Future Files: A History for the next 50 years

Future Files: A History of the next 50 years written by Richard Watson

This is a book club event where people come together to talk about a book which will ‘help you decide whether the world is going mad or possibly more intelligent.’

William Gibson meets Charles Handy in this lively, provocative, and witty look at our possible futures.

Prediction is a dangerous game - the future is never a straight, linear extrapolation from the present. Unexpected innovations and events will conspire to trip up the best-laid plans - but it's better than not thinking about the future at all. And, as someone once said, even if my past is chequered with failed predictions, my future predictions and extrapolations will be spotless.

Future Files is filled with provocative forecasts about how the world might change in the next half century. It examines emerging patterns and developments in society, technology, economy, and business, and makes educated speculations as to where they might take us.

But Future Files is not primarily about prediction. Its goal is to liberate our collective and individual imaginations so that we can see the familiar in a new light and the unfamiliar with greater clarity, and to make individuals and organisations think about where we are going and to consider whether, when we get there, it will be worth staying.

Future Files will prove indispensable to business analysts, strategists, and organisations who need to stay ahead of the game, as well as providing rich and fascinating material for water-cooler conversations.

'Provocative, entertaining, full of surprising facts - a book to help you decide whether the world is going mad or possibly becoming more intelligent.' Theodore Zeldin

Richard Watson advises organisations on the future, focusing on innovation and scenario planning. He is the author and publisher of What's Next, a quarterly report on global trends, and is a columnist for a number of magazines including Fast Company (USA).

Date: Monday, 17 September 2007

Venue: gleebook, 49 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe, NSW Sydney

Time: 6.30pm

Cost: $10/$7 conc. gleeclub welcome

To request a place, please visit www.gleebooks.com.au/events/ or call (02) 9660 2333.