Your Possible Futures
Do you often imagine how things could be better?
In an age when anything can be made, the question becomes “What is worth making?”
Imagine a place where your unique expertise intersects with others, where you experience the delight of those “aha” moments that lead to surprising ideas, and the activation of those ideas. It’s an atmosphere that encourages you to step outside your comfort zone, experiment with new provocations, and embrace the floundering and serendipity.
Creativity flourishes in the company of diverse minds. You are invited - community leaders, govt change-makers, and business innovators - to discover new perspectives and genuine connections, rekindling the joy of play that ignited our imaginations as kids.
Join us in transforming how we collaborate and innovate. Together, we can recognize our potential and co-create experiences for meaningful change in our communities.
Testimonials
“Optimism with wisdom, hope with experience.”
”Your ability to meet and connect with strangers or new people is a gift.”
”Changed my life!”
”Good questions from a outsider perspective”
”Very friendly and created a flow to be open and vulnerable”
”Left with a heart full”
Four ways to get started
Outfit - setup, listen, discover, establish common ground
Workshop - refine your expertise, mitigate the risk of trying something new, get tangible, create evidence, demonstrate skills and inspire what is possible
Incubate - practice your skills on a specific challenge
Connect - ongoing access and support so your not alone
Just try. Plant, grow, harvest. Ask yourself these questions: What is the cost of doing nothing and waiting? What if today’s turbulence is the rhythm? What might be the impact of today’s decision on tomorrow? How might your future self learn from what you are doing now?
Your futures community
Advanced Air Mobiliy Assoc., Architect of the Capitol, Banfield, Breakout, California College of the Arts, Cities of Gainesville, Los Angeles, Palo Alto, Contra Costa Health Services, Creative Time, Embraer, EmbraerX, Fair Trade USA, Google, IDEO, IESE Business School, Intel, Lakeland Economic Development Council, Mercy Corps, Mursion, Nike, Nubank, Parsons School of Design, Peace Corps, Spark Festival NZ, Singapore Ministry of Manpower, Steelcase, US Dept of Energy, Walker Art Center, Whitney Museum of American Art
About me, Founder/Director
Scott Paterson brings 30 years of experience helping organizations design new ways to solve complex challenges. As the founder of Adventure Ventures, visiting lecturer at IESE Business School and former IDEO consultant, he's worked with governments, corporations, and startups across the globe - from transforming Singapore's Ministry of Manpower, envisioning fintech futures for Nubank in Brazil, or creating the revolutionary "Department of Doing" in Gainesville. There is even a Harvard Business School case study about his work with IDEO in Peru.
What makes Scott unique? He operates at the intersection of design, economics, and policy - believing that real change happens when these three forces work together. He's the rare designer who's actually lived in the communities he's designing for, from small Florida towns to bustling international cities.
Scott is also the host of "Possibility Hours" podcast and author of the foresights newsletter FIELD REPORT and the thought-provoking essay "Seeing Upside Down and Around Corners." His philosophy? Be a "reluctant optimist" - always imagining how things could be better while staying grounded in reality. His ground-breaking career is featured in the recently published book "Architects After Architecture" published by Routledge.
Here’s a recent podcast interview with me about my work:
Reluctant Optimist: Designing Cities for Change with Scott Paterson