Futures Research Unpacked

• #17 - Participatory Methods in Corporate Foresight: A Systematic Literature Review of Case Studies and Guidelines for Reporting

  Unpacking Participatory Methods in Corporate ForesightJoin us as we dive into a critical systematic literature review by Delhaes, Vieira, Pimenta, and Oliveira that examines participatory methods in Corporate Foresight (CF) case studies published between 2003 and 2023.Despite case studies being essential for generating insights into CF research and demonstrating foresight approaches in practical contexts, the authors reveal significant challenges and gaps in how these studies are documented.In this episode, we'll explore:The landscape of Corporate Foresight: Where CF case studies are applied across diverse industries, particularly in technology-focused sectors like ICT and Automotive, and how they primarily support strategic and technology development decisions within companies.The surprising lack of innovation: Discover how the application of participatory methods is often limited to traditional setups, with workshops and interviews being the most frequently used methods, and a notable absence of emerging technologies like advanced data analytics or AI.Critical documentation gaps: We'll highlight the paper's key finding that few case studies comprehensively describe their participatory component, making it difficult to understand their design, implementation, and replicability. This often stems from a focus on sharing "best practices" rather than rigorous scientific reporting.The solution: PMDT: Learn about the Participatory Methods Documentation Taxonomy (PMDT), a practical guideline proposed by the authors to help researchers and practitioners better document participatory methods, enhancing transparency, replicability, and learning from future CF case studies.Tune in to understand the state of participatory methods in Corporate Foresight research and how improved documentation can lead to more insightful and verifiable studies.Ref:Delhaes, J. M., Vieira, A. C. L., Pimenta, J. F., & Oliveira, M. D. (2025). Participatory Methods in Corporate Foresight: A Systematic Literature Review of Case Studies and Guidelines for Reporting. FUTURES & FORESIGHT SCIENCE, 7(2), e70011. https://doi.org/10.1002/ffo2.70011

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• #16 - A decolonial and participatory research approach to envision equitable transformations toward sustainability in the Amazon

  Unveiling Decolonial Futures: Empowering BIWOC in the AmazonJoin us as we dive into a groundbreaking research paper that explores decolonial and participatory approaches to envision equitable transformations toward sustainability in the Amazon. This episode highlights a collaborative effort with 20 Black, Indigenous, and other Women of Color (BIWOC) in Colombia's Putumayo department, who are actively fighting against the exploitation of nature.Discover how researchers and BIWOC co-created a "safe enough" border space to challenge dominant Euro-Western perspectives and foster epistemic equity. We'll discuss their innovative methodology, which combines participatory scenario-building, storytelling, and Causal Layered Analysis (CLA).Learn how this research unpacked the causes of inequity and degradation, leading to the development of three radical future visions for the Amazon: "The Amazonian Desert," "A New Age," and "The Revenge of Coca". We'll also explore the emancipation pathways for BIWOC embedded within these narratives, showcasing the power of local voices and endogenous discourses, such as the Nasa people's worldview, the Afro-descendant vivir sabroso philosophy, and Zapatista autonomy principles.This discussion emphasizes the crucial role of diverse worldviews and decolonial praxis in shaping genuinely equitable and sustainable futures, demonstrating a powerful methodological approach to include marginalized perspectives in sustainability agendas.REF:Sánchez-García, P. A., Schröter, B., Krause, T., Merrie, A. S., Pereira, L., Nielsen, J. Ø., & Loft, L. (2025). A decolonial and participatory research approach to envision equitable transformations toward sustainability in the Amazon. Futures, 172, 103638. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.futures.2025.103638

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• #15 - Entrepreneurship as an Object of Hope: Affirmative Critique in the Anthropocene

  Rethink entrepreneurship for the Anthropocene! In today's podcast delves into Lauri Laine's paper, "Entrepreneurship as an Object of Hope: Affirmative Critique in the Anthropocene," a bold exploration of how our human-centric views of innovation might be failing our planet.We challenge the traditional focus on human agency in both mainstream and critical entrepreneurship studies, examining why the idea of 'saving the world' through human-led ventures could be a "harmful hope". The paper argues that if the Anthropocene is a manifestation of human agency's hegemony and destructivity towards the Earth, it becomes urgent to affirm the entrepreneurial agency of nonhuman beings. Critical Entrepreneurship Studies (CES) traditionally emphasizes human agency to unlock alternative futures, but in the Anthropocene, this conviction might be part of the problem, given the materialization of human hopes as toxic layers, global warming, and mass extinction.Instead, we explore the paper's radical call for more-than-human entrepreneurship, drawing on "end-of-the-world" theorizing and object-oriented ontology. The "end of the world" here refers not to a future collapse, but the impossibility of peaceful harmony between humans and nature, suggesting the drama has already completed. Object-oriented ontology, particularly from Graham Harman, provides a baseline for affirming what exists beyond the human, proposing that ontological change involves all kinds of objects and that humans are not ontologically special.Discover how acknowledging the irreversible impact of human activity can shift our focus from what 'could be' to what 'is,' affirming the entrepreneurial agency of nonhuman beings and even the Earth itself. This includes viewing entrepreneurship through a "ruin optic" where deorganization creates possibilities for new organization, focusing on survival rather than profit. It also involves a "temporally scaled" perspective, recognizing that nonhuman entrepreneurial agency might operate on scales ungraspable by human time.This episode will transform your understanding of how organization creation can foster coexistence rather than perpetuate anthropocentric dominance. Tune in to explore a truly 'different' future for entrepreneurship, embracing a nonanthropocentric and posthumanist understanding that extends solidarity across life forms.Ref:Laine, L. (2024). Entrepreneurship as an Object of Hope: Affirmative Critique in the Anthropocene. SSRN. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4937267

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• #14 - Creating local storylines for climate mitigation and adaptation with policymakers across Europe: a new participatory and bottom-up method

  Welcome to our podcast!This episode is inspired by the paper, "Creating local storylines for climate mitigation and adaptation with policymakers across Europe: a new participatory and bottom-up method". We explore a novel, bottom-up methodology designed to help cities and regions address the urgent, yet deeply local, impacts of climate change.Join us as we unpack:The critical need for context-dependent climate policies that account for local needs and priorities, moving beyond global frameworks.How this innovative methodology uses "what-if" questions and a structured Scope-Actions-Actors-Sectors (SAAS) framework to transform policymakers' visions into actionable climate storylines by 2050.The revealing insights from its application with policymakers across four diverse European case studies (Norrbotten, Trentino, Tulcea, Sitia), showcasing significant differences in their priorities for mitigation vs. adaptation, chosen policy actions, key actors, and impacted economic sectors.How this approach bridges local and scientific knowledge, fostering creativity, agency, and a strong sense of ownership among stakeholders in co-creating desirable, policy-relevant futures.Ref:López-Muñoz, P., Llases, L., Lauer, A., & Mencarini, E. (2025). Creating local storylines for climate mitigation and adaptation with policymakers across Europe: A new participatory and bottom-up method. Futures, 171, 103617. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.futures.2025.103617

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• #13 - The future of AI in government services and global risks: insights from design fictions

  Welcome to our podcast, where we delve into the transformative future of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in government services. Based on the insightful research paper, "The future of AI in government services and global risks: insights from design fictions", this discussion explores speculative scenariosto anticipate AI's profound impacts by 2050.Join us as we uncover three critical dilemmas highlighted in the research:AI's dual role: How it can enhance efficiency while simultaneously exacerbating concerns around algorithmic bias and surveillance.Human displacement: The potential for AI to displace human roles in public services, raising significant questions about accountability and transparency.Ethical trade-offs: The complex ethical choices inherent in AI-driven decision-making, particularly in sensitive areas such as law enforcement, healthcare, and education.We'll examine how AI presents a "dual-edged sword", capable of both mitigating and accentuating global risks depending on its development and application. This episode aims to stimulate crucial dialogues for policymakers, practitioners, and researchers, fostering critical reflection on the socio-technical impacts of AI and its role in reshaping public services and citizen engagement. Tune in to explore these vital considerations for an ethically and socially just AI-driven future.Ref:Nascimento, P. V. M., De Siqueira, P. B. B., Chrispim, N., Chaves, R. M., Barbosa, C. E., & De Souza, J. M. (2025). The future of AI in government services and global risks: Insights from design fictions. European Journal of Futures Research, 13(1), 9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40309-025-00253-9

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