Second International Seville Seminar on Future-Oriented Technology Analysis (FTA): Impacts on policy and decision making 28th- 29th September 2006

Responsibility and Reflexivity

Organising Foresight as a Political Project in the Making Stefanie Jenssen Centre for Technology, Innovation and Culture (TIK) University of Oslo

Responsibility and Reflexivity

Context and Questions

Phd Project on Sector Specific Methods and Organisation of Foresight Cases • A Norwegian Municipality ”Visions, values and goals for our community” (Spring 2006) • The Norwegian Research Council ”Foresight project CREATE” 2002-2005 (ICT-Foresight autumn 2004) 1. How do organisers influence Public Foresight Processes?

2.How might this influence effect the organisational identity of Public Sector institutions?

3. What are the main issues and challenges for evaluating and monitoring Public Sector Foresight in this context?

Responsibility and Reflexivity

Visions for a Norwegian Community (2006)

• “Visions, values and Goals for our Community” • “Not as an organisation but as a place to live” • “Grass-root approach to anchor process in reality and confirm it as desired” •Responsibility delegated from politicians to administration to department to one employee •Foresight method developed by one employee in administration with academic background in planning and development Process started in schools as homework: How do you see yourself, your neighbourhood, your community, your country in 2020?

Municipal Vision –

Responsibility and Reflexivity

One Organiser?

Political/Administrative Decisions Organiser’s Role Announcing Foresight Process Identifying school children as primary Stakeholders Selecting Participants (secondary schools and colleges) Involvement of young people’s community council (YPCC) Chosen as public contact person Producing and presenting method Asking college teachers to collect ideas Receiving ideas, systematizing them Writing four future pictures, based on young students ideas and further material Conducting workshops with YPCC, modifying future pictures, reducing their number Deciding on the use of the vision for municipality plan – its place in the plan and its influence on more detailed planning Conducting workshop with additional interest groups – refining future pictures Giving the credit of producing the future pictures to the YPCC Writing the vision?

Responsibility and Reflexivity

Foresight in the Research Council of Norway (RCN)

National funding agency, chief source of advice on research policy for Norwegian government, recommends national priorities International evaluation 2001: Foresight for a wider than normal debate Five Foresight projects for Norwegian STI focus areas Create dialogue between economic actors, researchers and RCN organisers Organised by RCN in five project groups with internal and external members Example: Role of one organiser in Foresight process for ICT

Responsibility and Reflexivity

ICT Scenarios and the Voice of Social Science

Stages of Organising at the RCN Role of Organiser Choosing Method, inviting participants Conducting workshops Stages between workshop collection of ideas and writing processes Writing process and following strategic discussions Collaborative, disseminating information, overall influence uncertain Collaborative, middleman between participants and Foresight expert conducting the workshops Promoting democratic approaches, underlining importance of social questions, resisting idea of ICT as main social driver Expressing personal views and verbal preferances, such as the term ”network society” not based on communication devices but future social relationships Questioning technological determinism

Responsibility and Reflexivity

Organising Foresight and effects on Public Identities

How do organisers influence Public Foresight Processes?

• Many roles: project leader, stakeholders, participants, secretary, strategist, etc • Producing an new form of expertise: the

organiser-expert

in the Public Sector

How might this influence effect the organisational identity of Public Sector institutions?

• Key actor groups with extended responsibilities ensure future importance • Stabilising participants’ role as future users, customers and clients

Implications for evaluating and monitoring Public Sector Foresight ?

• Monitoring the roles of organisers as they fulfill their responsibilities both successively (organising) and simultaneously (providing expertise) •Evaluating the legitimacy of Public organisations as Foresight organisers

Responsibility and Reflexivity

Challenges for Further Studies

Clarity of Responsibility (Ringland 2002)

•Case of Scottish Enterprise: Many participants unsure whether dialogue process about the future of Scotland or the future of Scottish Enterprise.

More Reflexivity (“Futur” Workshop Roundtable 2002)

•More reflexivity with respect to the political game of which foresight is part •Foresight might be “playing with fire” as it may change democratic procedures •Demand for better understanding of participation and the influence of the organisers on the outcome of foresight process

Responsibility and Reflexivity

Public Sector Foresight A

Political

Project in the Making?

Not ”a Game” but a

Project:

An undertaking requiring concerted effort, to form a plan or intention for something and to calculate, estimate, or predict something in the future, based on present data and trends

Other challenges with Foresight practises in public sector organisations?

Not ”Playing with Fire” but

In the Making:

In the process of developing or growing, being made

Should Foresight be organised to change or to confirm?