Consider the Baltic Sea: Brackish. Beautiful. Highly polluted. Linking (or dividing) the following countries: Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Denmark – and Russia. It might irritate certain EU member states, not mentioned above, both current and former, to learn that for journalist Oliver Moody, Berlin bureau chief for The Times of London, the … Continue reading Baltic Futures = Europe’s Future
Visioning, Dreaming, Imagining
Keynote Speech: “Future Thinking for Sustainable Development”
The following is a more polished version of the opening keynote speech I delivered (speaking from notes) in Gdansk, Poland, on 16 June 2025, at an international conference on sustainable development hosted by WEB Merito Universities (see Endnotes for more info and link). I am deeply appreciative of the opportunity to present this speech, which … Continue reading Keynote Speech: “Future Thinking for Sustainable Development”
Words&Music 4: Reflections on an Old Manifesto
Dear Friends, Exactly 20 years ago (29 December 1999) I put pen to paper at a friend’s house in East London and began to write a personal manifesto for the new millennium. The resulting document, ”Sustainability is Dead — Long Live Sustainability”, had a short, modestly viral life. It was emailed around the Internet, released … Continue reading Words&Music 4: Reflections on an Old Manifesto
Viridian revisited: An interview with Bruce Sterling
Bruce Sterling made his name in science-fiction, part of the wave of "cyberpunk" writers working in the late 1980s and early ‘90s — other names include William Gibson and Neal Stephenson — whose work seemed more predictive than speculative. I enjoyed his novels (they won a number of awards), but I especially enjoyed being part … Continue reading Viridian revisited: An interview with Bruce Sterling
How Oslo launched a new design revolution
Once in a while, a conference actually changes the world. In this case, I refer to a series of conferences in Oslo, sponsored by Norway’s National Center for Design and Architecture (known as DOGA). In 2015, a couple of sustainability visionaries there, Jannicke Hølen and Knut Bang, had the brilliant idea to focus on the … Continue reading How Oslo launched a new design revolution
For 2017: Short video about the long term
For New Year 2017: short video thoughts about the long-term nature of the challenges and opportunities we face. Five minutes, please watch, and feel welcome to comment. It was a pleasure to be interviewed by Natalie & Mikkel of Thought Leader Global. They do an excellent job of bringing out deeper issues in a gentle … Continue reading For 2017: Short video about the long term
“Start a New Life in the Colonies …”
I woke up early this morning, pre-dawn. Storm, wind and rain. For some reason, I had a strong urge to watch a bit of the classic film "Blade Runner". I was surprised to note that the future it depicts so compellingly is dated November 2019 -- just around the corner. Fortunately, our world does not … Continue reading “Start a New Life in the Colonies …”
An Open Letter to Future Generations
Dear Future Generations, I’m sure this is obvious to you — you can see things better than we can, in hindsight. But I want to report to you that we are living through a time of dramatic change. Historic change. The kind of moment where everything seems to be balanced on a knife edge, and … Continue reading An Open Letter to Future Generations
Launching 17Goals: Aiming to Scale Up
Let me tell you about our new website and social media channel: 17Goals. I am feeling very optimistic these days. The world, as I write this, is about to enter a new era. The largest gathering of global leaders in history is assembling at UN headquarters in New York to launch this era. Until today, … Continue reading Launching 17Goals: Aiming to Scale Up
Flummoxed About My Music (plus, a free song)
Update 12 Apr 2013: I wrote this about six months ago, but now, I am no longer feeling so "flummoxed." The musical path forward is getting much clear. See What Music Means (to Me). I confess: I am flummoxed. (Translation: deeply puzzled about what to do.) Why? Because I don’t know how to reach my … Continue reading Flummoxed About My Music (plus, a free song)
Alan AtKisson 