Governance Futures Learning & Connecting (L&C) sessions are bimonthly virtual spaces that allow network members to gain insight into each other’s work and engage with colleagues around shared interests.

In October’s L&C session, two of our newest members, Ashanti Kunene and Cat Tully, tackled the following questions, respectively. They delivered guiding remarks, which were followed by breakout group discussions with fellow members.

• The stories we tell about governance in our current paradigm are rooted in a particular narrative tradition — they are written down, impersonal, technocratic/bureaucratic, dense, “objective.” If we believe that governance is about human relationships and belonging, how would we change the stories we tell each other about governance (and how we tell them) to build an emotional and personal connection to governance?
• What have you learned from the UN Summit of the Future and what are the potential implications for the Governance Futures Network?

This post discusses the generative conversation led by Cat Tully on the second question. If you missed the post reviewing the discussion led by Ashanti Kunene on the first question, read here to find out how we can develop more inclusive and emotionally resonant approaches to leadership and decision-making among many other key insights.

Having recently presented at the UN Summit of the Future, Cat Tully shared key lessons from her session and her broader work with School of International Futures (SOIF).

The UN Summit of the Future focused on strategic foresight, intergenerational partnerships and assessments, and indigenous knowledge to shape a better future. Cat highlighted Article 28 of the UN Declaration on Future Generations, which emphasizes new perspectives on global governance and its implications for the future. Cat believes me must increase connections to national governance innovations on the future, engage in intergenerational conversations about the future to guide decision-making, recognize the need for a new political economy distribution, and be explicit about long-term consequences to overcome short-termism.

Cat also shared the *Working for the Wellbeing of Current and Future Generations* handbook that provides learnings on how we can better implement a wellbeing-focused and intergenerationally fair system. The components of this system, summarized in the Foresight Governance Prism below, resonated with members because of its similar ethos to Governance Futures.

In an enriching discussion, members agreed on the need to imagine, articulate, and see ourselves in a shared agenda where we can collectively act on long-term transformation that includes future generations. There are signs this is happening; conversations and initiatives about the future are increasing with diplomats and global leaders. While the civil society movement for future generations is still thin, it provides a unique opportunity for members to lean in. Some members are already leading these efforts. The Mayors for the Future project — and additional explorations into civic assemblies and collective decision-making innovations — coming out of the Collective Decisions Greenhouse, show us concrete ways we can pursue this work.

Members agreed that we don’t have an ecosystem to support generational change as there isn’t enough research and funding for long-term futuring projects. This is true for the entire field, from small organizations to governments. For example, while it is becoming more acceptable to include indigenous wisdoms and radical imagination to inform future generations thinking at the municipal level, it is still difficult to secure long-term funding for such projects. Some governments, such as that of Cameroon, have also been stifled by the lack of necessary infrastructure for incorporating intergenerational fairness into their policies even when they have innovative ideas.

A declaration is a good starting point, but more work needs to be done. From fostering youth engagement to aligning local concerns with global ones, we must identify connections and avoid compartmentalizing issues. We are far from creating a broad, collective conversation; spaces to talk about the future are still a luxury in many parts of the world. By visualizing ourselves as part of a collective, and building infrastructure to jumpstart this work, we can prevent it from being co-opted by short-term Horizon1 actors.

Within the Governance Futures Network, we can create projects that help ground this declaration in three concrete ways:

• Collectively identify examples of what things look like in practice.
• Iterate on ideas to figure out what worked and what didn’t.
• Provide examples of projects being actualized in different ****contexts across the globe.

Overall, members found the two discussions to be inspiring and thought provoking, sparking meaningful dialogue and generating valuable insights. As Ione Ardaiz reflected on October’s L&C session,

“As we embark on the journey of re-imagining governance, it’s essential that we design and build together the infrastructure and scaffolding that will hold our intention and action over time. This requires an emotional and personal connection to the models we create, building a sense of ownership and responsibility for the governance structures we establish, recognizing that they are meant to serve us all, rather than simply being imposed upon us. To achieve this, we need to create a shared language and narrative that transcends borders and cultures, allowing us to move forward in our transformation efforts across the globe.”