Energy Futures Prep Pack

Energy ecosystems

As climate change reshapes our world, it challenges us to rethink how we use energy. But how exactly do we make that shift? Should we prioritize reducing energy consumption, or are there new, innovative ways to power our future? To truly understand, we must explore the significance of energy for us as individuals and as a society. What will the future of energy look like—not just on a global scale, but on a deeply personal level? Beyond electricity, how will mental, physical, and social energy intertwine with electrical energy? What does our entire energy ecosystem look like in the future? 

Prepping & packing for the future

To envision possible energy futures, Nikki and Lisa designed a cultural probe Energy Futures Prep Pack. A cultural probe is a design research method where people are invited to use the probe in their daily lives to collect items and insights. Using this Prep Pack, participants are invited to embark on a mental journey exploring what energy means to them and are asked to think about- and prepare- for possible energy futures, by imagining a world where electricity no longer exists. When we think of preparing and packing for an emergency, like a power cut, we picture tangible goods: flashlights, first-aid kits, water, documents. But what about the intangible things we carry—our stories, ideas, values, aspirations, and facts? These invisible ‘goods’ can shape whether and how emergencies happen and influence the future we create. They can shape who we are, strengthen or weaken us, connect or disconnect us, motivate or demoralize us. By rethinking energy beyond its technical aspects, the Energy Futures Prep Pack invites participants to envision a world where electricity is no longer a given. Which intangible goods would we choose to pack and carry forward? What forms of energy, literal and metaphorical, would define those futures, and what aspects of todays’ energy ecosystem would we happily leave behind? The collection of insights is presented alongside three Future Energy Tales (energy stories) written for this project.