Asia Pacific Futures Network

Futures Studies and Strategic Foresight is a rapidly growing field in the Asia-Pacific region. We have witnessed an explosion of interest in Futures Thinking in Asia: from Tamkang University’s Foresight Program and the emergence of various presidential foresight initiatives; the spread of foresight in government ministries; foresight-driven government projects in Singapore, Malaysia, and Taiwan; the increasing number of international organizations, corporations and financial institutions supporting foresight courses in Pakistan, Philippines, Bangladesh, and Iran; plus an emerging interest of many leading universities in Asia, it seems apparent that Futures Studies and Foresight have indeed arrived in many parts of the Asia-Pacific region. Many senior and emerging futurists agreed that a yearly meeting was needed to provide a space for futurists to analyze, synthesize, and reflect on emerging issues and trends, create new knowledge and experiences for anticipatory action learning education and research, and strengthen the link between futures theory and practice in Asia. Therefore, in 2015 the Asia Pacific Futures Network (or Futurists) Network was founded. How can Futures studies in Asia be different from Western offerings? How can it be localized in native languages, ways of knowing, and experiences? Can Asian futures, if such a thing exists, address emerging challenges, raise new questions, and disrupt systems of knowledge and power as they currently exist? What capacities exist to create and enhance futures thinking? How can Asian philosophies, cultures, and experiences shape alternative flavors of Futures Studies and practices?