FARSIGHT

As the world grows older, will it also become more peaceful by consequence?We speak to Mark Haas, Professor of Political Science at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and author of The Geriatric Peace: Population Aging and the Decline of War (Oxford University Press). Ageing, Haas says, will not only increase the cost and lessen the preferences and capacity for war in aged countries - it will also likely prevent a great power transition from the US to China. Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a ⁠Futures Member⁠ at the Institute.Guest: Mark L. HaasHosts: Casper Skovgaard Petersen, August Leo LiljenbergResearch and production assistant: Suus HulsenPublished by the ⁠Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

Worldwide digital connectedness increasingly resembles an external brain, and the ability to perceive the digital world has become indispensible to us. Is the tree of evolution sprouting a new branch?Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute. Author: Peter HesseldahlNarration: August Leo Liljenberg (with ElevenLabs AI)Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

Sohail Inayatullah is a pioneer in futures studies, most famous for developing the Causal Layered Analysis - a technique for investigate the role of myths, metaphors, and narratives in constructing and imagining possible futures. He us joins us to discuss the centrality of language in futures thinking, the connection between macrohistory and futures studies, and the role of the futurist in today's world.Sohail Inayatullah is a Professor at Tamkang University and UNESCO Chair in Futures Studies at the Sejahtera Centre for Sustainability and Humanity.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute.Guest: Sohail InayatullahHosts: Casper Skovgaard PetersenPublished by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

As the summer break winds down, journalist and trend forecaster Jenny Southan joins us to explore the futures of travel and tourism. We discuss the differences between the two, what measures dense urban centres might adopt to mitigate overtourism, how climate change and ageing populations could reshape travel patterns, and whether the Katy Perry really deserved being vilified in the press for going to outer space...Jenny Southan is the editor and founder of Globetrender, the UK’s leading travel trend forecasting agency and online magazine dedicated to the future of travel. Jenny Southan and Globetrender are not affiliated with the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the InstituteGuest: Jenny SouthanHosts: Casper Skovgaard Petersen, August Leo LiljenbergPublished by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

In the second half of the twentieth century, microchips quietly became as vital to global stability and human progress as oil. To better understand Europe’s future role in the semiconductor industry, we speak to Chris Miller, author of Chip War, for his insights.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the InstituteAuthor: Caitlin van BommelNarration: Manya Lind (with ElevenLabs AI)Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

Studying the future was never a value-neutral project. The origins of modern futures research (known in the 1950s and 60s as ‘futurology’), lies in the ideological struggle between capitalism and communism during the Cold War. On both sides of the Iron Curtain, the future was something to be managed and controlled in the service of a dominant ideology. That briefly changed in the 1970s with the emergence of more global, emancipatory futures projects like the Club of Rome and the Peace Movement. Why didn’t it last? And what ideological baggage does futurism carry with it from itsformation during the Cold War?We discuss this fascinating history with historian Jenny Andersson, author of Future of the World: Futurology, Futurists, and the Struggle for the Post Cold War Imagination.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the InstituteHosts: Casper Skovgaard Petersen & August Leo LiljenbergGuest: Jenny AnderssonPublished by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

Three of the Institute’s resident futurists engage in a classic scenario-planning exercise, crafting four distinct snapshots of the continent’s future along two axes of uncertainty: European cohesion and global collaboration.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the InstituteAuthors: Daria Krivonos, Patrick Henry Gallen, and Carsten BeckNarration: August Leo Liljenberg (with ElevenLabs AI)Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

Author and existential risk researcher Luke Kemp joins us to discuss how to avoid the end of the world – and why the techno-utopianists may send us barrelling towards global disaster. Kemp’s upcoming book is Goliath’s Curse: The History and Future of Societal Collapse.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the InstituteGuest: Luke KempHosts: Casper Skovgaard Petersen & August Leo LiljenbergPublished by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

For most of human history we believed that everything that could happen, had already happened, and would happen again – ad infinitum. The rise of novel media technologies would change that. From books to computers, the medium with which we record and process information grants us access to history's forking paths.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the InstituteAuthor: Thomas MoynihanNarrator: Manya Lind (with ElevenLabs AI)Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

What goes on in our brains when we think about the future – and why are some individuals and cultures more adept at dealing with ambiguity, uncertainty, and risk? Our guests are Kerstin Presuchoff and Ewa Lombard, neuroscientists at LUCID (Laboratory for Uncertainty, Collective Intelligence & Decision Making) in Geneva. Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute.Guests: Kerstin Preuschoff & Ewa LombardHosts: Casper Skovgaard Petersen & August Leo LiljenbergPublished by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

The ‘carbon coin’, first proposed in 2019, then popularised through science fiction, is a proposal for making carbon capture and mitigation profitable – the carrot to carbon taxing’s stick. All it takes is getting the world’s governments and central banks on board. We spoke to Delton Chen, the Australian civil engineer and geo-hydrologist who first thought of the idea.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute.Author: Caroline ZielinskiNarration: August Leo Liljenberg (with ElevenLabs AI)Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

From Socrates’ warnings about writing leading to forgetfulness, to today’s anxieties about AI-induced brainrot, every new media technology has sparked fears of cognitive decline. But does generative AI pose a uniquely profound threat to our ability to think for ourselves?Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute.Author: Casper Skovgaard PetersenNarrator: Casper Skovgaard PetersenPublished by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

Some problems are simply too big for nation states to solve. In this episode, we speak to historian and futurist Nils Gilman, co-author of Children of a Modest Star. Planetary challenges, such as climate change, pandemics, space junk, require radically reimagining governance - and Gilman talks to us about how this could be achieved.Nils Gilman is Executive Vice President of the Berggruen Institute and Deputy Editor of Noema Magazine.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute.Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

With AI, all the products of human creativity become malleable. Stories and images flow seamlessly across formats – in constant flux and open to reimagination. What does this all mean for the role of human creators? Creative Lead of GenMedia Resarch at Google DeepMind, Matthieu Lorrain, answers our questions and paints a picture of a future-that-might-be.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute.Author: Sofie HvitvedNarrator: August Leo Liljenberg (with ElevenLabs AI)Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies.

There’s a coup against democracy happening, says Dutch politician Marietje Schaake, who warns against the growing influence of tech giants on society. But if Europe wants to use the technology on its own terms it will come at a cost.This article was originally published by MandagMorgen.It has been translated and edited for use in FARSIGHT.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute.Author: Peter HesseldahlNarration: Manya Lind (with ElevenLabs AI)Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

More from Stockholm. We visit futurist and philosopher Karim Jebari from the Mimir Centre for Long-Term Futures Research at Sweden's Institute for Futures Studies. Jebari researches transhumanism, our future in space, climate change, and other existential risks. He believes that futurism has become reactionary and backward-looking. Why? We get Jebari's answer (and much more).Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the InstituteGuest: Karim JebariHosts: Casper Skovgaard Petersen & August Leo LiljenbergPublished by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

The history (and possible future) of dollar hegemony.Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute.Author: August Leo LiljenbergNarration: August Leo Liljenberg (with ElevenLabs AI)Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

We travel to Stockholm to visit Dr Anders Sandberg at the Mimir Centre for Long Term Futures Research – part of the Swedish Institute for Futures Studies – for a conversation on existential risks posed by AI, the state of futures studies today, being a polymath in the Nordics, and why there are so many Swedish futurists... Sandberg holds a PhD in computational neuroscience and was previously a Research Fellow at the renowned Future of Humanity Institute (FHI) at the University of Oxford, alongside other prominent futurists, such as Nick Bostrom and Toby Ord. Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute Hosts: Casper Skovgaard Petersen & August Leo Liljenberg Guest: Anders Sandberg Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

As digital payments take over, cash is disappearing – but should we think twice? From privacy concerns to power dynamics, the push toward a cashless society raises questions about control, choice, and trust. Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute. Author: Josh Sims Narration: August Liljenberg (with ElevenLabs AI) Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies

The recent boom in prediction markets has breathed new life into an old debate: does the wisdom of the crowd combined with financial incentives produce the best forecasts of future events? Subscribe to FARSIGHT by becoming a Futures Member at the Institute Author: Casper Skovgaard Petersen Narrator: August Leo Liljenberg (with ElevenLabs AI) Published by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies