People have long sought to know
what the future may bring and whether they can change their fates. The Ancient
Greeks turned to the famous Oracle of Delphi to learn of their destinies and
the outcomes of their choices (Bishop, 2010). Today, rather than turn to oracles,
we strive to study and predict the future ourselves. Modern philosophy has adopted
a “becoming” perspective in which people can influence their paths and manage
the future. As Gabor said, “We cannot predict the future, but we can invent it”
(Hardin, 1970, p. 74).
The sense that people
can control their futures is common nowadays, at least in Western cultures. For
example, McHale argued that no future exists except the future that we want.
Jean-Paul Sartre contended that every human being creates his future, and he
should bear full responsibility for this creation (Zaher, 2004).
In the early 1970s, the public was becoming more convinced
that studying the future was possible and that the future was modifiable and
not fixed (Cornish, 1983). Hence, humans do not need to walk blindly towards a
compulsory world lacking the freedom of choice, but are rather constructive
partners in creating the future. Therefore, figuring out the future was not
merely a pastime for people interested in reflecting on their fates, but also an
essential—and perhaps necessary—adventure for everyone.
In these modern times, many governments and companies
attempt to improve their operations and shape their destinies by studying their
futures. The UAE government should be one such organisation. Because the government
aims to improve its performance through development, innovation and creativity
in areas such as science, technology, innovation policy, public health,
national security, the environment and economics, it must learn how to predict
possible futures and apply what it learns so that its decision-makers can adopt
and apply appropriate practices. To understand the approaches the UAE can use
to study the future and develop policies and practices, it is important to first
understand how such foresight studies evolved and how they have been used.
After reviewing this history, we can explore examples of how the UAE government
can apply different methodologies to improve its operations.
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