Partner:
Partos
Question:
Can you help us with designing, facilitating and conducting a collective exploration of the future of Dutch development cooperation?
Process:
- transformative scenario planning: facilitation of four workshops with about 35 stakeholders
- narrative research (Sprockler) among over a hundred professionals in international development
- sharing of results in an (online) final report
Results:
- four lively descriptions of plausible scenarios for the future, including implications, challenges and opportunities for Dutch development organisations
- an inspiring vision for the desired future of Dutch development cooperation, including an elaboration on the strategy development needed to realise that future.
Partos, the member organisation for development cooperation, wants to be prepared for the world of tomorrow. That is why Partos asked us to design and facilitate a process of transformative scenario planning. Transformative scenario planning gives people and organisations the opportunity to experience that – certainly when dealing with complex challenges – the future is not set in stone. Participants collectively identify different variants of the future, the actions they can take in each of the scenarios and what the effects would be. In this way, new insights emerge about how the desired future can be realised.
Narrative research
For this assignment, we first collected a large number of experiences and insights, as input for the scenario workshops. Using our research tool Sprockler, we conducted narrative research among over a hundred professionals in the Dutch development sector. They shared short stories and anecdotes that showed us a glimpse of the near future of international development. Several patterns emerged from these stories, such as the importance of empowerment of the Global South, the influence of the Dutch political arena, the changes in financing methods and the importance of focusing on youth.
scenarios for international development
For the workshops, we opted for a cross-section of players in Dutch development cooperation. With a diverse group of about 35 stakeholders, we identified relevant trends and large uncertainties that are crucial for the future of international development. Based on these trends and uncertainties, we facilitated the collective outline of four plausible scenarios for the future. What implications do these future variants have for the different types of organisations in the sector? What challenges do they lead to, and what opportunities do they offer?
The future we want
Next to the potential future scenarios, transformative scenario planning can also be used to outline the desired future (‘the future we want’), including the strategy development and joint actions required to get there. During the last workshop, we, therefore, developed an inspiring vision of the desired future: a regenerative society that cares for social needs and respects the capacity of the planet. To realise this desired future, concrete strategies, roles, financing models and competences are required. These are described in detail in the (online) final report.
“The future exploration trajectory was one of most influential activities during the review period, as it had an effect on a large array of stakeholders”
From the Mid-term Review Report of The Spindle, the innovation platform of The Spindle.
More information
- Flip through the online report ‘Adapt, Counteract or Transform’.
- Read the full final report ‘Counteract or Transform. The future of Dutch development cooperation‘.
- Check out the insights of the narrative research and read or listen to the stories shared.
- Check out the workshops in this short video.
- Contact Han Rakels, Petra de Boer or Jelle Troelstra.