Scenario planning is not about predicting the future, it is about understanding possible and plausible futures and what their implications might be for a given context or sector and organisations working within it.

Scenario planning can be used to look into the long term (50 years), or very short term (1–2 years). It is an activity that is designed to help you think about different potential scenarios that you may need to plan for. It can highlight both future problems and future opportunities. The key is not to think any scenario will be ‘fact’ – the future is notoriously difficult to anticipate. Instead, scenarios are there to point at potential, and to expand your thinking.

Download the NCVO Guide to Scenario Planning and use the templates and tools provided (pp 19-25) to plan and run a scenario planning workshop, engaging your colleagues and using the learning for inspiration.