The New Abnormal

Series FourThis episode of 'The New Abnormal' podcast features Houston-based Alexandra Whittington, a futurist writer and speaker who explores the future of humanity and society. A former Lecturer in Foresight at the University of Houston, she’s been highlighted as one of the world’s top futurists by Forbes. The co-author and co-editor of several books including 'A Very Human Future', 'Aftershocks and Opportunities' and 'The Future Reinvented', Alex also delivered the popular 'Museum of the Future' TEDx talk. She's passionate about empowering people to imagine and create positive futures for themselves and their communities. So, we discuss the above, and I hope you enjoy listening to her as much as I did! 

Series FourThis episode of 'The New Abnormal' podcast features Ben Holt, Global Lead for Strategic Foresight at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC) Solferino Academy, who helps the network explore possible futures and learn the skills needed to make them useful in the present. He's also a Visitor at the Cambridge University Centre for the Study of Existential Risk (CSER) and a committee member at the Humanitarian Innovation Fund. In this episode, Ben discusses his dynamic work, all of which involves 'thinking about the future and making things happen today'. I hope you enjoy listening to him as much as I did!

Series FourIn this episode of #TheNewAbnormal podcast,  I interview Andrew Koppelman, who is the John Paul Stevens Professor of Law, Professor of Political Science, and Philosophy Department Affiliated Faculty at Northwestern University. Andrew's scholarship focuses on issues at the intersection of law and political philosophy. He's been published and quoted across an array of leading newspapers and has appeared on numerous TV channels. He's also written more than 100 scholarly articles and seven books. In this episode, we discuss his latest book 'Burning Down the House' which explains how modern libertarianism began with Hayek’s admirable corrective to the Depression-era vogue for central economic planning. It resisted oppressive state power and showed how capitalism could improve life for everyone. Yet today, it's a toxic blend of anarchism, disdain for the weak, and rationalisation for environmental catastrophe. Andrew’s book therefore traces libertarianism's evolution from moderate pro-market ideas to 'romantic fabulism' and the promotion of climate change denial.  His book is the definitive history of an ideological movement that has reshaped American politics - I found his viewpoints to be fascinating, and hope you do too!

Series ThreeIn this episode of #TheNewAbnormal, I interview the award-winning multimedia journalist Lauren Razavi, who specialises in subjects including the Future of Work, Future Cities, Tech Policy and Ethics. She therefore reports on topics at the intersection of technology, business, policy and human behaviour - and has also spent years delivering talks and appearing on panels about big tech, surveillance, blockchain, internet culture etc, alongside her past work with those inc Google, The Guardian, and Inverse. She's currently writing a book that examines the past two decades of tech innovation and its impact on economics and equality globally, covering issues from the sharing economy and data sovereignty to algorithmic decision-making. Lauren is a deep thinker and vocal commentator on how we can realign technology with the interests of humanity, and so I make every attempt to keep up with her as we discuss her viewpoints - in particular the global 'Digital Nomad' community regarding issues such as individual empowerment, distributed work, community & isolation, place-making, lifestyle stability & mental health, generational trends, environmentalism, and some suggested political / social / economic policy responses. 

Series ThreeThis episode of #TheNewAbnormal podcast features Jacob Ellis, an experienced public affairs and international relations advisor with a demonstrated history of working to improve policy-making in Wales and globally. He's worked with United Nations, World Cities Culture Forum and One Young World, and is committed to ensuring the needs of future generations are central to policy development. We therefore discuss all of these areas, and in particular his work with the Office of the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, his activity as a Future Generations Global Ambassador, being a United Nations Foundation 'Next Generation' Fellow, and a range of the dynamic policy initiatives and other issues on which Jacob is involved. 

Jonathan Wise, co-founder of Purpose Disruptors, discusses the advertising industry's responsibility in addressing climate change. He reflects on his realization of the negative impact of advertising on the environment and explores the Maori worldview of interconnectedness. The importance of reclaiming agency and understanding our worldview is emphasized. The chapter also explores the significance of hope and collective action in confronting climate change.

Series ThreeThis episode of #TheNewAbnormal features the writer, philosopher and technologist Gary F Bengier - who is probably most known for being eBay’s first CFO and the person who was in charge of taking the company public. As a Silicon Valley executive, Gary also worked for several other tech companies and had a front-row seat in the development of technologies from streaming services to semi-conductor chip design.Meanwhile, his futuristic novel 'Unfettered Journey' has sold thousands of copies, been a best-seller in five countries,  won 14 awards, and is translated into 8 languages. In this episode, we discuss a range of issues including why AI is the tech that will cause the most fundamental change in our lives, what will happen when robots produce everything that people need (and there's no longer a requirement for traditional jobs) and how human beings may find meaning and purpose in this likely future...

World-renowned futurist Nikolas Badminton discusses the importance of foresight methods in creating organizational resiliency and shifting mindsets from 'what is' to 'what if'. He explores the establishment of future departments, agile work approaches, positive dystopia, and future scenarios framework. The conversation includes insights on delivering keynotes on future technologies and trends across industries.

Series ThreeThis episode of #TheNewAbnormal podcast features Roger Spitz, who is an international bestselling author, President of Techistential and Chair of the Disruptive Futures Institute. Based in San Francisco, he’s an authority on foresight, sustainability, and systemic change. He also publishes extensively on decision-making in uncertain and complex environments.Techistential, Roger’s foresight practice, advises boards, leadership teams, and investors on sustainable value creation. In addition, he developed the Disruptive Futures Institute into a preeminent global executive education centre which helps organizations build capacity for futures intelligence, resiliency, transformative innovation, and strategic foresight.During our conversation, we discuss his four-book collection “The Definitive Guide to Thriving on Disruption” in which he lays the foundations to make sense of our increasingly complex, nonlinear, and unpredictable world - where disruption is no longer merely a single or recurring event, but a steady state, expanding its impact.We discuss all of the above, and along the way, manage to cover topics ranging from Eastern philosophy to prediction to micro-learning to science-fiction.I therefore hope you enjoy listening to the episode as much as I did recording it! 

Thomas D'hooge, a futurist and curator of the Futures Festival, discusses digital and disruptive innovation, the crisis of imagination in children's views of the future, and the importance of resilience and historical perspective for a positive future.