Subscribe now

Neues aus der Schaltzentrale

Sign up now to receive regular updates directly to your inbox. All at an appropriate delivery interval that respects your time and attention.

Subscribe nowClose form

Magdalena Soetebeer

Biennale Futura: Schaltzeit at the festival of futures

From September 5 to October 5, the Industriesalon Schöneweide is transformed into a lively laboratory for futures. Biennale Futura invites you to think about the day after tomorrow in many different ways. Of course, we couldn’t say no and got involved in several ways:

The Futures Oracle

“An absurd game with the uncertainty of the future. Futures studies is sometimes misunderstood as an attempt to predict the future – we’re putting that myth to rest!”

We often hear the question “What will the future be like?” when we tell people that we work in futures studies. Our answer: the future is not an existing object of research, but a space for thinking. And therefore not scientifically predictable. To illustrate this playfully, we designed the Futures Oracle. With a slight wink, it reminds us: statements about the future are constructions, not facts. They reflect present-day assumptions that we can examine in order to critically assess their credibility.

Ask our oracle about the future and you get a funny, absurd or even nonsensical answer that is obviously nonsense – the perfect conversation starter for discussing with people how they judge whether statements about the future make sense. After all, just because we can’t see into the future doesn’t mean that engaging with the future is nonsense per se. What matters is: when does a statement about the future become useful? What quality criteria does it have to meet? What methods and data is it based on? Is it meant as creative inspiration or as a rational aid to decision-making?

Cards for jotting down thoughts + a poster illustrating the question “What does futures studies actually do?” – and you’re all set for meaningful conversations

We are thrilled by the many different discussions that emerged at the Biennale – from humorous digressions about absurd oracle results on world domination 👑, the moon as a tax haven 🌚 or dogs as members of parliament 🐶 – to curious questions about futures studies and philosophical reflections on theories of knowledge.

The SMART FACTORY simulation game

“What could be more fitting for the backdrop of the Industriesalon than a serious game about the transformation of industries? Schöneweide was once the heart of Berlin’s industry; today, the site bears the marks of change.”

The game was developed as part of the Akteure 4.0 working group, which involved Fraunhofer IAO, Festo and Festo Didactic, Rota Yokogawa, Siemens and Schaltzeit. SMART FACTORY is designed to convey the hurdles and potential at the intersection of technical automation and human skills.After the Schöneweide team had successfully saved the rubber shoe factory, our scenario tool was used to develop various images of the future of shoe production: from vegan mushroom leather and sensor technology to fashion trend cycles and greenwashing. The implications for business models and for production and supply chains were particularly interesting after the SMART FACTORY game.

How do you successfully transform traditional manufacturing into Industry 4.0? In the SMART FACTORY game, a team saves a shoe factory from bankruptcy as an example. Players travel into the future and collect ideas for improving production there. Along the way, they have to make decisions together, negotiate budgets and develop strategies.

Various images of the future from our scenario tool

Scenario	Relevance for your rubber shoe factory	Opportunities	Risks	Recommended investment direction
1. Consistency as compliance Strict EU requirements, synthetic raw materials, circular economy, regulated AI	High	+ Early investment in circular design pays off + Regulatory advantages from early adaptation + Smart production is easy to integrate	− High investments in RegTech & certification − Freedom to innovate limited by bureaucracy	✔️ Invest in technology, material innovations and automated, traceable production systems
2. Gray zones of globalization Sustainability loses importance, global supply chains, AI for efficiency	Medium	+ Rapid scaling at low cost + AI delivers efficiency	− Dependence on volatile commodity markets − Little differentiation through sustainability	❌ Be cautious with long-term investments in sustainability marketing ✔️ Focus on low-cost production or alternative markets
3. Decentralized & voluntary Industry initiatives, micro-fabs, heavily regulated AI	Very high	+ Flexibility and freedom to innovate through decentralized production + Proximity to customers (mass customization)	− Coordination & scaling are complex − Fragmented standards	✔️ Invest in modular production cells, regional markets & flexible IT infrastructure
4. Back to Europe Reshoring, scarce natural rubber, voluntary sustainability	High	+ Production security through proximity + Storytelling for local production possible	− Raw material risks (rubber prices, availability) − High labor costs in Europe	✔️ Invest in substitute materials & a “Made in Europe” premium segment
5. Greenwashed autonomy Synthetic materials, high regulation, sustainability not taken very seriously	Low to medium	+ Inexpensive synthetic materials scale well + Manageable from a regulatory standpoint	− Loss of consumer trust − Risk of greenwashing accusations	❌ Be cautious with marketing investments that lack real substance ✔️ Focus on efficiency and compliance certainty

🧭 Scenario

In this image of the future, the European Union has become a global pioneer in sustainable industrial policy. Products, especially consumer goods such as shoes, are subject to strict life cycle assessment and circularity requirements. Only those who can prove that they produce in a climate-neutral, recyclable and ethically sound way gain market access.

🧩 Relevant characteristics

Regulation: Strict EU requirements, high density of standards
Raw materials: Synthetic, biocompatible alternatives dominate
Sustainability: Circular economy is mandatory
AI & data: Heavily regulated, but permitted with proof of ethical compliance
Production: Automated, with take-back systems and a digital product passport

👣 Impact on your rubber shoe factory

You need certified materials (e.g., biodegradable thermoplastics).
Production must be modular, transparent and traceable.
Design for disassembly is mandatory: shoes must be repairable and recyclable.
Digital product passports including origin and recycling information are required.
AI-supported processes (e.g., in demand forecasting) are permitted, but only when audited.
Your competitive advantage lies in early compliance: those who invest late get pushed out of the market.

🧠 Recommended strategy

Invest in materials research and recyclability
Align your manufacturing with certified, auditable processes
Develop as-a-service models, e.g., “rubber boots by subscription” or “trade-ins for discounts”
Position yourself as a compliance leader with high product loyalty

The Debate Tangram

“Discrediting, denouncing, demonizing – or rather deliberating, differentiating and debating? A game for discussing controversial questions about the future💥💥💥🗯️”

Shaping the future is a debate, an arena of standpoints and opportunities for influence. Disagreement is part of it, whether in small circles or at the larger levels of society. The great art in a democracy is simply this: how do we conduct debates constructively and with a focus on solutions? Bashing biceps or dialogue muscle – the way we argue is a matter of training and practice, and it is crucial for a shared and successful future.

We designed the Debate Tangram to practice constructive dialogue in a playful way. Every piece a standpoint. The goal is to reflect on the mood and discussion patterns of a debate while practicing how different standpoints can come together to form a holistic picture. Time was a bit short – as is probably the case in every heated debate about the future – but there was still plenty of lively discussion in Schöneweide.

Our gold nuggets from the Biennale

Because there is no single perfect way of dealing with the future, the Biennale’s colorful program is a wonderful opportunity to dive into a whole spectrum of different approaches.

My personal highlights so far:

Isabella Hermann’s science fiction futures lab, where we were encouraged not to bury our heads in the sand even in a dystopian future, but to look for options for action.
The photographs by Gerhard Westrich in his project “I wish! Wunsch an die Politik” (I wish! A wish to politicians). He takes portraits of people from all over Germany, records their demands on politicians and wants to hand them over to the Bundestag. A great approach that turns the involvement of ordinary people who feel unseen by politics – something so often called for in the abstract on talk shows – into concrete perspectives.
We also really liked Sven Bock’s statement: “My personal barometer for the future is water: the way its level rises or falls shows me how we treat our Earth. When we use water carefully, we show that we take the future seriously.”

Since the Biennale runs until October 5, there will surely be more to come – drop by: https://futura-biennale.de/programm/