Resources to help you think about the future
The focus on how to plan for different future scenarios clearly resonates with charity leaders as we recently had an overwhelming response to our navigating uncertainty webinar. And no wonder - 2025 was a year of extraordinary changes and figuring out what these changes actually mean for your organisation, and how to plan for alternate futures, is tough work.
To support you with this thinking, we’ve compiled a list of resources that have helped us to think differently about the future.
Our COVID Future, a report prepared for the Local Trust
Written in 2020, in the middle of the Covid crisis, this review of likely future scenarios remains compelling and provocative. The report talks about two main dimensions of change – collective action versus polarisation action and the degree to which responses are centralised or distributed. They talk about four scenarios and the strategies that work under each.
2025 Emerging Tech Trend, a report by Amy Webb at South by Southwest (SXSW)
If you want to understand the super-cycle of tech changes – from robotics to AI – we’d recommend you turn to Amy Webb, who launches her tech trends report every year at South by Southwest. You can watch her 2025 talk here, or you can also download the full report here. While the sheer volume of trends covered can feel overwhelming, you can dive into areas that are particularly relevant to your area of work.
No Straight Road Takes You There, essays by Rebecca Solnit
With a particular focus on social change, we’d recommend the collection of essays No Straight Road Takes You There by Rebecca Solnit. With an unwavering belief in how people to organise to bring about a more just society, she argues for the imperative to hold onto hope and our ability to shape the future.
Immunity to Change, a book by Robert Kegan and Lisa Laskow Lahey
Finally, we’d recommend having a listen to Part 1 and Part 2 of Lahey’s interviews with Brene Brown. In these interviews, Lahey talks about the immunity to change theory - and how by understanding this, we can move our organisations forward.
We’ll be continuing our series of webinars through 2026, as a way of supporting social change organisations to learn from others. We hope to see you at one of our sessions soon!
To navigate the future, social change organisations first need to face into it. That is why we have developed a package which helps you think clearly about the future.
Learn more below, or get in touch with our team of experienced consultants to get started.