Scanning the Horizon

This collaborative platform helps CSOs prepare for disruption and benefit from change.

Scanning the Horizon is the only collaborative trend scouting and analysis platform in the civil society sector. Members include leading ICSOs, national CSO umbrella organisations, philanthropy and development consultancies. Futurists, strategists, trend analysts and organisational learning and research specialists form a cross-sector community of experts and practitioners share insights, explore key trends and develop relevant strategies. The platform also enables mutual learning and the pooling of resources.

Current members include: ActionAid UK, Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA), Amnesty International, Care International, CBM International, ChildFund Alliance, Direct Impact Group, Fingo – Finnish Development NGOs, Habitat for Humanity International, InterAction, Islamic Relief Worldwide, Oxfam International, Plan International, Sightsavers International, SOS Children’s Villages International, Transparency International, WaterAid, Wikimedia Germany, World YMCA and World YWCA.

A monthly community newsletter is carefully curated to share information on planned collaborations, partner updates, events and resources.

The members meet online at least every quarter to learn and share from each others’ insights, as well as thought-provoking content from external contributors, on future scenarios and foresight.

An annual meeting allows the opportunity to collaboratively explore one particularly ‘hot’ or impactful futures topic in much greater depth, and explore exciting new futures initiatives from and beyond community members.

A 12-18 months focus topic enables a deeper dive on underexplored but key trends, usually culminating in a public Sector Guide (see below). Starting in 2023, the focus will be on the futures of Mis-, Dis- and Malinformation (MDM).

Read all about our foresights and insights into misinformation, disinformation and malinformation in our new resource collection

Misinformation explainer video

The community was started in 2015 with seed funding by The Rockefeller Foundation. Other project funders since 2018 have been the Stiftung Mercator and the Ford Foundation. The peer learning platform is also part-supported by its members. Membership is open to other individuals and organisations working in this space and interested in these topics. Register to join our community using the form below.

Past projects

In 2021, our second Sector Guide explored entry points to better consider the interconnectedness of global trends and strategic decision-making in times of complexity and uncertainty in this increasingly ‘whirly world’.

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In 2019, our first Sector Guide explored the implications of China’s rise on the future work of international CSOs and how these organisations can strengthen their capacities to deal with the multi-faceted implications of the Chinese ‘big development model’ for their work around the world.

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