News about the Uk Foresight Programme
Issue 11 - January 2006
Intelligent Infrastructure Futures launched 26 January
Intelligent Infrastructure Systems
The findings of the sixth Foresight project - Intelligent Infrastructure Systems (IIS) - were launched by Transport Minister Stephen Ladyman at the Institution of Electrical Engineers on 26 January. During the course of the project, almost 300 UK and international experts have contributed their vision of potential scenarios for sustainable infrastructure and transport in the UK in 50 years' time. An end to unwanted commuting routines; a world where all vehicles are part of the transport infrastructure and a time when the "information age" has transformed into the "intelligence age" are all explored.
All reports and reviews from the project are now available from the Foresight website.
Project News
Obesity makes its mark
As the IIS project comes to and end, the latest Foresight project, on Obesity, is gaining momentum. The first high level stakeholder group meeting is being held on 1 February, chaired by public health minister Caroline Flint. Once the stakeholders have agreed the scope and objectives of the project, our plans will be published on the Obesity website. (where you can also register your interest in the project). At present, we expect the project to identify key factors influencing levels of obesity and how they effect future risks and responses; and to build on existing cross-government work to provide an outward looking focus for policy, enabling networks of researchers working on different strands to come together.
New projects for Foresight
We are developing a set of new topic ideas, which may develop into Foresight projects over the next two to three years. This process will take place over the period between now and the middle of 2006, and we aim to end with a short list of about five new topics, approved by Ministers across Government, from which it is likely that the next set of Foresight projects will be drawn, and commenced when resources are available. More details of this process are available here.
Foresight across Europe - ForSociety
The UK Foresight programme is participating along with partners in fourteen other countries, in a cross-European project, funded by the European Commission, to assess the potential for efficient trans-national foresight programmes that significantly enrich both the national and the European research and innovation systems. For more details of this project, and our partners, see its website.
Round-up
The Office of Science and Technology's Horizon Scanning Centre (HSC) is continuing to extend best practice around Government, and has been working with the Treasury to supply a longer-term context to the current Comprehensive Spending Review. HSC will be publishing a website with the findings of its first phase of work on future trends in Science and Technology during Science Week (March 10-19 March) - you will then find a link on the HSC home page.
And finally, the next Foresight project to launch its findings, in April 2006, will be Detection and Identification of Infectious Diseases.Its findings will be highlighted in the next edition of e-sight, and full details of the project are available on the project home page.
Other links