2005University of Houston - Clear LakeStudies of the FutureMS Graduate Program

Natasha Vita-More, Graduate Student

FuturesPodcast Lectures SeriesFeaturing Leading Futurists

About the Futures Podcast Lecture Series:

This PowerPoint presentation is designed for students to have a print out of each of the speakers and a place for you to jot down your own notes about while listening to the lectures.

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Futurist Lecturers include:

Joseph Coates, Ph.D.Jim Dator, Ph.D.Wendy L. Schultz, Ph.D.Michele BowmanJohn L. PetersenJennifer JarrattChristian CrewsMax More, Ph.D.Derek Woodgate

Thinking About The Future

Futurist Lecturer —Joseph Coates, Ph.D.

After leading Coates & Jarratt, Inc. through more than two decades of designing and delivering studies on the future of technology, business and government, Joe retired from the company he founded to become a consulting futurist. In the course of his pioneering future studies, Joe has consulted with 45 of the Fortune 500 companies and numerous smaller firms, scores of professional, trade and public interest groups, and with all levels of government.

He is the author of more than 300 articles, chapters, papers, and publications and currently writes columns for Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Research and Technology Management and Personnel Management and is on the editorial boards of nine publications. He is co-author of 2025: Scenarios of U.S. and Global Society Reshaped by Science and Technology (Oakhill, 1997), Future Work (Jossey Bass, 1990), What Futurists Believe (World Future Society, 1989), and Issues Management (Lomond, 1986). Joe was also on the editorial board of the Encyclopedia of the Future (Macmillan, 1996).

Joe presents to about 50 groups per year all over the world. His speeches on the future appear in Vital Speeches of the Day and Representative American Speeches. For two years Joe created and hosted a program on the future for National Public Radio, and, as an active member of the World Future Society, he plans, organizes, and takes part in sessions at Society meetings.

Joe was an adjunct professor at the George Washington University, where he taught graduate courses on the future and on technology. His career includes work as an analyst for a nonprofit think tank and positions with the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Congressional Office of Technology Assessment. He holds 19 patents from his first career as an industrial chemist.The above text is provided by the Joseph Coates website. 

Thinking About The Future

Futurist Lecturer —

Joseph Coates, Ph.D.

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Futurist Lecturer —Jim Dator, Ph.D.

He is a global leader in the futures field, having served as the Secretary General and the President of the World Futures Studies Federation. He has lectured and conducted futures workshops with several thousand general, professional, governmental, business, as well as futurist, audiences throughout the United States and Canada, and in Australia, Bulgaria, China, Costa Rica, Egypt, England, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Holland, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Korea (North and South), Latvia, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Pakistan, Romania, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Yugoslavia. As a futurist Dr. Dator has worked in several major topical areas including the media, government, space exploration and travel, and the judiciary. Dr. Dator and his students and graduates have pioneered the field of judicial futures. This has included major projects in Hawaii, as well as working with the judiciaries in over 20 states in the U.S. as well as in the Federated States of Micronesia, and especially the State of Pohnpei. Prof. Dator has also consulted extensively with other governmental, military, business, educational, religious, and especially many nonprofit, public-interest organizations worldwide. He is editor or editorial board member of the following journals: Foresight; Futures; Futures Research Quarterly; On the Horizon; The Manoa Journal of Fried and Half-Fried Ideas (....about the future); Police Futurist; Technological Forecasting and Social Change; and the World Futures Studies Federation Newsletter (Editor-in-chief for seven years).Dr. Dator’s studies include a BA, Cum Laude, in Ancient and Medieval History and Philosophy from Stetson University; an MA in Political Science from the University of Pennsylvania; and his Ph.D. in Political Science from the American University. Before coming to the University of Hawaii in 1969, Dr. Dator taught at Rikkyo University (in Tokyo, Japan), Virginia Polytechnic Institute, and the University of Maryland. He also served as the Head of the Futures Project of TV Ontario and Visiting Professor at the University of Toronto.

James Dator, Ph.D., founded the Institute for Alternative Futures in 1977 with Alvin Toffler and Clement Bezold. In 1966 he taught the first course in any U.S. university on the future. He is currently Professor, and Head of the Alternative Futures Graduate Option, Department of Political Science at the University of Hawaii and Director of the Hawaii Research Center for Futures Studies.

Four Generic Images of the Futures —      Continued Growth, Collapse of Economic Structures, Disciplined Sustainable Society, Transformation"

Futurist Lecturer —Jim Dator, Ph.D.

Lecture Title To Be Announced

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Futurist Lecturer —Wendy Schultz, Ph.D.

The Intersection Between Arts, Design, Innovation, Turbulence and Scenario Building

From August 1996 through August 2001, I was Visiting Assistant Professor in Studies of the Future at the University of Houston-Clear Lake. During that time I organized two conferences, designed and taught six different graduate seminars, edited the five-year program review, and served for one year as Acting Chair. My sojourn in Houston also included co-designing and teaching a graduate seminar on Public Health Leadership at the University of Texas School of Public Health. My relationship with UHCL and my colleagues in Studies of the Future continues with annual participation in the program's Residential Intensive Summer Session, which offers the Master's program in an innovative combination of immersive, face-to-face classes in two successive summers, joined by year-round on-line activities.

My permanent home is still in Oxford, England [my spouse, Jay Lewis, is the Korea Foundation Lecturer in Korean Studies], where I am currently working with a small group of business and community futurists creating foresight resources for business, government, non-profit, and community leaders. Since moving to the UK, I have also worked with the International Space University, lecturing on futures studies and visioning at ISU's Summer Session `95 in Stockholm, at the inauguration of their Master's program in October 1995 in Strasbourg, France, and most recently at Summer Session '02 in Los Angeles.Prior to my 1994 move to England, I spent a decade and a half working at the Hawaii Research Center for Futures Studies (University of Hawaii's at Manoa). While there I developed participatory workshops to enable people to learn various futures techniques and perspectives experientially. My research experience has included, among other projects: designing group scenario-building for Hawaii's planners; creating a visioning process for U.S. state courts; developing Hawaii's Ocean Resource Management Plan; planning for sea level rise in the Republic of the Marshall Islands; and forecasting world natural gas trade.I completed my doctoral dissertation, "Futures Fluency: explorations in vision, leadership, and creativity," in 1995, and have served as both an Executive Council member of the World Futures Studies Federation (WFSF) and as a Course Director for the WFSF Futures Seminar in Dubrovnik, Croatia.

The above text is provided by the Infinite Futures website. 

Read what Dr. Schultz says about her work and her life:

In July 2002 I had the great fun of drafting three essays for TechTV's Catalog of Tomorrow ; I am currently adapting Catalog content into interactive foresight exercises for this website. From December 2001 through May 2002, I had the honor of joining my colleagues at the Finland Futures Research Centre for a six-month stay as a Fulbright Lecturer and Researcher. I am very grateful to the U.S. Fulbright Commission, the Finland Fulbright Committee, and my colleagues in Turku for this opportunity, and am currently organizing and writing up the resulting research.

Futurist Lecturer —

Wendy Schultz, Ph.D.

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The Intersection Between Arts, Design, Innovation, Turbulence and Scenario Building

Futurist Lecturer —Michele Bowman

The Role of Ethnofutures and Environmental Scanning

Futurist Lecturer —Michele Bowman

The Role of Ethnofutures and Environmental Scanning

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Futurist Lecturer —John L. Petersen

4 T's to the Future:  Technology, Travel, Terrorism & Turbulence

He has led national non-profit organizations, worked in sales, manufacturing, real estate development, and marketing and advertising, mostly for companies he founded. A graduate electrical engineer, he has also promoted rock concerts; produced conventions; and worked as a disc jockey – among other things.

In 1989 Petersen founded The Arlington Institute (TAI), a non-profit, future-oriented research institute. TAI operates on the premise that effective thinking about the future is impossible without casting a very wide net. The “think tank” serves as a global agent for change by developing new concepts, processes and tools for anticipating the future and translating that knowledge into better present-day decisions. Using advanced information technology, a core group of bright thinkers and an international network of exceptionally curious people along with simulations, modeling, scenario building, polling and analysis, Arlington helps equip leaders and organizations from many disciplines with tools and actionable perspectives for dealing with uncertain times.

An award-winning writer, Petersen's first book, The Road to 2015: Profiles of the Future was awarded Outstanding Academic Book of 1995 by CHOICE Academic Review, and remained on The World Future Society's best-seller list for more than a year. His latest book, Out of the Blue: How to Anticipate Wild Cards and Big Future Surprises, was also a WFS best-seller. His coauthored article, “The Year 2000: Social Chaos or Social Transformation?” was one of the most highly acclaimed writings on Y2K. His 1988 book-length report “The Diffusion of Power: An Era of Realignment” was used at the highest levels of American government as a basis for strategic planning. He has also written papers on the future of national security and the military, the future of energy and the future of the media.

The above text is provided by The Arlington Institute website. 

John L. Petersen is considered by many to be one of the most informed futurists in the world. He is best-known for writing and thinking about high impact surprises—wild cards—and the process of surprise anticipation. His current professional involvements include the development of sophisticated tools for anticipatory analysis and surprise anticipation, long-range strategic planning and helping leadership design new approaches for dealing with the future.

Futurist Lecturer —John L. Petersen

4 T's to the Future:  Technology, Travel, Terrorism & Turbulence

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Futurist Lecturer —Jennifer Jarratt

In nearly two decades of helping organizations, Jennifer Jarratt and John Mahaffie, founders of Leading Futurists, have learned how critical it is to make the future relevant to today. They have worked to make futures insights accessible, meaningful, and useful to managers and executives.

Jarratt and Mahaffie were formerly principals of Coates & Jarratt, Inc., a leading futures consultancy. They have been exploring the future for organizations since the mid-1980s. Organizations they serve include:

American Dietetic Association, Bovis Lend Lease, The Coca-Cola Company, Dow Chemical Company, DuPont, General Motors, HB Fuller, The Kellogg Company, Nabisco, Nestlé USA, Nokia, Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, Siemens, The Smithsonian Institution, The American Society of Association Executives Foundation, The American Society of Mechanical Engineers, The Department of Veterans Affairs, The National Multi Housing Council, The National Security Agency, The U.S. Customs Service, The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, The World Bank, and YSI Inc.

Leading Futurists' expertise is in combining a comprehensive knowledge of the future with proven skill at interpreting the signals of change. Mahaffie and Jarratt are experts at scenario building. They have taught the technique over many years to executives. Together they have authored dozens of trend studies and guidebooks on studying the future.  Jarratt also served as a board member for an international association.Bio obtained from Leading Futurists

The Professional Futurist

Futurist Lecturer —Jennifer Jarratt

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The Professional Futurist

Scenarios to Enable Strategic Conversations

Futurist Lecturer —Christian Crews

Christian Crews is the Director of Futures Strategy for Pitney Bowes, where he conducts foresight projects such as scenario planning, innovation workshops, environmental scanning and strategy development.  Prior to joining Pitney Bowes, Christian was a Director at the Waitt Institute, where he facilitated community and nonprofit scenario planning workshops for social innovation and preferred futures.  Before the institute, he developed strategy and innovation engagements as the Long Range Planner for Toshiba International Corp.  He has a BA in English from the College of William and Mary, and a MS in Future Studies from the University of Houston - Clear Lake. 

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Futurist Lecturer —Christian Crews

Scenarios to Enable Strategic Conversations

Futurist Lecturer —Max More, Ph.D.

Max More is an internationally acclaimed strategic futurist who writes, speaks, and organizes events about the fundamental challenges of emerging technologies. Max is concerned that our rapidly developing technological capabilities are racing far ahead of our standard ways of thinking about future possibilities. His work aims to improve our ability to anticipate, adapt to, and shape the future for the better.

His academic background: Max has a degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics from St. Anne’s College, Oxford University (1984-87). He was awarded a Dean’s Fellowship in Philosophy in 1987 by the University of Southern California. Max studied and taught philosophy at USC with an emphasis on philosophy of mind, ethics, and personal identity, completing his Ph.D. in 1995,

As a writer, Max has authored dozens of articles and papers on topics including how to improve and apply critical and creative thinking, especially about uncertain future possibilities; the ethics of biotechnology and other technologies that directly affect humans; the philosophical implications of technological transformations of human nature; and strategic futures thinking in business. He recently wrote the Proactionary Principle, and is currently working on a book, tentatively titled Beyond Caution, that responds to resurgent neophobia with a spirited yet balanced defense of progress.

As a speaker, Max frequently lectures at conferences and companies, gives seminars, and engages in debates and panel discussions on issues surrounding the impact of emerging technologies. Known as a highly capable communicator, he is able to synthesize diverse areas of knowledge and communicate the results clearly and insightfully.

As a consultant, Max (as part of the ManyWorlds team) works with companies and other organizations to improve strategic futures thinking and weave it into regular decision-making and innovation processes. This includes analyzing the interaction of technological trends, and developing strategic scenarios. The above text is provided by the Max More website. 

The Wisdom of Structure

Futurist Lecturer —Max More, Ph.D.

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The Wisdom of Structure

Futurist Lecturer —Derek Woodgate

With experience as an executive on the board of two major corporations and over 15 years Senior Vice-President-level management and operational responsibilities in international businesses, Derek is widely recognized as a global specialist in marketing, innovation, business and futures-based consulting. He is currently on the Board of Directors of Planet U in Dallas and Experentis in London, England.

In January 1998, Derek set up The Futures Lab, a futures-based consultancy, specializing in leveraging future potential, innovation, category redefinition and repositioning of major brands and businesses. The Futures Lab has helped many major global corporations across a myriad of categories.Derek has lived and worked in eleven countries and is at home in seven languages (English, Croatian, French, Italian, Bulgarian, Russian and Dutch).

He graduated with a Bachelor Degree (Hons.) from University College London, in Contemporary Slav Studies and then gained his Masters in Economics – (concentration in politics) from Zagreb University, a city where he spent over ten years. He is a frequent conference speaker, panelist and commentator on the future, particularly with regard to youth culture and marketing and its relevance to the future business landscape. Derek is a prolific writer on future-related topics, his latest book “Future Frequencies,” was published in 2004, and he is currently writing for a new release entitled "Future Flow". He also contributed to the major work on Burroughs “Calling the Toads”.Derek is a founding member and a board member of the Association of Professional Futurists, a member of The World Futures Society, The World Futures Studies Federation and is also on the Regional Vision and Strategy Committee for Austin 2020.

The above text is provided by the Futures Lab website. 

The Futures Lab 

Futurist Lecturer —Derek Woodgate

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The Futures Lab 

2005University of Houston - Clear LakeStudies of the FutureMS Graduate Program

Natasha Vita-More, Graduate Student

FuturesPodcast Lectures SeriesFeaturing Leading Futurists

I hope you enjoyed this lecture series!