The WFSF since its inception has encouraged and supported a pluralistic approach to futures studies. This pluralism is reflected in the diversity of the WFSF membership and the research it supports. Although thinking about the future has always been a part of human culture (e.g., soothsayers, prophets, and later 'utopians') it has only been in the past four to five decades that the academic research field known as Future Studies has emerged.
The WFSF uses the plural term “futures” studies rather than the singular “future” studies to counter the notion of only one future, the latter having both conceptual limitations and political implications. This pluralisation of futures opens up the territory for envisioning and creating alternative and preferred futures.
While it is commonly thought that futures studies is an attempt to predict the future based on extrapolation from present day trends, empirical/predictive futures is only one of at least five approaches to futures research that have been identified in recent research. (Read more...)
The following pages present a compilation of tertiary courses in futures studies offered in universities and colleges around the world. This list is updated annually.
