
Dynamics of Nonviolent Action, Gene Sharp, 1985
Great book on nonviolent resistance campaigns. "First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win." -- Mohandas Ghandi. Sharp's book and US State Dept aid were used by Optor in their successful student-led voter rebellion against Yugoslavian dictator Slobodan Milosovec.
Human Security Brief 2006, Human Security Report Project, 2007
Independent tracking of interstate and intrastate conflict and organized violence against civilians. Documents the steadily decreasing incidence rates of global violence in the last decade, anomalous and well-publicized outliers like the global Salafi jihad and the second Iraq War notwithstanding. Develops the concept of "human security" (security of individuals) as a complementary goal to national security (security of the state).
Making a Killing: The Business of War, Center for Public Integrity (CPI), 2002
Two year, $600K 11 part investigation by the CPI's International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) into the business of war, arms trade, defense contracting, and other forms of monetized conflict. The ICIJ found that "a handful of individuals and companies with connections to governments, multinational corporations and, sometimes, criminal syndicates in the United States, Europe, Africa and the Middle East have profited from this war commerce – a growth industry whose bottom line never takes into account the lives it destroys."
No Place for Amateurs: How Political Consultants are Reshaping American Democracy, Dennis Johnson, 2007
Details the massive growth in special interest lobbies in US politics in the last two generations. A ratio of 150 lobbyists to one politician, cushy jobs for politicians in these firms and on big business boards afterward and other examples of institutionalized corruption that are legal in our current environment pretty much ensures plutocratic politics. Essential reading.
Radical Middle: The Politics We Need Now, Mark Satin, 2004
The Coming Anarchy: Shattering the Dreams of the Post-Cold War, Robert Kaplan, 2001
Great book on how democracy comes slowly in the developing world, and how the best thing in many emerging nations may be to support "enlightened dictators" as long as they are engaged in economic liberalization and are publicly committed to slow but obvious political liberalization. Kaplan also notes that unless we deal now with the problems of the developing world, we will see new forms of global resistance, possibly worse than Al Qaeda.
The End of History and the Last Man, Francis Fukuyama, 2006
The Great Big Book of Tomorrow: A Treasury of Cartoons, Tom Tomorrow, 2003
The Moral Consequences of Economic Growth, Benjamin Friedman, 2005
Analysis of the value of economic growth to creating a healthy democracy. Individuals and societies are more trusting, more inclusive, more open to change when they see their and their children's futures as both progressing and secure. During economic stagnation and downturns, democratic institutions suffer. Average full-time incomes for Americans have fallen 15% in real terms since 1975, and Friedman sees this as one reason our democracy and communities have weakened over this period.
The One-Hour Activist: Fifteen Ways to Fight for Your Issues, Christopher Kush, 2004
Quick grassroots actions that persuade lawmakers to listen. There's no good reason to be passive in the networked society. Find others, make change.
What If’s? Of American History, Robert Crowley, 2004

Society 1 (Big): Culture, Media, Education and Religion Books
A Brief History of Everything, Ken Wilber, 2007
"A series of original views on many topics of current controversy, including gender wars, multiculturalism, modern liberation movements, and the conflict between various approaches to spirituality." Includes a valuable systems theory of human philosophy of thought (the Four Quadrants/Integral theory).
Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic, John de Graaf, 2005
Great book on the cultural excesses of American society: consumption overload, debt, waste, anxiety, self-indulgence, and apathy for the non-self.
America's Perfect Storm: Three Forces Changing Our Nation's Future, ETS, 2007
A forecast that in the US, several long term forces 1) declining math and reading skills, 2) need for literacy and higher ed to compete in the information economy, 3) major demographic shifts (legal and illegal immigration), and 4) a widening rich-poor divide are all converging to create a "perfect storm" of greatly declining US educational effectiveness, lower workforce competitiveness, and increasing class inequity in coming years. Forsees a highly stratified US society in 2020: a well-educated, well paid top tier, a small and shrinking middle class, and a large uncompetitive and marginally literate underclass.
Copyrights and Copywrongs: Rise of Intellectual Property and How it Threatens Creativity, Siva Vaidhyanathan, 2003
The history and evolution of copyright, how it came to be corporate controlled, and strategies and solutions for improving its public service.
Culture of Narcissism: American Life in an Age of Diminishing Expectations, Christopher Lasch, 1979/1991
Classic futurist work that addressed then-new and now-major trends in the failure of the family as an institution, state paternalism and the erosion of individual authority, the culture of celebrity, conformity, consumerism, self-indulgence, and apathy. Lasch's thesis is that narcissism and consumerism are a reaction to the fear of being nothing in a world of increasing complexity [and we might add, velocity of change]. Fortunately, other options are available. What are Lasch's solutions? A return to self-reliance, the family, cultivated friendships, nature, the community, and the work ethic.
Feed: A Modern Dystopia, MT Anderson, 2004
Kids as consumer robots talking Orwellian newspeak due to 24/7 corporate internet feeds. Chilling dystopian fiction that seems all too likelyfor some increasingly manipulated and disenfranchised segment of our future society, even as we recognize these feeds will be delivered not via some improbable "neurojack" but rather by our ubiquitous wearable and embedded computing devices.
Innovation and its Discontents: How our Broken Patent System Endangers Innovation, and What to Do About It, Adam Jaffee, 2004
Eloquent look at the problems of the current patent system, particularly the changes in U.S. patent law that began in 1984, in favor of large corporations, and what can be done to improve patent quality and accountability to the public, which grants them in the first place.
Microtrends: The Small Forces Behind Tomorrow's Big Changes, Mark Penn, 2007
An insightful look, in the tradition of Megatrends and The Tipping Point, at the many social stratification trends occurring in our modern freedom- and individuality-oriented culture, and the social shifts and business opportunities they represent.
Scanning the Future: 20 Big Thinkers on the World of Tomorrow, Yorick Blumenfeld, 1999
Interviews with eminent scientists, engineers, statesmen and others. Thoughts on how to build a better future for ourselves and the planet.
The Assault on Reason: The Challenge to American Democracy, Al Gore, 2007
How media monopolies and government opportunism have weakened democracy, and a number of ideas for change.
The Meme Machine: Imitation and Social Intelligence, Susan Blackmore, 2000
Agood start at exploring the idea that self-replicating ideas, which jump from brain to brain in our highly imitative human culture, are another level of evolutionary development on top of self-replicating genes, which jump from cell to cell to create life and its biological imperatives. Memes (good ideas that are worthy of imitation) have a "life of their own" in culture. Memeplexes like "the self" are really just one special collection of such ideas. Fascinating way to rethink who you are.
The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell, 2002
Treats ideas like epidemics. Discusses social roles (connectors, mavens, salesmen) and the dynamics of behavior change.
Virtual Charter Schools and Home Schooling, Carol Klein, 2006
Explores the virtual charter school, which allows the socialization of home schooled peers who are all educated under the same "charter," whatever that may be. Is a virtual class of 30 empathetic high-achievers adequate socialization? If so, will virtual charter micro-schools be increasingly realistic options for educating self-reliant and innovative youth inside a larger culture of narcissism and apathy?

Society 2 (Medium): Business and Organizations Books
Conquering Uncertainty: Understanding Corporate Cycles, Theodore Modis, 1998
Seeing What's Next: Using Innovation to Predict Industry Change, Clay Christensen, 2004
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable, Patrick M. Lencioni, 2002
The Logic of Failure: Avoiding Error in Complex Situations, Dietrich Dorner, 1997
How our mental habits can set us up for error, and how to guard against it in management.

Society 3 (Small): Personal & Careers Books
Born to Buy: The Commercialized Child and the New Consumer Culture, Juliet B. Schor, 2005
Outlines the incredibly sophisticated and relentless marketing manipulation of kids, and the resulting passivity, commercialism, and alienation from authentic values and passions that emerges. Amazing stats like the average 10 year old has memorized about 400 brands (but still knows virtually none of the countries or cultures of the world), that R-rated movies are marketed to 9-year-olds, that the target readership of Seventeen magazine is now preteens. Ideas for ways parents (primarily), educators and govt (very secondarily), and advertisers (least likely) can lessen these problems.
Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway, Susan Jeffers, 2006
Excellent practical techniques for overcoming fear, indecision, anger, and self-image problems to get to personal action and growth. Very often faulty thinking is at the root of our fear. We need to learn to "do first those most important things that scare us" and watch ourselves as we confront them. Courage can be learned, and this book is a great introduction to how to do that.
Happier: Learn the Secrets of Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment, Tal Ben-Shahar, 2007
Workbook for one of the most popular courses (positive psychology) at Harvard U. Dr. Ben-Shahar discusses the blend of reason and emotion, short and long-term orientation, here-and-now vs. big picture, path and destination thinking, that leads to happier, more meaningful, more productive lives.
How We Talk Can Change the Way We Work: 7 Lang. for Transform., Kegan & Lahey, 2002
You have as much control over the way you speak to others as you do over your attitude. Use it!
Insurance for Dummies, Jack Hungelmann, 2001
A good overview of how to manage risk by purchasing insurance, a key futures planning tool. The kind of people who purchase insurance and do investing have strong personal foresight. When we overcome our fears and get good with these topics, we become foresighted as well. The key with insurance is to understand, and learn how to minimize your real level of risk, and to purchase only the amount of insurance you really need. As your personal assets grow, you can self-insure more. Whether its car, home, health, life, liability, event, or other insurance, this book is a good place to start.
Phantoms in the Brain: Probing the Mysteries of the Mind, V.S. Ramachandran, 1999
By looking at people with damaged brains, a neuroscientist looks at the way past experience, emotion, and our unconscious and conscious mind construct meaning about the world. Fascinating insights for gaining self-awareness and improving your mental "influence" over your own behaviors.
Rules for Radicals: A Pragmatic Primer, Saul Alinsky, 1989
Classic text on how to live with an activist's mindset. Change is always painful to people. Sometimes you need to be an irritant to others to get the social change that is needed. Alinsky gives lots of examples from history of effective "radicals."
Simple Living Guide, Janet Luhrs, 1997
Tips on thriving with less clutter, consumption, and expense in all facets of your life, by the editor of the Simple Living Journal.
The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader, John Maxwell, 2007
Key traits like character, courage, focus, generosity, listening, passion, that inspire leadership.
The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom, Don Miguel Ruiz, 2001
Be impeccable with your words. Don't take anything personally. Don't make assumptions. Always do your best. Ruiz illuminates these four simple habits, and the tremendous personal empowerment that flows from them, if you do the hard work of internalizing them and living by them. This brief book gets New-Agey, preachy, and hyperbolic in its ancillary claims, but discerning readers can look beyond this to glean the essential wisdom within.
The Nurture Assumption: Why Children Turn Out the Way They Do, Judith Rich Harris, 1999
Excellent evidence and argument by the self-taught author of a college textbook on child development why parental upbringing has such a small effect on child development. Increasingly we find it is the nature of the peer group that is the primary influencer. Implications of this are not only the obvious, to get one's child into a "better school," but profound: if a child is raised around a special subset of high-standards peers (home-schooled, extracurricular, or otherwise) who have learned how to analyze both the best and the worst today's youth culture, they will take these insights to heart.
The Only Investment Guide You’ll Ever Need, Andrew Tobias, 2005
Good basic investment advice, including a great deal be-conscious-of-your-expenses and heres-how-to-spend-less common sense.
The Overspent American: Why We Want What We Don't Need, Juliet B. Schor, 1999
Portrait of the "getting and spending" culture that pushes so many of us into debt and unsatisfying consumption, and a profile of "downshifters" who find a way out. Nice thesis on the way television watching is causally correlated with overspending, particularly among youth, who are being the most aggressively manipulated these days.
The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less, Barry Schwartz, 2005
Data and insights on the massive increase in choice and the corresponding cognitive load on today's consumers, and the lack of adequate external filters and internal inhibitions to keep us from getting stressed and unhappy in the midst of all that plenty.
The Resiliency Advantage: Master Change, Bounce Back from Setbacks, Al Siebert, 2005
Great followup book by the author of The Survivor Personality. Explains how to recognize and admire resiliency traits in others and how to build them in yourself.
The Road to Excellence: The Acquisition of Expert Performance, K. Anders Ericsson, 1996
Ericsson's original work on the ease of acquiring expertise via disciplined practice, in spite of one's inherited talent or upbringing. His Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance, 2006, is his followup work, and one of our great futures books.
Waking Up in Time: Inner Peace in Times of Accelerating Change, Peter Russell, 2007
Tips for finding peace, doing good, and living well in our modern ever-accelerating world.
Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation, Jon Kabat-Zinn, 2005
Great advice and habits for being mindful, stress-minimized, and conscious in a world that tries to take away your self-awareness at every turn.
Why Good Things Happen to Good People, Stephen Post, 2007
Research on the mental and physical health benefits of doing good and helping others. Affirms the adage: "Want to be happy? Make others happy."
Why Smart People Make Big Money Mistakes: Behavioral Econ., Belsky & Gilovich, 2000
Why do otherwise rational people act so foolishly in relation to money? Insights from the emerging science of behavioral economics.

Realistic Fiction Books
[Realistic fiction has major parts (not just a few) which feel like they actually could happen in the future, under certain circumstances. Most fantasy and SF doesn't count as realistic--there are exceptions however, and if you think some particular aspect of a fantasy or SF work feels realistic, include it here and explain why. Future fiction is a subgenre of general or science fiction that feels realistic most of the way through, to many readers. Good future fiction is hard to write, as you can imagine.]
List Fiction Books Below in Alpha Order by Title, With Brief Comments.

Brave New World, Aldous Huxley, 1932.
This dystopian novel describes a hedonistic world where family, culture,and art are destroyed. Even though people are basically happy and healthy, everyone has lost their identity and individual control over their fate. It's a good thought-provoking book because many of the things in the book (or at least parallels) already exist in today's reality. It's somewhat frightening because it suggests that eventually we might be genetically engineered to live certain lives and to do certain jobs, made to be artificially and superficially happy by what we are assigned to do.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K. Dick
Most people know this book by the movie that was made of it, directed by Ridley Scott, Blade Runner. I believe that there will be a time, when robots will be possible, and then they will also have to be kept in check. This link is to the Amazon site where the book is.

Dust, Charles R. Pellegrino, 1999
This book pulls information from the past (cataclysmic events - dinosaurs extinction, the Ice Age) to make an inference to what could happen in the future. The author is saying that it's high time another even like those happens based on the pattern of the past. It's geared more towards an environmentalist futurist in that one animal's extinction completely threw off the balance of the entire world and launched it into chaos.

Ender's Game, Orson Scott Card, 1980
An amazing story about a young boy who is chosen to be trained to fight for Earth. An alien race call buggers is threatening the existence of man, and Ender is chosen to go to a battle school in space. This book is fairly realistic and has some cool technologies. The story is amazing, and has the biggest surprise in any book I have ever read.

Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury, 1953
This dystopian novel is set in a time when critical thought is suppresed and firemen burn books and the houses that contain them as opposed to actually stopping fires. Even today, the book effectively analyzes the growing trend of escapism in our society and the effects of the mindless, mass media entertainment that we increasingly get exposed to every day. Out of the several classical dystopias of its time, it is likely the most relevant today, especially because it deals with a future caused by society itself, not the government.

Foundation, Isaac Asimov, 1951.
If I didn't tell you this book was almost 60 years old, you might never guess. Asimov is eerily prescient in many passages. This novel (and the series that it evolved into) is based on the idea that a man has come up with a way to predict the future on a galactic scale; the model doesn't work for small groups, but only billions or trillions of people. If you enjoy science fiction in even the slightest bit, you will enjoy this book.

Net Force Series,Tom Clancy and Steve R. Pieczenik, 1999
This series involves policing a new type of crime, cyber-crimes. The crimes themselves are not too futuristic, but the way the net is accessed is pretty inovative. It involves sitting in a chair and plugging in (Matrix-esque) but it can be customized however you choose, So looking for a particular piece of information could be done on the net as if you were a pirate with a treasure map. It is a very interesting series and can give a glimpse at the future of the internet and crimes associated with it. - Eric Kaplan

The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood, 1998
A thoughtful dystopia built on one big assumption: an outbreak of human sterility, and two big and at least plausible consequences: a global fundamentalist backlash, and a nuclear war. Children of Men, 2006 is very similar.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams 1979
An excellent science fiction tale that predicts many currently existing technologies, even though they are the invention of other societies in the book, and takes a satirical look at our own psychology. It even predicts a few social trends long before they crop up in society.

The Roads Must Roll, Robert A. Heinlein, 1940 in Astounding Science Fiction
This short story is a remarkably perceptive tale about how transportation becomes increasingly important to how society functions. It's a incredibly interesting and exciting story as well as proposing interesting possibilites for the future.

The Stand, Stephen King, 1978
This book carries out a story of a virus that kills most of mankind. An extreme military research problems goes wrong and widespread death follows and this book projects a possible scenario if this were to happen.

The Two Faces of Tomorrow (Graphic Novel), James P. Hogan, 2006
Set in a near future where humans have to face the consequences of living on the same planet with large computers that are beginning to "think" and control their own world (including robots that repair them). Will the first truly self-aware computer be friend or foe? To find out, the U.S. puts the world's most advanced computer on a space station (with a nuclear destruct safeguard) to see if it remains "friendly" and is willing to follow orders even after it "wakes up." A great story that hasn't yet been made into a blockbuster sci-fi movie. I could see a prequel and a sequel to it as well. Hopefully soon!

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