Shaping Tomorrow's World : A Twentieth-Century History of West German, Cold War, and Global Futures Studies

Shaping Tomorrow’s World tells the crucial story of how futures studies developed in West Germany, Europe, the US and within global futures networks from the 1940s to the 1980s. It charts the emergence of different approaches and thought styles within the field ranging from Cold War defense intellectuals such as Herman Kahn to critical peace activists like Robert Jungk. Engaging with the challenges of the looming nuclear war, the changing phases of the Cold War, ‘1968’, and the growing importance of both the Global South and environmentalism, this book argues that futures scholars actively contributed to these processes of change. This multiple award-winning study combines national and transnational perspectives to present a unique history of envisioning, forecasting, and shaping the future. Shaping Tomorrow’s World Contents Illustrations Preface Abbreviations Introduction Chapter 1. Roots in the Early Twentieth Century Chapter 2. Cold War Science Chapter 3. Conceptualizing Futures Studies Chapter 4. Constructing Futurology? Chapter 5. Conflicting Futures Chapter 6. Building Bridges Chapter 7. Controlling the World’s Future Chapter 8. The Environmental Turn in Futures Studies Chapter 9. Glocalization and a Subjective Turn Chapter 10. Global Solidarity versus Economic Competitiveness Conclusion Bibliography Index