A Tromsø-Iceland exploration
The Mapping Northern Futures project has officially been wrapped up, and we’re thrilled to call it a success! Folke brought together a diverse group of international participants to discuss challenges, changes and hopes for the future in northern regions.
Warm-up: “Write down two things you hope to do, in your near or far away future. Share it with the person next to you”.
With financial support from NORA – Nordic Atlantic Cooperation, we organised a workshop on 15 March aimed at young adults 18-30 years old.
The goal? To challenge the way we think about the future, encourage bold ideas, and hopefully inspire people to help shape the world they want to live in.
15 enthusiastic participants attended the workshop, which was held at Tvibit, the youth culture and creative house in Tromsø. The attendees came from seven different countries – talk about an international brainstorming squad! Three people from the Reykjavik region had received special invitations to come to Tromsø.
The biggest challenges
In the first groupwork, they were asked to identify key challenges young people face in their local communities. Some of the concerns we got included a lack of job opportunities, mental health struggles and social polarisation.
A futures wheel by the group Happy people.
After identifying several issues, the groups selected one topic and created a futures wheel, a brainstorming tool that explores the direct and indirect consequences of an issue. This exercise led to some interesting discussions. While the challenges were seen as serious threats to communities, the groups also discovered that with the right actions, even tough situations can lead to positive outcomes. Turns out, the future isn’t all doom and gloom after all!
Visioning the communities we want
In the second group exercise, they envisioned the ideal communities they would like to live in. The task? To let creativity flow and break free from today’s limitations – because who says we can’t dream big?
One of the groups had AI for everyday practices as a future vision.
The results were fascinating. One group imagined a future where humans had colonised Mars (goodbye, Earth traffic jams!). Another envisioned a world of self-sustaining greenhouse communes. And one particularly tech-savvy group saw AI becoming a seamless part of daily life, with self-driving cars and artificial intelligence making most of our decisions for us. AI supported better information gathering, education and healthcare, and reduced poverty and exclusion.
Abhinanda guided us through the many capabilities of generative AI. The tools promise to contribute a lot to our lives, but ethical, legal and security risks must be addressed proactively.
Futures quiz and postcard
The final activity was a mix of individual reflection and a futures quiz. Some of the questions included:
What is an example of a bottom-up approach to community development?
Which activity is known to improve mental well-being?
What makes the Icelandic horse so special? (a good mix of topics is important!)
To wrap up, participants wrote a postcard from their future selves in 2055, to their present selves. They described what they’d look like, what they’d be wearing, what kind of work they envisioned themselves doing, and what kind of house they lived in. It was a fun, reflective exercise – though we suspect a few might have exaggerated their future fashion choices!
Thinking hard about the future!
Between the group exercises, participants gained some insight from the different speakers.
Lene kicked things off by introducing the concept of futures thinking and the advantages of doing citizen science. Next up, Anton and Fjόla gave us a glimpse into life in Reykjavik – sharing the quirks, challenges, and opportunities of living in Iceland. Gustav brought a perspective on sustainable development, using the lens of doughnut economy to illustrate how we can balance economic growth with environmental and social sustainability. Dӧgg shared her experiences working with co-creation and participation at Reykjavik City Library. Finally, Gabriela spoke about multicultural communication and how we can build more inclusive communities by ensuring everyone’s voice is heard.
Wrapping up
The Mapping Northern Futures workshop was a great experience, filled with discussions, wonder, creative ideas, and a glimpse into the possibilities of the future. We can’t wait to see how these ideas evolve.