Future IDEAS

Imagining digital futures using AI image generation and hands-on model making

A collaborative academic research project exploring what communities imagine for their personal and collective futures.

We have been working with Creative Sustainability CIC and the Centre for Sociodigital Futures at the University of Bristol, together with two communities in Stroud Town to consider their ideas and feelings about connection, technologies and preferable futures. This involves considering how technologies might impact on our social and digital lives.

One of the communities is based at the Top of the Town Community Hub (TOTCH) where we are working with families with younger children. The other is in Uplands at an independent living facility with an age range between 55- 90.

The images here show some of the creative outputs. Each participant created a visual representation of their idea for the future. These ranged from models made from recycled materials to AI generated images and sometimes both. Some of the ideas that came out of the two settings were practical and about improving lives in the near future e.g. a paved path through a communal garden, whereas others were more fantastical (or far future-related) such as an elephant farm in the fields around Stroud or a bubble that pauses time. We designed a simple exhibition, printing a panel for each idea, which we displayed at a culmination event in Stroud and to be used at future events. 

As a consortium, we are currently developing this project further through a DSIT grant (Digital Innovation Fund) by creating a chatbot style tool that guides participants through the process of generating AI images of their future ideas. 

Partners

Creative Sustainability provide residential, activities, workshops, support and opportunities for marginalised people and communities across Stroud and beyond. They facilitate safe, supportive environments where people develop confidence and independence, raise self-esteem and expectations, access peer to peer support, develop and maintain friendships and become active citizens. For many these are first steps to improving mental and physical health, living happy and fulfilled lives. Their work aims to address mental, physical and economic health and digital inequalities for disabled, disadvantaged and vulnerable people.

The Centre for Sociodigital Futures at the University of Bristol is a flagship research centre aiming to generate new approaches to fairer and more sustainable societies by exploring sociodigital futures-in-the-making. Their work is seeking to understand how social and digital futures are connected. This piece of work sits within the ‘Communities and their Sociodigital Futures’ work happening within the Centre.

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