Open Futures - an Operating System for Future Center/ by OpenFutures, Editor: Ron Dvir

In May 2006, fourteen innovation experts started a unique two-year exploration tour in which they explored Future Centers and other future-oriented collaborative working environments. They visited, experienced, prototyped,  and analyzed over thirty Future Centers:  in the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, the United Kingdom, Spain, Israel, and elsewhere. 

The explorers were part of the OpenFutures project, which is funded by the European Commission. They were drawn from a broad range of backgrounds – from research and development of innovation methods and spaces, theoretical and scientific research, social and business entrepreneurship, and the actual planning and management of Future Centres.

This book  "OpenFutures – an Operating System for Future Centers" summarizes their findings. It provides insights into why  Future Centers are set up, what their fundamental operating principles are, how they are planned, operated, managed  and create impact.  The insights, stories, knowledge recipes and recommended tips cover four perspectives: the organisational, methodological, physical, and technological. It is a highly visual document, with plentiful artwork created especially for the book, enriching and underscoring the presentation of the different concepts that compose the art and practice of Future Centers. 

The book is a useful resource for people about to launch a Future Center or another type of innovation laboratory, or for people who currently operate one and want to upgrade and transform it,  or simply those intent on adding a touch of 'future orientation' to their everyday working environments. 

Enjoy an illustrated tour into the book