Willow Anna
Department of Anthropology, Ohio State University, OH 43210 Columbus, USA.
SN Soc Sci. 2022;2(5):56. doi: 10.1007/s43545-022-00356-1. Epub 2022 Apr 24.
This article calls on sustainability researchers to place visions of the future at the center of their analyses. Recognizing humans as reflexive elements of socio-ecological systems, it proceeds from the premise that how people think about the future has significant consequences for the realities that ultimately ensue. The ideas presented here are informed by a qualitative/open-form survey designed to illuminate respondents' visions of the future. Completed by participants in the Transition movement for climate change resilience, survey responses indicate that Transition participants' visions are both exceptionally holistic and consciously connected to their present actions. These findings have important implications for the development of sustainable programs and systems. More broadly, this article argues that exploring how individuals and groups envision the future offers (1) a new appreciation of conceptions of the future as distinctive (sub)cultural attributes, (2) an understanding of how visions of the future influence actions in the present, (3) an enhanced capacity for anticipation and proactive response, and (4) opportunities to inspire diverse audiences by conveying the possibility of positive futures. Acknowledging the ability of engaged scholarship to change not only how people imagine the world but also how the material world takes shape, this work underscores researchers' moral obligation to contribute to the creation of more sustainable futures.
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43545-022-00356-1.
本文呼吁可持续发展研究人员将对未来的愿景置于其分析的核心。认识到人类是社会生态系统的反思性要素，本文基于这样一个前提展开：人们对未来的思考方式对最终产生的现实有着重大影响。这里提出的观点是由一项定性/开放式调查得出的，该调查旨在阐明受访者对未来的愿景。由气候变化适应转型运动的参与者完成的调查回复表明，转型参与者的愿景既异常全面，又有意识地与他们目前的行动相关联。这些发现对可持续项目和系统的发展具有重要意义。更广泛地说，本文认为，探索个人和群体如何设想未来能够（1）重新认识未来观念作为独特（亚）文化属性的价值，（2）理解未来愿景如何影响当下的行动，（3）增强预测和积极应对的能力，以及（4）通过传达积极未来的可能性来激励不同受众的机会。认识到参与式学术研究不仅能够改变人们对世界的想象方式，还能改变物质世界的形成方式，这项工作强调了研究人员为创造更可持续未来做出贡献的道德义务。
在线版本包含可在10.1007/s43545-022-00356-1获取的补充材料。
