Drivers of Change

Change can be perceived as both terrifying and thrilling, and attempting to understand it can be confusing. Drivers of Change is an innovative tool designed to help anyone, from architects to executives, school children to educators, factory workers to stay-at-home mothers, concerned with today’s global challenges to frame their thinking in developing their responses.

The compilation of cards is highly researched and focused on the topics of energy, waste, climate change, water, urbanization, and demographics; all organized within a framework that covers social, technological, economic, environmental, and political domains. Each card represents a single driver (e.g. urban migration, solar power, aging population), posing a thought-provoking question. The flipside examines each topic in detail, with graphics, tables, and maps providing supporting data.

“The cards pose pertinent and sometimes uncomfortable questions, forcing us to consider the way in which we live our lives and the impact our decisions have upon the future of our world,” said the team.

Drivers of Change was developed by the Foresight Team at Arup, a London based company working with Design, Engineering and Consultancy. The product and its supporting online community raises awareness and educates by allowing users to make changes in their own lives that will aggregate into change at a much larger scale; for instance, individuals may turn their taps off while brushing their teeth after reading about water scarcity.

The Drivers of Change materials have also been contextualized and translated into Turkish, Mandarin Chinese, and Japanese in recognition of the importance that place and culture play in our perceptions of the drivers, the lens through which each of us views the future.

Accessible to everyone, and with a wide variety of applications, the card set is utilized by schools and universities, multi-national corporations, and local and national governments.