Findings from a Futures barometer in Finland

12.6.2019

Mikko Dufva & Jenna Lähdemäki-Pekkinen | @mdufva @SitraFund

Futures barometer

What do people think about futures?

How well do they know key trends?

What is important?

The Futures barometer was commissioned by the Finnish

Innovation Fund Sitra to learn more about Finnish citizens’ knowledge and

attitudes towards megatrends and different future developments.

https://www.sitra.fi/julkaisut/tulevaisuusbarometri-2019/

Structure of the survey

3

Is future interesting?

Can we influence future?

Do you know how toinfluence futures?

Attitude towards futures

How well megatrends areknown?

Threats, opportunities andimportance

Responses to megatrends

Overall futures

orientationMegatrends

Responsibilities,

voting, vision

Who should make changes?

What is important?

Who has interesting thingsto say?

Three things you would wishto happen in society?

How do you see the future?

I’m excited

23

At times I’m

afraid, at

times I’m

excited

52

I’m afraid

13

I don’t care

8

I don’t know

3

G L O B A L

M E G A T R E N D S

1. Sustainability crisis NOW!

2. Global interdependencyand growingtensions

3. Technology will change everything

4. The riddle of work and income

5. Representative democracy fatigued

6. The economy at a crossroads

I S S U E S

FA C I N G T H E

N O R D I C

C O U N T R I E S

Megatrends: sitra.fi/megatrends

Sustainability

crisis

Geopolitics

and

democracy

Technology

and future of

work

Megatrends are well-known

and seen more as a threat

82

68

74

82

78

59

58

38

67

32

16

19

0 50 100

Sustainability crisis

Geopolitics and

democracy

Technology and

future of work

Well-known Big threats Big opportunities Can influence a lot

1. Sustainability crisis is most known and seen as biggest threat

2. Geopolitics and democracy is least knownand own influence is seenas little

3. Technology and futuresof work is seen to holdmost promise

EMPLOYMENT

EQUALITYEDUCATION

IMMIGRATION

WELLBEING OF ELDERLY

ENVIRONMENT

SOCIALSECURITY

Change is expected from everyone

How big changes should the following actors create in order to respond to…

ilmastonmuutokseen ja luonnonvarojen ylikulutukseen

kansainvälisen politiikan ja demokratian haasteisiin

teknologian nopeaan kehitykseen ja työelämän muutokseen

Government

Political parties

Media and influencers

Cities and communes

Companies

Research institutes and universities

Organisations

Citizens

Other

Very bigQuite bigLittleNot at all

sustainability crisis

geopolitical tensions and democracy fatigued

technological change and future of work

Who has something interesting to say about

futures? (most common responses)

222

189

72

61

45

36

29

29

0 50 100 150 200 250

Researchers

Politicians

Everyone

The President

Companies

Universities

Activists

No one

Responses

About the survey

11

◼2142 responses

◼Done by TNS Gallupin Forum panel, which includes 40.000 respondents

◼Confidence interval is +- 2,1 %

◼Survey was done between 4. - 16.1. 2019◼Average response time was 12 minutes

◼Representative sample of 15-84 –old Finns living on the mainland

4

2.142

sitra.fi/megatrends | nextera.global

@sitrafund