Know your core values to champion them in design Founded in values Speculative Design took form in the early 1990s as a response by designers to the 1980’s embrace of capitalism. Designers were frustrated by serving a mass-market machine without being allowed a thought beyond form and function, and they began to question their role…

A futures-thinking, mindfulness tool to stay tuned into values, assumptions, and biases ABOUT THE FUTURES PIXEL The Futures Pixel is a kind of mindfulness token to hold in your hands to centre you, something that by its tangible nature prompts you to pause in the haste and tune into your values, assumptions, and biases—as you…

Trace trends and signals of change INSTRUCTIONS Name the signal and note the date of your observation Tick which category it belongs to and whether it is a signal or a trend In the "The Signal" box, capture images, notes, and links about your signal In the "Drivers" box, capture what needs and desires drove…

The Scope Wheel helps you sort your signal research into which ones are most related to your futuring subject. Instructions Once you have collected signals of change and trends, sort them into categories: Social Technological Environmental Economic Political Legal Ethical If you are missing signals/trends for any category, search for them Place your sorted signals/trends…

The Futures Wheel is used to brainstorm the impacts of an idea, change, or decision by exploring possible indirect impacts and combinations of those impacts. Instructions Write your Challenge (idea/decision/change) in the centre. Imagine this Challenge actually occurs, and identify (brainstorm or research) possible direct consequences. These can be positive, negative, or neutral. Write them…

A brainstorming tool to explore direct and indirect impacts of a change or idea, with life-centred consideration of the environment and other lifeforms Instructions Step 1 Write your Challenge (idea/decision/change) in the centre. Step 2 Imagine this challenge actually occurs, and identify (brainstorm or research) possible direct consequences. These can be positive, negative, or neutral.…

Futures Headlines are fictional news headlines created to envision future impacts of a decision, change, or idea. Instructions Define the future time frame Research potential future influences/risks to your product and sort them into groups (e.g. business, user, society, environment) Ideate impacts of risks on each group (use the Futures Wheel) Cluster into ‘trends’ and…