Overview
In Ray Bradbury’s The Toynbee Convector, a time traveller brings back evidence from the future, proving that humanity creates a utopia. Everyone believes him and rushes to create that future world, certain that they will succeed. On the 100 hundredth anniversary of his trip, he reveals his all his evidence was fake.
There’s a simple message at the heart of this story: if humanity is shown a brighter future, we will create it. Positive images of the future matter; they give us something to aspire to and strive for, but are they really enough?
Recently, a growing number of designers and futurists have suggested we need to stop creating dystopias and focus only on positive futures to build a better world. While it is tempting to forgo dark futures for the sake of realizing bright ones, dystopias play an important role in society.
Objective
This presentation will demonstrate the value of dystopias in human-centered design and how we can use dystopias to build a better future for all.
Target Audience
This talk is for everyone who wants to harness the strategic power of storytelling.
Five Things Audience Members Will Learn
- What is a dystopia
- The role of dystopias in society
- The relationship between dystopias, futures, and design
- Six reasons why dystopias are relevant to futures and human-centred design
- How to use dystopias strategically
