A video invitation from UofL Professor of Management and Strickler Executive-in- Residence Nat Irvin, II, highlights the World Future Society (WFS) website and its 2008 Annual Conference.
     Irvin, founder of the Future Focus 2020 think tank and a member of the WFS board of directors, will chair the July 26-28 event in Washington D.C. The WFS is an international, non-partisan scientific and educational association of people interested in how social and technological developments are shaping the future.

     Since coming to the college last year, Irvin has alternately challenged, entertained and amazed audiences of students, faculty and business leaders with facts and projections about the not-too-distant future.  In addition, his demographic research continues to identify trends relating to emerging ethnic populations.
     In his video and accompanying letter posted on the WFS site, Irvin invites guests to attend the conference and “see the world through new lenses.”
     “I still remember my first World Future Society annual conference,” he explains in the video.  “There were all these economists, educators, business people, politicians from around the world, all engaged in a conversation asking ‘What if?’ But it’s not just people who want to talk about problems and opportunities, it’s also people who want to do something about them.”
     A second video on the site excerpts Irvin’s presentation at the 2007 WFS conference, “Blind Insight.”
     Irvin’s global invitation targets young people whose energy and ideas he believes are vital to identifying how today’s trends will impact tomorrow’s lifestyles, careers, science and technology.
     “If you want to be immersed in two-and-a-half days of being surrounded by the best thinkers in the world who are just as curious as you are about the future, and wondering how to make a difference, come to this conference,” he says.
     For more information about the conference, agendas and registration, or to view the videos, visit www.wfs.org.