Intergenerational foresight is about making better decisions today by thinking seriously about the long-term. Drawing on insights from experts around the world, this handbook demonstrates that credible leadership means taking responsibility for the future, rather than treating it as distant or abstract.

The capacity to think and act for the long term has become a defining challenge for leadership in the twenty-first century. Organisations and governments are operating in an environment characterised by deep uncertainty, overlapping crises and accelerating change. Yet, many of the structures that shape decision-making remain anchored in short-term incentives and narrow time horizons. 

The handbook uses intergenerational foresight as an evolution of existing foresight and anticipatory governance practices. Intergenerational foresight is an approach to long-term decision-making that explicitly integrates intergenerational responsibility beyond temporal dimensions of governance. It brings multiple generations, regions and knowledge systems together in shared authority over how they envision, evaluate and govern the future.

The handbook sets out practical principles, tools and real-world examples to help leaders spot risks, opportunities and trade-offs across generations, and build long-term thinking into policy, strategy and governance. It contributes to the ongoing development of foresight as a leadership and governance skill.