Inclusive and Plural Futures: a way forward

The possible futures ahead belong to everyone, and in this critical juncture of time in our society, where polarization and power struggles abound, and the hegemonic Western ideas and ideals seem fractured, it feels even more critical we seek these plural and inclusive images of the future as a way forward. The field of Futures Studies, however, is foregrounded by its own Western cultural and epistemological heterogeneity with much of the geographic focus of the fields work and its practitioners thus far, skewing heavily to the global North. In combining research with expert interviews, the study takes a temporal lens, of past-present-future, to understanding the Western influence on the field, and makes a case for why the field needs to transition to being more inclusive, both for its own ongoing relevance and potential social impact. In offering a possible way forward, the study draws from the insights generated and proposes the first draft of an inclusive futures framework called Lotus. The framework, inspired by the Lotus flower, is targeted at current Futures practitioners, and seeks to guide its users in questioning the belief systems, worldviews, and epistemological groundings underpinning their work; its goal being to generate futures with our broader community that are inclusive, plural, anti-colonial and culturally sensitive. While the field cannot become inclusive and representative overnight, it can become a better ally in the process, and it is to support in this transition that the framework seeks its utility