Reframing Ecological Conservation:Foresight and

Public Interest

Shermon O. Cruz Researcher, University Center for Research and

Development, Northwestern Uni; Director, Center for Engaged Foresight;Professor, School of Graduate Studies,

Northern Christian College

engagedforesight.com

Outline of Presentation

Uni Center for Research Development (UCRD)

and Foresight Research

Center for Engaged Foresight (CEF)

Futures Studies and Methods

Alternative futures for Eco-Con anyone?

New Stories, new narratives for the conservationist and beyond?…How? What’s yours?

Some Questions and Insights for Eco-Con

2011

A research on research

Scenarios for Impact: Transforming NWU Research Futures

Causal Layered Analysis on NWU Research

Consistent workshops on futures thinking, tools and methods

Scenario planning for strategy building and development

Offer futures studies courses in the immediate future

FAQs

But what is the future? context? futures? tools and methods? Relevance to policy, governance, movements, international studies, culture, decision-making, social transformation, etc.? Ecological conservation?

It cannot be predicted, as the future does not exist yet…

When we anticipate, explore, imagine the future, it makes “the present” more remarkable, significant…

BE HERE NOW…

When we things go wrong we often say that this demonstrates a lack of foresight. When things turn out

well we often interpret this as evidence of successful

foresight

It’s not about predicting but imagining alternatives and creating strategies to achieve a preferred future or better yet transform the future…

Warm up Qs?

What are your hopes for ecological conservations?

What your fears?How will it impact the way

you live?

Are the any emergent patterns? Emerging issues? Seeds of change?

How can we reframe eco-con and make it more relevant to public policy, felt by the public, invested on, etc.?

What will eco-con look like in 2040? 2050? 2100?

What are the alternatives? preferred futures?

What is a “day in the life of an eco-conservationist” in 2050?

Stories? Narratives?

What’s yours?

Thank you!

engagedforesight.com