Think Forward: Conversations with Futurists, Innovators and Big Thinkers

We explore how an evolutionary mismatch between ancient biology and modern culture keeps our stress response switched on and quietly shapes health, behavior, and society. Tom shares how future thinking helped him rebuild his own life and why “eustasis” is a practical north star for resilience and meaning in a fast-changing world. 
• Tom’s journey from hospitality work to futurist thinking through a personal crisis 
• The “i...

We explore why fear-based futures work narrows imagination and how an indigenous lens replaces control with respect for the unknown. Sherman shares how futures literacy, decolonizing foresight, and relationship-centered thinking change the way leaders prepare for crisis, technology, and the long term.

• Sherman’s journey from governance and risk work to full-time futures studies and strategic foresight 
• How Future Sh...

Welcome to this special crossover episode from our other show, Going Off World.

In this episode, the hunt for alien life isn’t a sci-fi dream. It’s a patient, high-stakes investigation unfolding across labs, observatories, and space missions—and Sarah Seager is charting the course. We sit down with the MIT exoplanet pioneer to unpack how a field once defined by four puzzling worlds grew into a catalog of thousands, each challenging ...

Emmanuel Daniel unpacks how digital finance prioritized monetization over true inclusion, then traces a larger shift from markets to networks where information compounds value. We test CBDCs, stablecoins, tokenized deposits, and ask whether debt has become the economy shaping tech, geopolitics, and personal wealth.

• VC‑driven digital finance and unmet inclusion claims
• Personalization versus centralization in money a...

What if the people best equipped to shape tomorrow aren’t engineers first—but emotional athletes? Our guest, Ahmed Best—actor, educator, Afrofuturist, and the pioneering performer behind Jar Jar Binks—shows how art can lead technology, not chase it. From South Bronx summers where hip‑hop was born to conversations with George Lucas at Lucasfilm, Ahmed traces a life lived at the edge of invention and explains why trusting artists to ...

We talk with Peter von Stackelberg about humility in consulting, why timeframes matter, and how narrative foresight turns data into action. We trace his path from journalism to futures, explore exploratory forecasts, and unpack story worlds, transmedia, and cycles.

• building trust through listening and humility
• why clear timeframes beat vague “someday” futures
• exploratory forecasts with indicators and course c...

Peter Hayward shares his journey from a problem-solving tax professional to becoming one of the most influential futures educators, training hundreds of futurists and co-creating the renowned FuturePod podcast series.

• Finding foresight in mid-career after experiencing existential questioning about purpose
• Joining Richard Slaughter's first Master of Foresight class before eventually succeeding him
• Underst...

What if the key to understanding tomorrow lies not in boardroom predictions but in the rhythms of a DJ's turntable? Derek Woodgate, with his 30+ years as an experimental futurist, takes us on a fascinating journey through his unique approach to futures thinking that blends underground arts with rigorous analysis.

Derek reveals how his background in music management (working with bands like Swans and Sonic Youth) and h...

Welcome to this episode of Think Forward! In this episode, we sit down with Cécile Cremer, founder of Wandering the Future, joins us to challenge conventional wisdom about how we prepare for tomorrow's challenges. With refreshing candor, she explains why she's moving away from traditional trend reports toward a more collaborative approach to future-building. "I truly believe that the future should be co-created with ...

What happens when you hold an artifact from a future that doesn't exist yet? A newspaper headline from 2045, a product manual for technology not yet invented, or a social media post from an entirely different world? These aren't just creative exercises—they're powerful tools for making abstract futures tangible.

Julian Bleecker, one of the pioneering architects of design fiction, takes us on a fascinating jo...

The key to organizational survival lies in embedding foresight deeply into company DNA, creating structures that detect change, understand implications, and adapt accordingly before crises emerge. Futurist Steve Fisher shares practical frameworks for developing this capability, regardless of team size or organizational readiness.

• Four organizational models for implementing foresight: Lone Wolf, Dynamic Duo, Special Force...

Nicholas Badminton brings a refreshingly grounded yet visionary perspective to futures work, sharing his journey from growing up around a slaughterhouse to delivering over 450 keynotes worldwide as a renowned futurist. His approach focuses on breaking dominant narratives, finding overlooked implications, and helping organizations build futures fluency through practical, integrated methods that drive meaningful transformation.
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Welcome to episode 132! We sit down with Roger Spitz of the Disruptive Futures Institute.

Roger Spitz brings a refreshingly different perspective to the future of business and leadership. As the former global head of Tech M&A who pivoted into professional futures work, Roger's journey represents exactly the kind of transformation he advocates for—bold, purpose-driven, and responsive to a changing world.

What sets R...

Catherine Roy, a designer turned strategic futurist at Thales, reveals that flying taxis and advanced air mobility face substantial social acceptance challenges beyond mere technological hurdles. Her research identified 62 criteria for social acceptability of air taxis, demonstrating the complexity of successfully introducing this transportation mode.

We touch upon many things in this episode including:

• How she transformed into a...

Jake Dunegan, a visionary operating at the intersection of futures thinking and political systems, shares how experiential futures can help us reimagine governance for the 21st century challenges we face.

Drawing from his fascinating journey from anthropology to futures studies, Dunegan shares the moment he discovered a manuscript on "Quantum Politics" that proposed revolutionary ideas about constitutional design based on ...

Alex Fergnani takes us on a journey from his beginnings as a martial arts student in Asia to becoming a provocative voice in futures thinking with his groundbreaking approach to foresight wisdom. His upcoming book "The Dao of Foresight" with Penguin represents a fresh approach to teaching foresight concepts through an entertaining narrative set in a fictional world.

Following a hero's journey structure, the novel foll...

We're launching Foundations and Futures, a special series of 100 bite-sized episodes to support our new book and make 1 million people future fluent by 2030. Each 5-7 minute episode delivers one key concept, tool, or practice to build your futures literacy from the ground up.

• 100 free episodes starting March 17th to build future fluency
• Episodes released in batches of 10 on Mondays and Thursdays
• Each epi...

Organizational foresight is the key differentiator between companies that merely survive and those that actively shape their future, enabling systematic anticipation of change through expanded thinking across three time horizons.

• Foresight isn't corporate fortune-telling—it's a sophisticated navigation system showing multiple routes and spotting opportunities others miss
• The three horizons framework balan...

Organizations today face an urgent need to be future-ready. The conversation with Dr. Rene Rohrbeck emphasizes the critical role of strategic foresight in achieving business resilience and success in a rapidly changing environment. Companies that prioritize foresight not only adapt to emerging market trends but also enhance their financial performance.

• Introduction of future fitness focused on proactive preparedness