buzz: Future Think for Fernwood

People gathered to brainstorm about the future of Fernwood.

In mid-June a little experiment took place in the heart of Fernwood.

On an ordinary Monday evening a small group of adventurers travelled ninety years in the future. These ‘chrononauts’ had ten minutes to observe and take notes about this future Fernwood before the time portal closed. They returned to the present with stories of edible gardens and backyard chickens, street corner barter markets, collaborative government, modular housing, a light rail transportation hub near Hillside Mall, bioluminescent plants for alternative lighting and more. One young chrononaut even sat down for coffee with his future self to get the inside scoop.

This time travel was part of the FutureThink for Fernwood workshop, facilitated by Lehna Malmkvist and Sarah Adams. The experiential workshop was designed to give participants the opportunity to immerse themselves in the future, determine what works and doesn’t and identify steps which can be taken today to benefit the future Fernwood community.

To prepare themselves for time travel, the chrononauts first connected with the past. They met a Fernwood family of four generations: Mabel (93), John (63), Susan (33), and Evan (3). Through Mabel, the chrononauts reached back to Fernwood in the mid-1920s. Mabel shared stories of her daily life during that time.

Connecting with the future is trickier because it hasn’t happened yet. However, many people alive today will be living in the future. Through Evan – who is three today – the chrononauts reached forward to Fernwood at the turn of the century. What stories will Evan at 93 years of age tell us about daily life in 2103? What actions can we take today to ensure that Fernwood in 2103 is a bright and enjoyable place to live, work and play?

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Many thanks to our intrepid participants! The results of your work are being shared with Fernwood NRG as part of their ongoing public consultation.

For more information about this workshop, please contact Sarah at hello@sarahnicoleadams.com or (250) 661-2813.