The Future: A Very Short Introduction

Gidley, Jennifer M.

doi:10.1093/actrade/9780198735281.001.0001

Cited by 83 publications

(48 citation statements)

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“…For a better understanding of why things have not worked out in the past and what should be done for the future the broad field of futures studies would have much to offer to the biodiversity debate. The definition of futures studies says it all: ‘the art and science of taking responsibility for the long term consequences of our decisions and our actions today’ (Gidley, ; p. 136).…”

Section: Proposals For Action: a Package Of Food For Thoughtmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shaping the Fate of Life on Earth: The Post‐2020 Global Biodiversity Framework

Erdelen¹

2020

Global Policy

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Loss of biological diversity continues at alarming rates, despite valiant UN efforts aided by the international community. The 2010 Target for biodiversity has been missed. The Aichi Targets, adopted in 2010, may also not be met by their timeline of 2020. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and its partners are now preparing a post-2020 global framework for biodiversity, to be adopted in October 2020, at its 15th Conference of the Parties. The initiative presented here is meant to provoke further thought on how to accelerate efforts toward stopping biodiversity loss. Ten proposals are briefly introduced and discussed, with emphasis on three priority fast track initiatives: (1) the creation of as extensive as possible a worldwide protected area network; (2) a complete halt to deforestation and the restoration of forest ecosystems; and (3) a massive reduction in or (ideally) a halt to further environmental pollution. Following a discussion of approaches at national, regional and global levels, the proposals are related to a generic scenario comprising the biodiversity-related institutional landscape and its governance systems and trends in biodiversity and its global distribution resulting from the interplay between human impacts, conservation efforts and uncertainties about the future course of evolution. Policy Implications• Biodiversity is life, our life. This leitmotif of the International Year of Biodiversity (2010) set the stage for improving policy a decade ago, but with only limited success as indicated in the expected failure to reach targets set for 2020.• Biodiversity policy makers need to take into account all dimensions of biodiversity, genetic to cultural-spiritual, and address them simultaneously at all geographical scalesfrom subnational to global. Biodiversity literacy is of the essence and should be supported with relevant programs in education, research, awareness and institutional capacity building in all nations. Biodiversity policy must be all-embracing, transdisciplinary and anticipative.• To meet the new challenges our leaders must engage with an informed public with knowledge of the critical issues, develop workable strategies to address biodiversity and climate change issues and work with central government to ensure that strategies are funded, implemented and actions and outcomes made public.

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Section: Proposals For Action: a Package Of Food For Thoughtmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shaping the Fate of Life on Earth: The Post‐2020 Global Biodiversity Framework

Erdelen¹

2020

Global Policy

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“…Another common perspective on the future is summarised by the acronym VUCA: volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous [1]. This mantra, apparently first coined by the US Department of Defense, encapsulates our common anxiety and disorientation in the face of the future.…”

Section: Discourses About Futuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…All of these issues are important ones which together define the nature of the academic library profession. The orientation of a profession to the future is critical in a society preoccupied with foresight [1]. In practical terms, how a profession conceives of futures will affect its ability to offer leadership.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Academic Libraries' Stance toward the Future

Cox¹,

Pinfield²,

Rutter³

2019

portal

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The literature about academic libraries has a strong interest in the future, yet there is little written that reflects on academic libraries underlying stance towards the future: is there a sense of change or continuity? Is there optimism or pessimism? Consensus or divergence? These questions are explored using data from interviews with a broad range of practitioners, commentators and experts.The findings reveal that some saw libraries as fundamentally unchanging, while others perceived change as a given. There was little consensus either about upcoming trends. There were doubts about libraries ability to deal with change; but there was also considerable optimism.

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“…The systematic practice of anticipating novel and disruptive behaviours and any subsequent opportunities or possible threats is developed within the field of future studies and foresight [10]. While futures and foresight research and practice activities have over the years led to the development of many forward-looking techniques (e.g.…”

Section: Future Technology and Foresightmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emerging risks in the IoT ecosystem: Who's afraid of the big bad smart fridge?

Tanczer

Steenmans

Elsden

et al. 2018

Living in the Internet of Things: Cybersecurity of the IoT - 2018

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Rapid technological innovations, including the emergence of the Internet of Things (IoT), introduce a range of uncertainties, opportunities, and risks. While it is not possible to accurately foresee IoT's myriad ramifications, futures and foresight methodologies allow for the exploration of plausible futures and their desirability. Drawing on the futures and foresight literature, the current paper employs a standardised expert elicitation approach to study emerging risk patterns in descriptions of IoT risk scenarios. We surveyed 19 IoT experts between January and February 2018 using an online questionnaire. The submitted scenarios provided expert's perception of evolving IoT risk trajectories and were evaluated using thematic analysis, a method used to identify and report patterns within data. Four common themes were extracted: physical safety; crime and exploitation; loss of control; and social norms and structures. These themes provide suitable analytical tools to contextualise emerging risks and help detecting gaps about security and privacy challenges in the IoT.

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The Future: A Very Short Introduction

Cited by 83 publications

References 0 publications

Shaping the Fate of Life on Earth: The Post‐2020 Global Biodiversity Framework

Shaping the Fate of Life on Earth: The Post‐2020 Global Biodiversity Framework

Academic Libraries' Stance toward the Future

Emerging risks in the IoT ecosystem: Who's afraid of the big bad smart fridge?

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