The Futures Lab at Art Center College of Design: Scenario Thinking

Our future world has been divided into axes

of threats and responses.

In the "Business as Usual" world, threats are

mild and low, and nobody is feeling very

responsive or inventive. So it's a sleepy,

prosperous time. No need to rock the

boat.

In the "Deer in Headlights" world, threats

are grave, but society is paralyzed with

fear and instinctive conservatism. These

people will be mown down in hecatombs.

There will be hell to pay.

In the "Never Again" world, everybody

is grimly aware of the threat and everyone

is resolved to meet in in one single, resolute,

uninventive way. This is a world war,

basically. It's like a Bush II that never ends.

In "Scout World," the threat is hysterically

extreme but people are hysterically inventive!

They're out beating the boundaries of

the possible, looking for anything that

works or even doesn't work!

And hey, we're a DESIGN SCHOOL IN SOUTHERN

CALIFORNIA! That last one's for us, boyo!

Our goal: to make that scenario come to life!