The Future of Political Participation. A Case Study on Future Governance in "Global Europe 2050" Report

The case study examines anticipatory assumptions in the European Commission report “Global Europe 2050” to set out potential axes of future evolutions political participation in Europe. A multifold analysis based on Hybrid Strategic Scenarios method and critical reading of the theses are employed to uncover and reframe tacit assumptions of leading European futurists who have contributed to the report and check them against potential scenarios of government/individual relation from now to the year 2050. Nine different assumptions about long term futures of governance and society are identified and tested against three generic scenarios and the Learning Intensive Society Model to provide insights into nine focal points of future political participation evolutions. This method can be replicated for academic and practical analysis of policy papers and strategic documents to optimize their reach and effect, for improved alignment of policies with main social challenges.