How Futures Take Shape: Contextual Dilemmas in 2040 Berlin

Too often, design thinking and participatory methods begin with the assumption that problems are already defined and ready to be solved. This workshop starts earlier. Future Dilemmas in Contexts workshop invites participants to examine how futures are shaped by context before decisions are made. In this workshop, a dilemma is not a choice between options, but a situation that emerges when multiple contexts and narratives intersect. Rather than producing solutions or action plans, the workshop focuses on future contexts and dilemmas: the social, cultural, political, technological and economic conditions that interact to produce dilemma situations in 2040 Berlin. Through a structured dilemma-based game, participants explore different context combinations, surface value conflicts, and reflect collaboratively. The workshop creates open space for disagreement, uncertainty and critical curiosity, framing future-making as a shared, reflective and collective practice.

By SDD Seoul