Future design sessies 
 
Many of the health disparities we see in adulthood are not the result of individual choices, but of collective decisions made before birth. There is an urgent need for insights and methods that explicitly incorporate the perspective of future generations into decision-making. One such method is Future Design. Developed in Japan, it helps participants to think about issues from the perspective of past, present, and future generations.

At Amsterdam UMC, we use Future Design as a tool for our own practice to take the interests of future generations into account, including on themes in the multi-year strategy A Healthy Future for All. At the same time, we are conducting scientific research into the method – the first in the Netherlands and in healthcare. Our aim is to learn more about the impact and value of Future Design.

In interactive sessions lasting approximately three hours, 15 to 20 participants jointly consider topics such as family-friendly employment practices, housing, and sustainability. Future Generations Commissioner Tessa Roseboom facilitates groups and observes the process. Participants discuss the past and present and contemplate how the decisions our ancestors made have shaped our world today. They then take a similar leap into the future. What would they want the future to look like? And from that ideal future, what would people want us to do today to make that future a reality? The sessions are open to all Amsterdam UMC employees. Those interested can request a session to answer a specific question about the future. Healthcare professionals, colleagues from support services, managers, and policymakers can all participate. In fact, diversity is stimulated as it leads the group to richer conversations and multifaceted insights.

Roseboom: “Participants fill out a questionnaire before the session, in which they answer questions about how hopeful they are about the future and how connected they feel to past and future. They fill out the same questionnaire again after the session. So far, we have seen that participants are more hopeful and feel more connected to the future after the session compared to before. They experience a stronger sense of agency and perspective for action. The sessions not only provide new insights, but also contribute to a sense of connection and motivation to contribute to sustainable change.

So regardless of whether Future Design works in terms of content, it contributes to hope. After all, hope is not an emotion, it is a cognitive process: where are we going, how do we get there, what is my scope for action? In a volatile world, these conversations create connections and are valuable in themselves.”