Future search conversation

Abstract

We can have any future we want. We just have to identify it and design it-purposefully. "Future Search," as popularized by Marvin Weisbord, provides a framework for creating a system's future. The purpose of a Future Search conference is for the system to identify and aim for an ideal future. Two primary goals are to a) help large, diverse groups discover common values, purposes, and projects and b) enable people to create together a desired future that can be implemented immediately (Weisbord & Janoff, 2001). No prior training or expertise is needed to participate meaningfully in a Future Search. In fact, there is evidence that when people "begin working on real tasks relevant to a shared purpose," the skills needed to participate in the Future Search process "appear naturally and effortlessly" (Emery & Purser, 1996, p. 16). The process has been used to address a variety of issues (health care, education, public transportation, water quality), in a variety of settings (schools, hospitals, publishers, churches, government, non-profit organizations), in a variety of locations (North and South America, Australia, Africa, Europe, South Asia). © 2005 Springer Science + Business Media, Inc.