Are You A Time Rebel?
What time horizon do you regularly consider in your work?
• Immediate (seconds/minutes/hours)
• Short-term (days/weeks/months)
• Medium-term (1–5 years)
• Long-term (5–25 years)
• Generational (25–100 years)
• Deep Future (100+ years)
If you ticked the timeframes further down the list — congratulations, you’re a time rebel!
Or so I discovered at the incredible Future Thinking session last week with the Futures and Foresight Office (part of the Government Office for Science). As the Well-being of Future Generations Act turns 10 years old, I joined over 300 fellow attendees at The National Museum Cardiff to celebrate.
The Act places a duty on public bodies to embed sustainability at the heart of decision-making. Together, we reflected on what this really means a decade on — and how our paradigms are shifting as we envision a better future for both people and planet. In doing so, we explored the concept of Futurability.
Futurability is the capacity to imagine and create alternative futures — especially in the face of global uncertainty. Popularised by philosopher Franco Berardi, it’s about possibility, agency, and collective empowerment. It invites us to break free from the constraints of the present.
To discover your own futurability, try this powerful five-minute exercise:
What time horizons feel most natural for you to think about?
Choose a current challenge you're facing — now consider it from:
• 10 years in the future
• 50 years in the future
• 100 years in the futureJot down one way to expand your time horizon in your decision-making — and one action you can take this week.
Futurability means knowing your choices ripple forward.
Embrace your inner time rebel — the future is waiting.
