Episode 5 – Signals of the Future
Episode 5
In this episode, we highlight three stories from foresight practitioners from Africa, New Zealand and Canada about convening diverse people to imagine and shape better futures together. Their stories touch on climate, youth, indigenous cultures, and our relationship to grief.
The first story features young climate Leaders Iman Bashir and Fisayo Oyewale from Next Generation Foresight Practitioner’s Climate Futures Hub. They share experiences organizing intergenerational spaces that center youth inclusion in global forums, and speak to how the network has played a key role in their success and friendship.
Next, we hear from Alice Dimond about an indigenous approach to creating a more equitable future for the Māori people of New Zealand. Tokona te Raki means to prop up the skies to create a world of light, life and potential - the aim of the organisation is to create a world where everyone can share in this light and potential for generations to come.
Our last story is about using art to engage the complex emotions that arise as we navigate the complex challenges of our time. We hear from Method Collective, Toronto-based consultants and multimedia artists. Ziyan Hossain, Fran Quintero Rawlings, and Calla Lee speak about their immersive public art installation called Space for Grief as a model for public engagement with the emotions that accompany change. They shed light on the many ways in which our society fails to address grief and why engaging grief may help us navigate social change.
Listen to full episode.
This Episode Features…
Iman Bashir – Researcher and Facilitator at School of International Futures (SOIF)
As a Researcher and Facilitator at the School of International Futures (SOIF), Iman Bashir works on foresight research efforts, supports advisory projects, and facilitates training workshops. With her interdisciplinary background in law and environmental science, she brings a unique perspective to her work, underlining the interconnectedness of social, economic, and environmental factors in envisioning the future.
Iman’s work at SOIF is wide-ranging, from designing and delivering futures projects to analysing trends and conducting focused research on key topics. A key highlight of her work includes working on a project aimed at exploring inclusive futures for emerging technologies in Africa, where the team developed tools for stakeholder engagement and facilitated foresight workshops.
Iman’s work extends beyond her role at SOIF. She is an active member of the Next Generation Foresight Practitioners (NGFP) network, and she leads the NGFP Climate Hub. This initiative brought together professionals in the climate and energy space who incorporate foresight into their work. Among her notable accomplishments was the organization of the Youth Climate and Energy Futures Lab at COP27 which marked one of the first foresight sessions at the UNFCCC negotiations process.
Fisayo Oyewale – Senior Foresight Fellow & Community Engagement Specialist at UNICEF
Fisayo Oyewale is a futurist from Nigeria and an independent consultant who specializes in agri-food systems, youth engagement, and technology.
She collaborates with individuals, nonprofits, and multilateral organizations to drive positive change. She is an NGFP 2021 Fellow, UNICEF Senior Foresight Fellow, and a Community engagement specialist.
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Alice Dimond – Indigenous Innovation and Futures Practitioner at Tokona te Raki
Alice Dimond (Kāi Tahu) is an Indigenous Innovation and Futures Practitioner dedicated to designing solutions for a more equitable and thriving future for Indigenous people. At Tokona te Raki – Māori Future Makers, she leads projects that foster alternative ways of thinking and doing.
Her notable work includes Te Korekoreka, a futures process grounded in Māori knowledge systems. Alice also champions projects to reclaim long-term and systems thinking capabilities within her iwi (tribe), aiming to shape self-determined futures. She was recognised with the Futures Methods from Around the World award as a fellow with the Next Generation Foresight Practitioners.
Calla Lee – Co-Managing Director at Method Collective
Calla Lee is a strategist, designer, and facilitator who uses an intersection of art, experience, and data to understand how people and systems relate, interact, and overlap. Her experience managing and growing organizations provides insight into the many ways people design and engage with systems and processes to work toward future goals and solutions.
In all her work, Calla uses her years of graphic design experience to visually communicate complexity through simplicity, such as co-developing visual theories of change with the United Nations Joint Sustainable Development Group and Disaster Risk and Relief departments, and to create compelling and evocative experiences and community art spaces as a co-producer of projects such as Space for Grief.
Calla also supports over 150 food entrepreneurs across Southern Ontario at Foodpreneur Lab in starting and scaling their food service and manufacturing businesses.
Ziyan Hossain – Co-Managing Director at Method Collective
Ziyan Hossain is a systems and foresight practitioner with a track record of delivering unique and innovative solutions across private, public and not-for-profit sectors. He has worked on product and service design internationally and has led projects including the redesign of Toronto City Hall, service management for the Federal Courts of Canada, systems inquiry for Curling Canada, and more.
He has worked on multiple hardware and digital products currently in-market including multiple effects pedals with renowned audio technology company Eventide Audio. He is also a co-founder and producer of Space for Grief, a composer and guitarist, with multiple composition and performance credits with artists such as Kurt Swinghammer, Sundecay, Ashiquzzaman Tulu and Rakat Zami.
He has been involved with and leading art-based initiatives for over two decades, from music community organization in Dhaka, Bangladesh, to technology showcases at NAMM in Los Angeles, to curation for the Reel Asian Film Festival in Toronto for five years. He is an endorsed artist with Strandberg Guitars, which was named Guitar Innovation of the Decade in 2020.
Fran Quintero Rawlings – Co-Managing Director at Method Collective
Fran Quintero Rawlings is a deeply curious strategist, foresight practitioner, designer and artist passionate about leading organizations and individuals to explore and build collaborative future-focused solutions that support systemic change and collective liberation.
As an artist, she is drawn to create speculative, experiential installations that provoke important social conversations around equity and well-being.
She co-leads the Space for Grief initiative, a placemaking initiative focused on destigmatizing personal and collective grief through immersive public art installations, curated works, and community engagements.
Fran is also an adjunct professor at Sheridan College's Creativity and Innovation program. Beyond her professional pursuits, Fran enjoys bouldering, dancing and travel.
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And your co-hosts, Elsa Henderson & Carri Munn.