Institutionalizing Futures Thinking in the Canadian Army

Abstract

The future cannot be predicted to any useful degree as uncertainty rules. Indeed, uncertainty is a predominate characteristic of the twenty first century security environment and armed forces around the world continue to strive to understand and define how their national security policies fit within this paradigm. In this age of complexity, military planners often get caught in the trap of attempting to diminish uncertainty rather than learning how to function with it. So, in the face of such a complex and uncertain global security environment, where do military planners start? This chapter discusses a futures methodology that can provide capacity to systematically explore, create, and test both possible and desirable futures to improve military decisions. As a result of this project, the Canadian Army institutionalized futures thinking to help military strategists more effectively plan in the complex and uncertain global security environment.