Futures Studies Department

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The Futures Studies Department (FSD) is a research and educational unit for developing and teaching Futures Studies (FS) at the Corvinus University of Budapest (CUB). In the remarkable year of 1968, by introducing a research seminar of Futurology for students, the first seed of the future-oriented education was planted at the university. The current leader of the department is Prof. Erzsébet Nováky, DSc.

Research focus: The FSD has various research projects directed and coordinated by staff members. The research attitude can be characterized approaching towards processes in a dynamic, comprehensive and holistic way, with special attention to strategic and practical application. It is to be noted that these projects do not only involve futurists, but experts coming from various fields of sciences as well as students and non-academic public. Achievements are published and are being systematically built into the education activity. Main topics: Change and future; Paradigms in FS; Futures in economic theories; Future-orientation of people; Space and time in FS; Unconsciousness and consciousness in FS; Participatory FS; Complex evolutionary modelling; Scenario building; "Hungary beyond tomorrow": actualization of Hungary’s future image in order to support social political strategies; Foresight methods; Weak-signals in sub-cultures of the youth; Neural networks on the futures field; Forming strategies through visionary management.

Education: The FSD offers a wide range of courses at the CUB – "Introduction to FS", "Social-Economic Forecasts", "Education and Future", "Visions and Fields in the World Economic Eras", "Social Forecasts", "Environmental Modelling", "Economic Forecasting", "Social Forecasting", "Economic Forecasting and Strategic Management". Each semester, around 800 students are being trained at under-graduate, graduate, post-graduate and PhD level. The basic FS course offers an overview of the theoretical and methodological bases of FS while the other courses focus on specialized themes. Some courses are delivered in English, for example "Business FS", which is delivered in the framework of the "Community of Management Schools" Program. Our on-line courses ("How can we explore the future?", "Futures Research Methods") form part of an international network being directed by the Finland Futures Academy. A FS-specialized PhD-program will be launched in September 2006.

The young futures program: The activities of the FSD turn with special attention to those people who feel being attracted to "futures-mentality". The international Budapest Futures Course series of the WFSF has been one of the main platforms for the Youth for a Less Selfish Future within the institute. The young colleagues of the FSD initiate local programs for youth activities. In order to encourage students creating mental images, articulating their opinion and discussing it on an interdisciplinary academic platform, the alternative education forum Futures Movie Course is being organized each semester. The Green Futures Course is inspired by the need to find time and place for students, colleagues and friends close to the nature, and discuss emerging topics to the future through various academic workshops and socializing-networking events. Currently a Hungarian website is being created for those people who feel interested and open to "futures thinking", including its academic achievements, artistical points of view and mental references.