Futures Literacy Pedagogy | Interdisciplinary Symposium

Enacting Future Minds – Educating for Futures | May 12–14, 2027 | PH NÖ, Campus Baden

In the Anthropocene, where accelerating global changes demand new ways of thinking and acting, Futures Literacy emerges as a crucial competence for education. Moving beyond traditional approaches such as critical thinking or systems thinking and sustainability, this conference explores how educators and researchers across both school and higher education contexts can engage in participatory and anticipatory sense-making, tap the creative agency of the world, turn uncertainty into a resource, and learn from an emerging future. By embracing VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) dynamics and fostering action-oriented, purpose-driven innovation, we aim to co-create educational practices that empower learners to navigate and shape the futures ahead in a thriving manner.

Join us for an immersive interdisciplinary symposium to explore how education can become a transformative space for co-becoming with the world. Through interactive workshops, interdisciplinary dialogues, and collaborative experimentation, participants will discuss theoretical concepts and develop practical tools to integrate futures thinking into their teaching and research. This event invites educators, scholars, and practitioners to collectively reimagine learning and teaching as a dynamic process of engaging with the future—learning and teaching that is emergent, creative, and profoundly generative and turns education into a space for imagining and enacting new possibilities.

Target audiences and fields/disciplines: 

This conference is designed as an interdisciplinary event, bringing together diverse perspectives to explore Futures Literacy Pedagogy. Contributions are welcome from the following disciplines/fields, but are not limited to:

• Educational sciences – Innovating learning and teaching Futures Literacy
• Cognitive science – Understanding how minds anticipate and engage with futures
• Creativity studies – Engaging in creative practices for futures thinking
• Possibilities studies – Exploring alternative futures and the creative potential in education
• Transformative learning – Taking learning one step further into worldviews, epistemic attitudes, and co-becoming with an unfolding world
• Cultural studies and semiotics — Negotiating meaning and imagining futures
• Arts and crafts – Fostering new possibilties and thinking beyond past patterns with culture and arts education
• Philosophy – Examining epistemological and ethical dimensions of futures thinking
• Futures studies – Exploring how to shape a thriving future in education
• Anthropology – Investigating cultural perspectives on the future and co-becoming
• Design and innovation studies – Developing future-oriented, action- and future-driven methodologies for education
• Complex systems and sustainability studies – Addressing uncertainty and global challenges in education
• Curriculum development – Designing curricula encompassing futures literacy in education
• Human-technology relations: Artificial Intelligence and digital technologies – Exploring the role of technology in shaping future minds in education
   

Symposium Objectives:

• Developing a deep understanding of Futures Literacy and its relevance in teaching and learning.
• Exploring innovative methodologies to anticipate and shape future challenges in education.
• Fostering collaboration between educators and researchers to address global educational needs in Futures Literacy Pedagogy.
   

Expected Outcome:

• Enhanced ability to think critically and creatively about Futures Literacy Pedagogy and the future of education in the Anthropocene.
• Practical strategies for incorporating Futures Literacy into curricula and research.
• Broadening the network of like-minded educators and researchers committed to future-ready education.
   

Target Group:

• Teachers in all disciplines interested in innovative pedagogical approaches.
• Educational researchers focusing on Futures Literacy and future-oriented studies.
• Policy advisors and education professionals aiming to enhance systemic preparedness.
   

How to Apply:
Please submit your abstract (300-400 words), structured in terms of background, methods, results, and conclusion. Do not include tables or figures. You are welcome to offer a paper or a workshop, onsite and online. Please send your abstract to unesco(at)ph-noe.ac.at by 30 September 2026. 

Participants are invited to use Erasmus staff mobility to cover travel costs.

Don’t miss this opportunity to shape the futures of teacher education!

Carmen Sippl, Karin Tengler & Rita Krebs

UNESCO Chair in Learning and Teaching Futures Literacy in the Anthropocene
University College of Teacher Education Lower Austria
Mühlgasse 67 in A–2500 Baden near Vienna | Austria
unesco(at)ph-noe.ac.at
https://www.ph-noe.ac.at/unesco-chair