envisioningthefuture

//creating new scenarios//
 * Envisioning the future**

- This scenario-building method invites for collective reflection about plausible futures. - It consists of imagining to be some time in the future (e.g. 3 to 6 years ahead) and assumes that the organization, section or field presence has achieved important goals.
 * What it is**
 * When to use it**

- to think about the future - to develop a vision of where you want to go as a section, field presence, division, etc. - to explore alternative solutions for the future - to motivate and inspire a team and create cohesion around common goals - particularly suited for retreats on planning and/or team building


 * How to apply it**

- Decide the organisational entity that will be the focus of the exercise. It can be the entire Office, a field presence, a section, a cross-division team, a branch. Normally, this will depend on who is partecipating in the exercise. - Agree on when in the future the envisioning exercise will take place. Is it in 2 or 3 years from now? Is it in 5-6 years time? Normally, it should be more than one year ahead otherwise the future will simply match with the completion of the annual workplan. This would defeat the "vision" element of the activity. Conversely, setting a timeframe too far in the future will take away the reality element that is important to maintain. If the time chosen is 20 years down the road, for instance, participants to the exercise will tend to think in more utopic terms and will de-link the vision from the operational steps to achieve it. The goal is so remote from now that actions towards it are difficult to identify. The goal of the exercise is to develop a vision and to also identify the actions needed to achieve it. If the purpose pursued is to emphasise the vision element and thinking out of the box, the timeframe will be longer (5-6 years). If the emphasis is more on medium-term goals and actions to achieve them, the timeframe will be shorter (2-3 years). - Announce the positive assumption about the future. This can simply be: "imagine that in 4 years time your team (be it a field presence, a section, etc.) will have achieved important goals". It can also be more specific. For instance: "imagine that in 4 years time... the treaty bodies system will be considerably improved;... you have won an award as a gender champion organization;... OHCHR is a recognized and respected protagonist of humanitarian response; ... OHCHR has reduced by half the time of recruitment; ... - The positive assumption is accompanied by a number of questions that participants will have to answer in groups. Questions should be aimed at eliciting the elements and details to explain what was achieved, why and how. Questions could include: - devide participants in groups of 4 to 6 people to answer the questions. - After the group work, re-convene in plenary - The plenary could consist of presentations of the envisioned future from each group. In this case, a competition element can be introduced and participants can be asked to vote for the presentation that convinced them most. If the exercise is in the form of the competition, this should be announced from the outset so that each group will prepare to convince and captivate the plenary (e.g. with a slogan, a well organized and colorful presentation). - Alternatively, the plenary can continue the work of the groups and build a common vision with the contributions from the different groups through a discussion and consensus based process. In this case, the envisioned future will be the result of a fully collective process. Ownership from the entire group will be higher.
 * what are the specific outcomes that you have achieved?
 * how do you know you have achieved these outcomes?
 * what are the benefits? To whom?
 * what problems were solved?
 * how are people behaving differently?
 * what is the external recognition of what has been achieved?
 * What to consider**

- If time allows, consider the option of asking participants to write a short story about the future instead of simply answering the questions in bullets. This can be done in a variety of ways. For instance, see the River of Life method ([]) - Encourage participants to be realistic but to think out of the box and be creative. Some tips may include: the parameters of its normal routines. such, the vision represents a compelling possibility. positive and dynamic image. practices, etc.
 * Be provocative. Your proposal should stretch and challenge your section, field presence, etc. and force it to move beyond
 * Be grand, but still practicable. Similar challenges have been met in the past and, as
 * Your proposal should be desired. All your group is ethusiastic about it and would like to be part of it.
 * The proposal should be stated in affirmative language. This helps you project a
 * The proposal should be the result of a participatory process within your group.
 * The proposal should address multiple aspects, eg. leadership, impact, behaviors and attitudes, communication, staff, structures, institutional


 * Timing**

The duration of the activity can vary from 1h30 to 3 hours. The example of a schedule below covers a duration of 2 hours:

instructions: 10 minutes individual prepartion time: 20 min. group preparation time: 1h00 group presentation time: 20 min. voting on the best proposal: 10 min.


 * What you will need**

Flipcharts for each group Copy of the instructions for each participant markers and pencils

//The future has already arrived. It's just not evenly distributed yet.// William Gibson


 * Where to learn more**

- The river of life method. KS toolkit. []

//"The envisioning exercise forced us to think about concrete steps that would really make a difference in practice. In my view, this is a method that helped to generate some excellent ideas well worth pursuing outside the training context." (Birgit Kainz)//