As global leaders meet for COP26, we’ve been thinking about climate change and what is needed for a sustainable future. We’ve turned to the Three Horizons model as a useful model to think about critical junctures and moving into a new future.

In this world of change, skills are your currency. Skills, not qualifications, are your passport to success. Upskilling means, essentially, learning to unbundle and rebundle your skillset so that it remains fresh and relevant in a changing job market. This is why it requires a radically different mindset to the 20th century model. DIY education is likely to become ever more important, perhaps even being as prevalent as daily brushing of our teeth. Read further to learn our six steps to Upskilling.

Credit: UNESCO https://en.unesco.org/futuresliteracy/about

Human beings spend 1 out of every 8 waking hours imagining the future – either predicting, dreaming or fearing what is to come. Becoming more futures literate means harnessing these involuntary thoughts in a way that is both useful and practical, so that you can see the world from different vantage points, and use these insights to respond more adaptively.

Photo by Krissana Porto

Human beings are by nature future thinkers. As the American philosopher Dennett described, the human brain is “an anticipation machine” and “making future” is the most important thing it does. Planning for the future gives us a sense of agency and control in an uncertain world, but not all future planning is created equally.