"Designing New Directions for Future Studies in an Era of Uncertainty"

STEPI Hosts Future Conference

Recently, a claim has been raised that there is a need to design a new direction for future research that considers enhancing the value of future studies and strengthening policy linkage in response to increased global uncertainty.

The Science and Technology Policy Institute (STEPI, President Yoon Ji-woong) held the '2024 STEPI Future Conference' on the 4th at the Harmony Hall of the Nine Tree Premier Lokaus Hotel in Yongsan, Seoul, under the theme "Speaking about the Future of Future Research in an Era of Global Uncertainty."

At this conference, the sessions were divided into three parts: ▲Future and Uncertainty ▲Future Knowledge and Research Ecosystem ▲Linkage between Future Research and Policy, to explore the path forward for future research in response to rising global uncertainty and discuss ways to enhance linkage with policy.

At the event, Senior Research Fellow Park Byung-won (STEPI) delivered a keynote presentation titled "Uncertainties and Future Challenges Korea Faces: Crisis and Opportunity," stating, "Change is inevitable and must be accepted as a basic assumption that uncertainty is high," and explained that through strategic future forecasting that constantly considers alternative futures, sustainability can be secured through new consensus.

Yoon Jung-seop, Director of the Future Strategy Research Group (STEPI), introduced STEPI’s activities aimed at enhancing social awareness of future technologies, future society prospects, and future research, emphasizing, “There is a need to continuously consider the limitations and solutions of policy linkage raised under high uncertainty,” and stressed that overcoming this and enhancing the value of future research requires responding to the transition to Next Future Research (‘Future Research 2.0’).

Professor Seo Yong-seok of the Graduate School of MoonSul Future Strategy at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) proposed future development directions emphasizing the increasing demand and value factors of future research through future studies education programs within universities.

In the panel discussion chaired by Senior Research Fellow Park Byung-won (STEPI), participants included Senior Research Fellow Lim Hyun (Korea Institute of Science and Technology Evaluation and Planning), Senior Research Fellow Seo Ji-young (STEPI), Former Senior Research Fellow Woo Cheon-sik (Korea Development Institute), and Director Oh Yoon-hwan of the New Industry Strategy Research Group (STEPI). They agreed on the necessity of ▲communication between future research and policy fields ▲efforts to secure future literacy among future research demanders, emphasizing the need to prepare for alternative futures that can cope with highly uncertain future environments and to reflect these in policy fields, focusing on expanding the customer base for future research.

Yoon Ji-woong, President of the Science and Technology Policy Institute, stated in his opening remarks, “The complexity and uncertainty of our society are increasing, and as a result, we are newly facing various challenges,” adding, “Discussions must continue steadily on the direction future research should take to prepare for uncertainty and on enhancing the policy utilization of future forecasting.”