In a Future Workshop the participants are encouraged to develop imaginative, unconventional solutions to issues of current interest, by means of an atmosphere designed to promote creativity.

Suitable

 

• for developing visions, e.g. when a statement of principles, a development scenario, a far-reaching project for the future etc. is to be put together
• where new, creative solutions for existing problems or issues are to be found

Sequence of events: three main phases

Criticism phase: analysing the current situation and identifying the problems
Fantasy phase: developing ideas and suggestions (initially these can perfectly well be utopian – obstacles in the real world are ignored at this stage)
Realization phase: structuring the suggestions, investigating how realistic they are, reaching agreement on what happens next

Participants

Ordinary citizens, representatives of interest groups, possibly experts, politicians, administrators

Points to note

 

• If new solutions are to emerge, a creative atmosphere is essential. So suitable accommodation and working materials, and facilitators familiar with creativity techniques, are vital for a Future Workshop to be a success.
• Future Workshops are designed to activate people and are action-oriented; so they should form part of an overall strategy that promotes not only generating new ideas but also putting them into practice.