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ZaC
Future on Campus – Zukunft am Campus (ZaC)
Interactive stations invite visitors to think, explore, tell stories and dream about the future in all its diversity. Every interaction is a co-creative contribution to the further development of the exhibition in the real-world laboratory – and active ‘doing future’ (Assmann, 2022).
ZaC is an interactive exhibition format that
- stimulates futures thinking,
- contributes to implementing futures literacy in teacher training,
- and, as an informal learning space, turns viewers into researchers
- who participate in the development of the interactive exhibition format.
Futures literacy opens up spaces for thinking, exploring, narrating and dreaming about the future in all its diversity of possibilities – to promote imagination, strengthen anticipation and encourage participation. ZaC creates such a space of possibility for futures thinking at the interface of art, science, and education. As an open space, ZaC on PH NOE's campus Baden invites representation, narration and interaction of ideas, projects and utopias; it is a space for images, stories, questions, thoughts, positions, games, statements, and perceptions.
ZaC is being developed as part of the research and development project ‘Learning the Future, Teaching Futures (ZL2)’ of the UNESCO Chair at the PH NÖ, funded by the Government of Lower Austria.
What is the future?
On 2 December 2025 – International World Futures Day – the first interactive ZaC exhibition will open: What is the future?
Five interactive stations invite visitors to think, explore, talk, and dream about the future in all its diversity:
- Curtain: What feelings does the word “future” evoke in you?
- Audio: What is the future?
- Image: What kind of future do you want?
- Points: What value does the future have?
- Postbox: What do you want for your personal future and for the future of the world?
ZaC-Stations
The exhibition consists of 5 interactive stations, plus an intro station and a feedback & reflection station.
Station 0: Introduction ZaC exhibition: „What is the future?“
This station explains the other 5 interactive stations and the ZaC game rules:
ZaC Game Rules: In the spirit of togetherness …
- the five ZaC interactive stations are best completed one after another (duration: approximately. 20 minutes), but you are welcome to try them individually whenever you have time;
- we treat all ZaC materials with care and leave them – including paper and pens – on site for the next future-thinkers;
- we mind respectful communication, both spoken and written;
- and we appreciate friendly feedback. Thank you for taking part!
Station 1 – Curtain: What feelings does the word future evoke in you?
Upon entering the exhibition, visitors first stand in front of a curtain. Before passing through, they are invited to reflect on the following questions:
- What feelings does the word future evoke in you?
- What comes to mind when you think about the future?
Visitors write down their thoughts on a Post-it and place it on the ZaC wall. In this way, a first overview emerges of the personal associations visitors have with the future.
Station 2 – Audio: What is the future?
At this station, an audio recording on the topic “What is the future?” is available. Access is provided via the QR code. The audio is 5 minutes and 3 seconds long.
After listening, visitors are invited to record their impressions and ideas about the future in the Padlet. These may take the form of drawings, keywords, symbols, or short notes. The Padlet offers both a drawing function and the option to upload images or other visual elements.
The following guiding questions provide orientation:
What shape does the future have?
What color is it?
What does it smell like?
What does it feel like?
Contributions may be abstract or concrete and are meant to make individual visions of the future visible.
Here you can find the Padlet
Station 3 – Image: What kind of future do you wish for?
At this station, the focus is on personal wishes for the future. Visitors are invited to reflect on the kind of future they envision—one that strengthens, inspires, and fosters a sense of well-being.
A variety of possible perspectives may serve as inspiration: a future shaped by collaboration and togetherness; a sustainable and mindful future; or a creative, courageous, or just future. Completely different ideas are also possible and explicitly encouraged.
These individual visions are then expressed on a canvas. Felt-tip pens are provided for this purpose. The artwork can take the form of words, symbols, drawings, or short sentences. The aim is to make personal ideas of a desirable future visible.
Station 4 – Dots: What is the value of the future?
This station focuses on the values that might be important for a good future for everyone. Visitors begin by reflecting on which values they personally consider meaningful.
A total of nine dots are available for allocation, and these should be distributed across at least three different values. The dots can be freely placed — either stuck or drawn — onto the prepared cards, depending on individual priorities.
If a personal value is missing from the provided selection, it can be added to a blank card and included in the collection. The goal is to make visible which values are seen as particularly important for shaping a successful future.
Station 5 – Mailbox: What do you wish for your personal future and for the future of the world?
At this station, individual wishes for the future take center stage—both on a personal level and regarding the future of the world. Visitors are invited to reflect on the hopes and concerns they hold for their own lives as well as for society as a whole.
These wishes are written down on a prepared card. Afterwards, the card is placed into the designated ZaC mailbox. In this way, a collective collection of personal and shared future wishes is created.
Station 6 – Feedback & Reflection:
At this station, visitors are invited to share their feedback on the exhibition. They can express their impressions, thoughts, and suggestions for improvement. The feedback helps further develop the exhibition and improve future iterations.
Research
What potential does the interactive exhibition format ‘Future on Campus (ZaC)’ have for implementing futures literacy in teacher education?
Interactive exhibitions are considered informal learning spaces where ‘predominantly passive observers become self-directed explorers of the exhibition objects’ (Moser & Lewalter, 2021, p. 131, translated from German). This research project investigates the extent to which the interactive exhibition format ‘Future on Campus (ZaC)’ can contribute to implementing futures literacy in teacher education. In this sense, ZaC serves as a real-world laboratory in which visitors participate in the development of the interactive exhibition format. ZaC represents a method in futures literacy pedagogy that is being developed at the UNESCO Chair in Learning and Teaching Futures Literacy in the Anthropocene at the PH NOE (Sippl, 2025).
The research design of the research project ‘Future on Campus (ZaC)’ combines Arts-Based Research (ABR; Leavy, 2021) with Educational Design Research (EDR; McKenney & Reeves, 2019). While ABR carries the artistic-aesthetic dimension of the project―especially in the design of interactive exhibition stations that open up imaginative, narrative and performative forms of expression―EDR ensures the systematic, cyclical research and development process through which the format is iteratively tested, reflected upon and improved.
Duration: 1 October 2025–30 September 2028
Literature
Assmann, A. (2022). Doing Future – ökologische und kulturelle Nachhaltigkeit. In C. Sippl & E. Rauscher (Hrsg.), Kulturelle Nachhaltigkeit lernen und lehren (S. 677–683). Studienverlag. (Pädagogik für Niederösterreich, 11) DOI: https://doi.org/10.53349/oa.2022.a2.110
Leavy, P. (2021). Method Meets Art: Arts-Based Research Practice. Third Edition. Guilford Press.
McKenney, S. & Reeves, T. C. (2019). Conducting educational design research (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315105642
Moser, S. & Lewalter, D. (2021). Informelles Lernen und digitale Medien. In T. Schmohl & Th. Philipp (Hrsg.), Handbuch Transdisziplinäre Didaktik (S. 129–139). Transcript. (Hochschulbildung: Lehre und Forschung, 1) DOI: https://doi.org/10.14361/9783839455654
Sippl, C. (2025). The Futures Stories Lab. A Tool for Futures Literacy Pedagogy. R&E-Source 12, 4, 78–92. DOI: https://doi.org/10.53349/re-source.2025.i4.a1485
