How and Why Generational Change Drives Sustainable Lifestyles?

How and Why
Generational Change
Drives Sustainable
Lifestyles?
To be young! Futures Conference 2012
Tuuli Kaskinen
Demos Helsinki

DISCUSS WITH ONE NEXT TO YOU:
Who taught you to
recycle?

In this presentation:
1.100 years of youth generations
2.Wicked problems shaping
generations of youth
3.Two (+one) real life exercises
4.Backcasting study about lifestyles in
2050
5.Conclusions

Youth generations

1912 1937 1956 1981 2012

Youth generations
Declining World War II
death rate

Word War I Babyboom

Trust on family Trust on family
and employer and employer

1912 1937 1956 1981 2012

Youth generations
Declining World War II
death rate

Word War I Babyboom

Trust on family Trust on family
and employer and employer

Working
survivors

1912 1937 1956 1981 2012

Youth generations
Declining World War II Universal free
death rate education

Word War I Babyboom New social
security

Trust on family Trust on family Trust on teacher
and employer and employer and society

Working
survivors

1912 1937 1956 1981 2012

Youth generations
Declining World War II Universal free
death rate education

Word War I Babyboom New social
security

Trust on family Trust on family Trust on teacher
and employer and employer and society

Working Educated
survivors new urbans

1912 1937 1956 1981 2012

Youth generations
Declining World War II Universal free Open
death rate education information

Word War I Babyboom New social Resource
security crisis

Trust on family Trust on family Trust on teacher Trust on peers
and employer and employer and society and friends

Working Educated
survivors new urbans

1912 1937 1956 1981 2012

Youth generations
Declining World War II Universal free Open
death rate education information

Word War I Babyboom New social Resource
security crisis

Trust on family Trust on family Trust on teacher Trust on peers
and employer and employer and society and friends

Working Educated High-tech
survivors new urbans freelancers

1912 1937 1956 1981 2012

Youth generations
Open
information

Now under 20- Resource and

year-olds in nature crisis

Finland: Trust on peers
and friends

High-tech
freelancers

1,2

These young
people are
heavily
affected by...

Wicked problems
1.The problem is not understood until after
the formulation of a solution.
2.Wicked problems have no stopping rule.
3.Solutions to wicked problems are not
right or wrong.
4.Every wicked problem is essentially novel
and unique.
5.Every solution to a wicked problem is a
'one shot operation.'
6.Wicked problems have no given
alternative solutions.
Jeff Concklin 2005

let’s discuss
two types of
wicked problems:
1) environmental
2) social

peak oil

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? ?
? ? ?
? ??
?? ?
? ? ? ?
? ? ??? ?

What is it like to be young
at the age of wicked
problems?

Two (+one) real
life exercises
to test how challenges of our time can be handled
with young people

and some
explanations.

1 Ilmari

. Climate education for
50 000 teenagers

1 Method:
1.10 years of dialogu
2.Super motivated

.
educators
3.Peer-education

Could you come and
give us a lecture of
climate change?

In 2002 Ilmari got a
lot of positive
feedback of being
scientiﬁc

Climate Change
– How we will solve it?

Supported by the Ministry of Education

What does a Finn’s
carbon footprint consist of?

‹#›

GFDL
Till Lindemann

• Vocalist of Rammstein
• Lives in Berlin with his
daughter and bikes home
on the empty streets of
Berlin after performing for
tens of thousands of
people
• Biking creates no
greenhouse gas
emissions
‹#›

Janne Länsipuro

• A farmer cultivating
organic products in Isnäs
in Southern Finland
• Cultivating organic
products does not
consume energy
demanding nitrogenous
fertilizers

‹#›

...talking about
happiness...

In the future
many things
will change:
• housing
• transportation
• food
• travelling
• consumption
• leisure-time

‹#›

Climate change is
THE THING
for this generation

1
Need for:
1.Feeling of being
powerful
2.New tools for

.
futures speak
3.More action
oriented education

2 Youth sport
in Finland

. Analysis and
manifesto

2
Method:
1.Workshop
process for
200 people

.
2.Writings of
teenagers
3.Interviews of
key people

2
Need for:
1.New
gatekeepers
2.Understanding

.
of who is
affecting to the
behavior of
young people

3 Tieteestä
toimintaa

. Project with
university student

3
Method:
1.Creating a
peer group

.
2.Motivating and
giving tools
3.Renaming

3 Need for:

.
??????

How should we
approach future of
the next
generations of
youth

Future
s repo
Europe rt for
an
Comm
ission

DISCUSS WITH ONE NEXT TO YOU:
Pandemic–endemic and
meritocracy–human
centrism. Is that how
the future of youth
looks like?

Young generation now is
living in the world of

Resource crisis
Severe social challenges
Open information

”Work is most important
part of life”

Completely agree About to agree Hard to say About to disagree Completely disagree

Lähde: EVA (2010) Työelämän
kulttuurivallankumous

”Work is most important
part of life”
over 65 y

46-55 y

26-35 y

Vocational education

Post-secondary level

Academic

0 25 50 75 100
Completely agree About to agree Hard to say About to disagree Completely disagree

Lähde: EVA (2010) Työelämän
kulttuurivallankumous

Work life supplies:

Howard Gardner (2010)