LOUISE FREDBO NIELSEN

Louise is a futurist at Future Navigator and she is my 6th guest for my ‘’on the roads’’ interview series. We talked about future navigator and her futurist perspective.

She won a big national prize for a paper on the future of the Danish innovation system. She can help you and/or your organisation to find your way in the confusion and identify the skills that you and your organisation needs in order to be head of the game in the future.

-CONVERSATION-

      You are working at Future Navigator as a futurist. If I describe your company as a solution shop, what               would you like to say about your job?

At Future Navigator we want to bring out the best in people. We will do everything we can to help you visualise your better tomorrow. The goal is to qualify your ability and foundation to create new meaningful concepts, services, and products, and select through a variety of great ideas. In short – using the future as a springboard for success – today. I help people use the future as their compass in order to be gasp-worthy and kick ass in the future.

I absolutely love to have the opportunity to create value for other people and help individuals as well as organizations get even better as well as ready for the future.

       What are the key points for the futurists?

Do you also dream of making stuff better? Being a positive difference? Creating the future? Be remembered for some really cool solutions? And moving from more to better? Well, then you might be a futurist at heart.

One of the most important things when working as a (aspiring) futurist is to be curious.

And to embrace what you see coming – whether it is scary, exciting, welcomed or annoying. Look at the trends and transformations that are happening all around you all the time and try to map them. Then build some scenarios (just small ones in the beginning – you can even to it with Lego brigs to make it even more fun) and thing about what you can make of that. You can ask yourself questions like “what could these developments and trends change?” “Who will they influence?” “How will they change the way we work/live/interact?” “What is it that we do not know?”

If you want to start spotting your own trends, you can take a look at Future Navigator’s Trendspotting Guide.

Nowadays, shared working environment trend is rising unlike in a typical office environment. According           to some futurists, we will not work at classic offices in the future. This trend also helps mobile life. What           do you think about coworking spaces? What are your foresights about that?

In the future our working environment is going to change as lot due the all the electronic devices that make it possible for us to work anytime and from everywhere. But interestingly enough what we see is also that even though gadgets, phones and computers make it possible for us to interact online without actually being together, we are still building bigger airports and the office-cooperatives are blooming around the world- cause people also need to meet each other and interact in real life. But in the future we are going to customize our workdays way more than we see today because we have all these technological possibilities– and the wage-earner culture where you have one job from crib to cradle is totally dead!

-FREE CORNER-

The way of living in the positive future lies beneath designing it. What would you say if I wanted you to make me a future map on a topic based on the four questions below?

   What is the topic?

The need for entrepreneurship among young people

   Within the subject, what is changing?

The labour market is changing dramatically. Young people today are probably going to reinvent themselves 5,6,7,8,9 times or more during their work lives. Futurists predict that in 2030 2 billion jobs have disappeared due to automation and the exponential development of technology. But that being said, the good news is that the majority of the jobs that people will have in the future do not exist yet – so we can play a role in creating them ourselves, it we want.

In the future we will likely switch between different jobs, between being permanently employed, being freelancers, taking breaks to recharge at the Bahamas and starting our own companies. You can have your own company while being permanently employed at a large company and you do not have to be anything for all of your life. Because of the changes to the labour market that gets much more flexible

   Why is it important?

Because the labour market is changing so dramatically, it is so important that young people also see entrepreneurship as a possibility. I would love to plant a seed in other young people that entrepreneurship is one way to go – a way where we can create our own dream jobs, make a difference and create BETTER growth (as opposed to the out-dated paradigm of MORE).

   How is it supposed to be?

That everybody truly has the belief that of cause they can start their own company if they want to – and succeed even though people around them might tell them that they cannot to exactly that!

-SHORTLY-

• When was the last time you did something for the first time?

I talked over a thousand people at future day

• Do you have a motto? What is it?

Never let fear stop you from doing what you really want

• Do you have a book and a movie that is about the future which you would like to suggest to us?

Book: Flash Foresight-Daniel Burrus

Movie: Star Wars

• When said ‘entrepreneur’ who comes to your mind?

Danish woman called Soulaima Gourani

• Some simple questions have difficult answers. What is your simple question?

What are you seeing yourself in 5 years?

• Einstein said ‘’I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.’’ What is your passion?

Help young people..follow future dreams..

• Which animated film character are you?

Old Men in the animated movie ‘’UP’’

• If you were to begin a sentence with ‘’if’’ ,what would you say to ignite our creativity?

What if I had all courage in the world?

• Who are the futurists?

Everybody 🙂

Also you can read this interview on slideshare.

About Louise Fredbo:

Øhttp://www.futurenavigator.dk/louise–fredbo–nielsen/

Øhttps://twitter.com/LouiseFredbo

Øhttp://www.pinterest.com/louisefn/

About Fatih Cetiz:

Øhttp://www.fatihcetiz.com/

Øhttps://twitter.com/fatihcetiz

Reklam

The Future Map-Marizanne Knoesen

The way of living in the positive future lies beneath designing it because of that I have designed The Future Map method. First step of the Future Map helps you think the future and what should happen in the future.

Would you like to create a future map about whatever you want? you can click here

My futurist friend Marizanne Knoesen from South Africa, she is living in Cape Town. I asked her ‘would you like to create a future map about an important issue?’. She created it about waste. When I read her future map, I have designed this pic.

What is the topic?

Waste – in all its forms (e.g. food waste, e-waste).

Within the subject,what is changing?

I think there’s an increased awareness that a lot of waste can be reused and recycled and that just because we can waste water/food/energy etc, it doesn’t mean we should. In my mind there’s two parts to the story.

1) I simply think it’s wrong to waste anything if there’s other people in the country/world who starve. The hugely unequal world that we live in, is bringing more and more attention to this topic.

2) If something can be reused/recycled/redistributed, why don’t we just do it? With new and innovative business models, networks and technology there’s no reason why we can’t  transform our ‘cradle to grave’ economies into ‘cradle to cradle’ economies.

Why is it important?

As people live longer and as earth’s population increases, there will be immense pressure on our resources. We’re also not sure to what extent climate change will wreck havoc in the future.

How should it be?

In an ideal world, we wouldn’t throw anything useful away, we wouldn’t buy excess stuff and consume resources just for the sake of consumption. We’d be responsible consumers who take only what we need and use our resources to their full potential. For example,paladuym  we would recover 35,274 pounds of copper, 772 pounds of silver, 75 pounds of gold, and 33 pounds of palladium that can be found in 1 million old cell phones..I suggest to you visit this web site http://www.dosomething.org/. Also use this link about e-waste http://www.dosomething.org/actnow/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-e-waste

About Marizanne Knoesen:

She is the Chief Improvert at improverie. She founded improverie because she is fascinated by the future, trends, change, improvement and innovation. She’s a futurist, futures researcher and idea-generator who looks at problem situations and dreams up possible solutions.

http://improverie.com/who-we-are/

https://twitter.com/improverie

AYSE BIRSEL

One of the most famous designer Ayse Birsel, she is my 5th guest for my ”on the roads’’ interview series. We talked about design, her interests and her perspective on design technics. I also got some suggestions from her for you.

We live in an era where knowledge and knowledge mining are trending. Now, she has a designing and an innovation factory. Most importantly, while today and the future are based on technology,however she is focusing on human in her factory.

-CONVERSATION-

One of your innovation techniques is DE&RE. How and where did you come up with this idea? What in your life made you invent this idea?

I realized that I work in a specific thinking method while I design a product.  I saw that I have this pattern that I repeat by instinct. And it had a different essence. I wanted to put it into writing and turn it to a concrete technique, when I was experimenting whether I would be able to do it or not, this deconstruction & reconstruction technique consisting of four stages, was created. A technique that I bare, which is based upon my experience. Formerly it was only something that I knew whereas right now I can share it with others; teach it to others; to my students, my colleagues, my clients… and we apply it together. While designing lives, it became something that teaches to people who know nothing about design. So frugal, so simple yet the outcome is that much dense and enthusiastic.

We now live in a world where consultancy has regularities and what you do is so precious considering its uniqueness. Officially registered creative thinking and innovation technique DE&RE is almost like the puzzles which we are all familiar with from our childhood.  Could you please tell us how it works?

You can apply it on anything; to the product, to a business organization, and to your life. This technique, DE&RE is based on distorting something, changing your perspective of it and reconstructing it. Determining the subject, fragmenting it, and while doing the fragmentation you start to overcome your prejudice. Then, you look at the fragments and try to think and understand the pieces that you have to change, how to change, and the things that missing. This then causes you to change your perspective. Here, we use some design tools such as metaphor. It enables you to be aware of the different approaches you can make with the things you already have. You find the answer to the question; how can I reconstruct these things I already have. When the main idea is formed you turn that product or a strategy into your life style. And then the work that will lead to the solution will be presented to you.

Future is always vague, and the past is always a good place to learn lessons. The past, the present and the future are linked concepts, and we create various scenarios for the future. What do you think about the futurism trend and futurism?

That is also a design. Not a product design but an opinion design. The same applies to the product; you don’t know what’s going to be happening in the future but you make a prediction based on the facts that you know from the past and the present and you create a new product. Since you make that prediction based upon your knowledge, you try to base it on an established platform. It’s almost as if like a prophecy. You don’t neglect the things that you know yet you create something new out of it.

I have something else that I am curious about other than business design. Centuries ago, architecture of the cities were standing out. Especially the developing countries do not have this kind of a concern. That is why we are living in these aesthetic lacking concrete buildings which in my opinion are causing a decrease in our creativity. What do you think about this?

I do not believe that we can change this new perspective. Architecture was a form of expression in the past. Today, this expression is present in the virtual world. That’s why people are investing a lot less to the real world in addition to spending diminished amount of time. When I think about the past; marbles etc. those were some long-term investments that were nicely built with great amount of hard-work, material and effort. We still do have them however; it is as if like they don’t have to be present in the future, creativity has shifted to different places.  For example we have opinion architecture, entrepreneurship, and great deal of expansion in social media. Facebook for example, Google, twitter these are today’s architecture in some way. This concerns me a little, we want the old way but today’s reality does not let it happen. If that is the case, we should be concentrating on where to use our creativity. Maybe this is a transition, like the revolution with printers, the revolution in products are enabled with 3D printers. In the future, buildings that were built by them may be created. And we may be in a transition period right now. It excites me when I think this way.

-FREE CORNER-

The way of living in the positive future lies beneath designing it. What would you say if I wanted you to make me a future map on a topic based on the four questions below?

What is the topic?

3D printing

Within the subject, what is changing?

When the printers at our homes started to be a part of our lives, each one of us started to be content generator. When we were only capable of doing this 2D, with this new technology we are preparing to produce 3D object in our homes which is something incredible. This change will probably have enough power to transform the whole chain of production.

Why is it important?

With this technologic move, we can all become designers. It is as if like people are returning to their original being. Everyone used to create their own chair, plate, and sew their own sunshade. With this technology we are going to return to our original selves. The opportunity of being creative will be presented for the interested ones and the others would be able to produce as much as they need. For instance when a glass is broken, consumer will be able to re-create it in a short period of time and the producers will not need to balance the supply and demand issue.

How is it suppose to be?

It is suppose to be quick 🙂

-SHORTLY-

When was the last time you did something for the first time?

To get on the stage and dance, in a conference.

Do you have a motto? What is it?

My life is my most important project.

Do you have a book or a movie that is about the future which you would like to suggest to us?

Film: Brazil – Terry Gilliam

Book: Michio Kaku – The Future of the Mind

When said ‘entrepreneur’ who comes to your mind?

My friendsJ John Zapolski…

Some simple questions have hard answers. What is your simple question?

Do you love me?

What was your first dream that you remember?

I dreamt about Roman horse-drawn vehicle’s in Ephesus.

Einstein said: “I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.” What is your passion?

To think differently; in order to reach the solution…

Which animated film character are you?

The girl named Chihiro in the animated movie Spirited Away by Hayao Miyazaki.

If you were to begin a sentence with “If…” what would you say to ignite our creativity?

If I were fearless..

If you were to choose an object for change, what would it be?

I would choose Google.. “always same, always different”

Also you can read this interview on the slideshare.

Ayşe BİRSEL:

Øhttp://dereconstruction.com/start/ayse-birsel/

Øhttps://twitter.com/AyseBirselSeck

Fatih CETİZ:

Øhttp://www.fatihcetiz.com/

Øhttps://twitter.com/fatihcetiz