We need a lot more visions of the future!
Let's imagine a holiday without knowing where we are going, a company without a plan for the future or a municipality without a long-term strategy. The risk of failure is imminent. The same is true of a society without a vision for the future. A vision of the future does not mean that the vision is there to be fulfilled to the letter, but to inspire and give direction, and to provide a guiding vision of regularly updated provisional utopias. The vision of the future is the affirmation that society is striving for radical future goals around which the entire population is mobilized. It is a leadership tool for citizens so that they know how best to support progress. Society today is completely unaccustomed to creating visions of the future, and few actually exist. There are a number of preconditions that a vision of the future should meet in order to be adequate in the current global situation, and that support a truly sustainable and resilient planet. Some of these are:
Extreme events
- society and the population must be able to survive a super-strong solar storm, which in the worst case would knock out all electricity on the planet for many months or years
Natural resources
- there must be plenty of fresh water for people, animals and nature, for all generations to come
- soil for cultivation and nature must increase continuously on the planet
- soil and nature must become continuously cleaner from chemical toxins
- nature must be designed to minimize extreme weather events
- natural resources must be sufficient for all future generations
Social and economic system
- that all inhabitants of the planet must be able to enjoy the same high standards
- the social system must be based on genuine democracy and equality
- global, regional and local systems must be highly resilient (financial, technological, geopolitical, collaboration, production (food, energy, materials, products)).
- all people must be able to flourish
- proactive health must be a cornerstone
- human genetics must not be put at risk
Visions of the future are not only management tools but also excellent ways to broaden people's perspectives on themselves, on others and on what is possible. They can be created in study circles, interdisciplinary groups, political parties, organizations, etc.