Biliran Province State University (BiPSU) will host a 2-day Strategic Foresight Masterclass for its 25 executives on July 12-13, 2021, in collaboration with the Center for Engaged Foresight (CEF).

"The Leading from the Future: Strategic Foresight Masterclass was designed to introduce, immerse, expose and increase the anticipatory knowledge and capacities of the Biliran Province State University Executive Leadership. This is curated to provide key leadership and key officials with the necessary working knowledge and insight to use futures as an asset, resource, and tool to change and transform today," Professor Shermon O. Cruz, Director and Futurist at Center for Engaged Foresight (CEF)and Chair at the Association of Professional Futurists expressed during a coordination meeting with BiPSU on May 10

The Strategic Foresight Masterclass will introduce, discuss and immerse participants in an action learning journey that includes:

• What is and Why Futures Thinking?
• What is and Why Strategic Foresight, Anticipatory Leadership and Governance in University Futures?
• What is the Association of Professional Futurists Six Critical Steps to Building Anticipatory Leadership and Governance?
• Learning how to use powerful strategic foresight tools and methods.
• Present and discuss strategic foresight case studies in university and food futures.
• Consolidate insights and determine the next steps for BiPSU's futures thinking program and research agenda.

According to UNESCO, the lack of futures literacy impedes us from discovering and creating new ideas and navigate unknown terrains. Futures thinking enables people and organizations to identify and re-imagine the future (Miller, 2018). Decision-making in education often focuses on the short-term, looking to make established practices more efficient. By opening perspectives beyond immediate constraints, Futures Thinking enhances policymakers' and practitioners' capacity to anticipate change, grasp opportunities, and cope with threats.

"It is expected that the masterclass would serve as a springboard for our university officials toward greater understanding and eventual application of FFT in our institution, especially as we prepare ourselves for the Institutional Strategic Planning for the fiscal year 2022 come July of this year. This activity could also serve as preliminary preparations for an establishment of a Center for Strategic Foresight and Future Studies in the region," Mr. Joedel Peñaranda, Director of Institutional Planning Office (IPO) and Lead Organizer of the event, stressed during the meeting.

Dr. Marianne B. Mendoza, Director of Research & Innovation (RIO) Office, also shared during a coordination meeting today that the activity is crucial in the finalization of the University Research Agenda as Strategic Foresight and Futures-Thinking could serve as a rudder to where the institutional will traverse years from now.