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futurist_fieldguide:situation_so_far [2015-06-03 08:36] – alkan | futurist_fieldguide:situation_so_far [2015-06-04 09:30] (current) – alkan | ||
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===== Situation So Far ===== | ===== Situation So Far ===== | ||
- | Mapping out the past and present of an issue or a situation is crucial for any futuring exercise. The more is known about what happened before and what is happening now, the more grounded the conversation about the future can be. This technique shares a strong link with the aptitude of [[walking backwards into the future]], which can help us avoid unnecessarily reinventing the wheel. While not a formalised technique, | + | Mapping out the past and present of an issue or a situation is crucial for any futuring exercise. The more is known about what happened before and what is happening now, the more grounded the conversation about the future can be. This technique shares a strong link with '[[walking backwards into the future]]', an aptitude |
- | At FoAM we use this technique when the participants need to establish a shared context and learn about each others' | + | At FoAM we use this technique when the participants need to establish a shared context and learn about each others' |
==== Process ==== | ==== Process ==== | ||
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* Step 1: Frame the conversation mentioning the importance of history in futuring exercises and propose a general question: //'How would you map the territory of your issue/ | * Step 1: Frame the conversation mentioning the importance of history in futuring exercises and propose a general question: //'How would you map the territory of your issue/ | ||
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* Step 2: The present situation: it can help to ask the usual questions: What, Why, How, Who, When and Where, to identify simultaneous actions, events, places, people (etc.) that make up the current conditions. Alternatively you can also use a more sensual approach and ask what is seen, heard, sensed, smelled, tasted, thought and felt. Your guiding questions depend on the issue or situation you're examining. Focus particularly on the interconnections between the various aspects of the situation that can make it seem overwhelmingly complex. The key to mapping the present is to untangle complexities and relax any tensions arising from participants' | * Step 2: The present situation: it can help to ask the usual questions: What, Why, How, Who, When and Where, to identify simultaneous actions, events, places, people (etc.) that make up the current conditions. Alternatively you can also use a more sensual approach and ask what is seen, heard, sensed, smelled, tasted, thought and felt. Your guiding questions depend on the issue or situation you're examining. Focus particularly on the interconnections between the various aspects of the situation that can make it seem overwhelmingly complex. The key to mapping the present is to untangle complexities and relax any tensions arising from participants' | ||
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* Step 3: The past (causes, patterns, roots of current situation): Look at the core characteristics of the present situation and discuss their origins: Why did this happen? What are the causes, roots or patterns that extend from the present to the past? Has something similar happened before (see the [[:/ | * Step 3: The past (causes, patterns, roots of current situation): Look at the core characteristics of the present situation and discuss their origins: Why did this happen? What are the causes, roots or patterns that extend from the present to the past? Has something similar happened before (see the [[:/ | ||
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* Step 4: Key insights: At the end of the exercise look at the map you've created and reflect on the outcomes. Are there any key insights (old or new) that should be carried into the futuring exercise? Which things, events, patterns, behaviours, relationships or causes in this system should we be particularly aware of? What can you do with these insights in the present and in the future? | * Step 4: Key insights: At the end of the exercise look at the map you've created and reflect on the outcomes. Are there any key insights (old or new) that should be carried into the futuring exercise? Which things, events, patterns, behaviours, relationships or causes in this system should we be particularly aware of? What can you do with these insights in the present and in the future? | ||