This course is designed for professionals who are curious, forward-looking, and ready to shape change in their field. Whether you work in policy, education, sustainability, innovation, or business development, the tools and techniques of Futures Thinking will be valuable to your work.

Participants are expected to bring a professional challenge that requires long-term thinking and involves uncertainty and collaboration across stakeholders. No prior experience with Futures Thinking is required. You should, however, be willing to reflect critically on your own practice and involve colleagues in applying what you learn.

You will learn to apply Futures Thinking through practical, collaborative exercises. Together with master’s students, you will:

• Explore a range of tools to anticipate change and develop future scenarios
• Analyse challenges from multiple perspectives and identify possible solutions
• Design and deliver a Futures Thinking workshop at your workplace
• Develop a concrete action plan based on your workshop outcomes

By the end of the course, you will have created tangible results for your organisation and strengthened your own strategic thinking capacity.

Professionals are invited to bring real-world challenges that involve long-term thinking, complexity, and multiple stakeholders. Example cases that students have worked on include:

• Exploring how education can prepare students for future skills needs
• Designing strategies for sustainable business development (circular economy)
• Preparing a municipality for long-term social and environmental changes
• Developing inclusive policy responses to emerging technologies

If you are unsure which case to bring, the instructors will help refine it during the intake meeting.

Before joining the course, you will have a 30-minute online intake with the course instructors to discuss your case and receive an introduction to the course and expectations. This meeting will take place one or two weeks before the start of the course and will help you prepare for your Futures Thinking journey.

Sessions take place on Tuesdays, 17.15–19.15, at the Pieter de la Court building, Leiden. Programme Overview:

Introduction to Futures Thinking and Design Thinking
During the first four meetings you will be introduced to the topics of Futures Thinking and Design Thinking from a practical point of view. You will get hands on experiences with different tools  and see how you can use this in your professional as well as personal life.

• Session 1: 3 March 2026 (Room 1B.09) – Attend
• Session 2: 10 March 2026 (Room 1B.01) – Attend
• Session 3: 17 March 2026 (Room 1B.09) – Attend
• Session 4: 24 March 2026 (Room 1B.01) – Attend

Work with students on assignments
During the rest of the course, the students will start developing a workshop based on the cases proposed by the professionals. During these meetings, you as a professional will be the contact person for these students and will be able to give them valuable information and input on the case. The teachers will provide input on the Futures Thinking aspect of the workshops. Parallel to this you will start creating a plan on how to incorporate Futures Thinking more fully in your work.

• Session 5: 31 March 2026 (Room 1B.09) – Not required in class, but active collaboration expected
• Session 6: 7 April 2026 (Room 1B.01) – Not required in class, but active collaboration expected

Feedback and reflection sessions
These sessions you will provide the students with feedback on their workshop design and you will receive feedback on your action plan from the teachers.

• Session 7: 14 April 2026 (Room 1B.09) – Join either this week or Week 8
• Session 8: 12 May 2026 (Room 1B.01) – Join either this week or Week 7

Final sessions
During the final session you will join your group of students in presenting part of their workshop. You will then present part of your plan on how to further incorporate it in your workplace.

• Session 9: 19 May 2026 (Room 1B.01) – Join either this week or Week 10
• Session 10: 26 May 2026 (Room 1B.01) – Join either this week or Week 9 

Leiden Learning and Innovation Centre (LLInC) supports innovative and high-quality education, within Leiden University and in partnership with academic and social organisations.

At the Honours Academy of Leiden University motivated students follow extra education. Honours education serves as a testing ground for teachers, students and professionals – a place where they can look beyond the boundaries of their discipline.