Greetings earthlings! The future is calling!

Five main subjects

Are you through with negative discussions about the future? Let us start afresh! Indeed, many of us are all too conscious of the challenges and uncertainties that the 21st century poses. We understand the imminent dangers and are keenly aware of the complexities that are tied to the ways in with we currently relate to our environment; as well as each other. How to approach these issues in the future? How can we make the best of the Now?

Future Based veers off the beaten path to make way for an optimistic approach of the days to come, filled with podcasts, reflections, meetups, performances, and everything in between. For starters, we have restructured the website, which can now be navigated according to subject matter. Use the tags to delve into the written and spoken matter that offer various perspectives and reflections on a certain topic. Has your curiosity been piqued? For more in-depth discussion, it is also possible to attend a meetup! The five main subjects that we will be addressing in 2019 – 2021 with a number of philosophers, designers, scientists, and artists are: Ecology; The Others; the Relationship between Brain and Body; Object Fetishism; and Knowledge.

The Now

Familiarizing ourselves with the future grants access to a better understanding of the Now. Paradoxical as it might sound, by allowing for speculative futures and imagining alternatives, we make space for fresh notions of both ourselves and the world. On some occasions it might require a linguistic approach, a matter of reframing words by way of language philosophy; in other times it can be an exploration into the state of affairs within science; or appropriating research methodologies that are used within the arts.

For instance, imagine gatherings that address matters concerning brain and body first from a technological perspective, and then from a biological standpoint. Or viewing object fetishism from the angle of neuroscience and photography. How about ecology from a philosophical point of view? Or gender within the performing arts, or artificial intelligence? The sheer scope of these topics allows for endless possibilities, and that is precisely the objective of Future Based—not all who wander are lost.

Credits to Editor Josephine Baan / Design Future Based cards and photography: Dana Dijkgraaf