Nominare le prossime generazioni per prendercene cura: un laboratorio di immaginAzione intergenerazionale

Abstract

Naming is a generative act that shapes reality. While “future generations” are increasingly recognized in legal and sustainability frameworks, they often remain abstract concepts, hindering true intergenerational empathy. This paper presents the methodology and results of the workshop “Naming to Care,” experimented at the Italian Institute for the Future conference (2025). Integrating Futures Studies, Speculative Design, and Semiotics, the workshop guided participants to imagine, profile, and name generations living in 2095. Using the Polak Game to define different scenarios with contrasting quality and level of individual agency, participants created "Futures Personas", as people living in those scenarios; then, they defined names of generations represented by the sketched personas. The findings reveal that naming is a powerful tool for futures literacy: it transforms the future from a distant abstraction into a relational space. By giving a face and a name to those who do not yet exist, this practice activates “longpath thinking,” fostering the ethical posture of “good ancestors” and triggering concrete responsibility in the present.