Building Our Capability to Use the Future:  Futures Learning Lab on Learning for Planetary Citizenship and Anticipatory Governance

Author: Miya Manu Abraham

Here follows an excerpt from a blog written by Miya Manu Abraham, published on the Learning Planet Institute website on 24 March 2025.

This blog discusses the participation of a cohort of students from Arizona State University (ASU) and LPI in the Futures Learning Lab on ‘Learning for Planetary Citizenship and Anticipatory Governance’ which took place at the Learning Planet Institute (LPI) in Paris on 14 March 2025.

This dynamic Futures Learning Lab was led by the UNESCO Future Literacy Lab, in collaboration with Arizona State University and UNESCO-MOST BRIDGES Coalition.

Building on the Youth Consultation held in September, co-organized with LearningPlanet Alliance, UNESCO, School of International Futures (SOIF) and BRIDGES, in preparation for the UN Summit for the Future, this session explored key questions surrounding planetary citizenship and governance, including :

• How can we enable multi-stakeholder collaboration for planetary decision-making?
• How can we learn to collaborate across citizens, countries,  nature, and technologies to foster shared futures?
• How do we collectively make decisions that prioritize planetary well-being?

Building Our Capability to Use the Future:  Futures Learning Lab on Learning for Planetary Citizenship and Anticipatory Governance. 

Author: Miya Manu Abraham 

On March 14, we had the chance to press pause on the present and step into a space where the future felt a little more tangible. This opportunity came through a full-day Futures Learning Lab hosted by the Learning Planet Institute and led by the UNESCO Future Literacy Lab along with UNESCO-MOST BRIDGES Coalition  focused on “Learning for Planetary Citizenship and Anticipatory Governance.” 

The session brought together students from Arizona State University (ASU) and LPI in a dynamic, hands-on environment designed to challenge how we think about the future. Through open discussions, collaborative exercises, and collective reflection, we questioned assumptions, shared perspectives, and explored new ways of approaching the future—not just as individuals, but as a connected global community.  

What Is Futures Literacy Labs? 

Futures Literacy is about understanding how we think about the future and how that influences the choices we make today. It helps people become more aware of where their ideas about the future come from, and opens up new ways of thinking and acting. In Futures Literacy Labs, people learn by doing—working together to explore different futures and reflect on how those ideas can shape better decisions in the present. (Adapted from UNESCO, Futures Literacy) 

Planetary Citizenship & Governance

Planetary citizenship is the idea that we share responsibility not just within our nations, but across the world and across generations. It encourages global cooperation to protect shared resources—like the environment—and recognises our role in passing on a healthy planet and cultural heritage to future generations. (Adapted from Thompson, 2001, Governing for the Environment)

This vision set the stage for the Futures Learning Lab, which built on the Youth Consultation hosted at LPI in September ahead of the UN Summit of the Future. During the session, participants were invited to engage with some of the most pressing questions of our time:

• How can we enable multi-stakeholder collaboration for planetary decision-making?
• How do we learn to collaborate across people, places, technologies, and ecosystems?
• What does it mean to make decisions that centre planetary well-being?

These questions anchored the day’s reflections and opened up space for imagining what planetary citizenship might look like in practice.

Read the full article here. Published on the Learning Planet Institute website on 24 March 2025.