Our future is unpredictable but we are not powerless to confront it. The future can be anticipated, explored, and its course can be changed. This is what the field of Futures Studies deals with.

 

People can engage in thinking about the future through different means, with different objectives, in order to reduce uncertainties and prepare for what might happen. Futures studies allow us to navigate the past, the present and the future and inform us about the options, the choices we can make, and the actions we can take.

 

The Forward Thinking Platform - with support from The Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR) - produced a Glossary of Terms commonly
used in Futures Studies.

 

This glossary can be used to help both readers and writers to better understand the meaning of each term and how to use it when applied to Futures Studies in food, agriculture and rural development. It contains concise, easily understandable definitions of the most common terms used in Futures Studies. It will help make your conversations about the future more shareable.

 

The full digital glossary is available at http://bit.ly/FTPglossary. It provides also Illustrations/References and additional Notes.