Our mission
Organisations are currently operating in a world where the cost of strategic surprise is rising faster than the cost of strategic preparation.
Swinburne Futures Catalyst transforms Ad Astra_2030’s ambition into decision advantage by building futures literacy and applied foresight capability across the university.
We help leaders anticipate change, reduce strategic surprise, and navigate uncertainty so we can act with greater clarity on the choices that shape Swinburne’s teaching, research, innovation and impact Our purpose is to prepare for possible futures and identify emerging opportunities.
Our programs
Building on the world-class leadership and capabilities of Swinburne University of Technology, the Futures Catalyst is empowered through three strategic programs.
Futures Literacy
Executive and practitioner uplift
Internal Foresight Practice
Applied engagements in service of real institutional decisions
External Foresight Services
Services that inform future-fit strategy co-created with companies and communities alike
Highlights
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The Window Is Closing: Why Leaders Need Strategic Foresight Now
To better understand strategic foresight as a leadership strategy, Forbes leadership strategies contributor Melissa Wheeler interviewed Professor Alan Duffy, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Flagship Initiatives), and Associate Professor Evie Kendal, Head of the Ethical, Legal and Social Implications of Emerging Technologies research group, Iverson Health Innovation Research Institute.
Our team
The Futures Catalyst is facilitated through the Office of the Pro Vice-Chancellor, Flagship Initiatives, and operates as a collaborative, multidisciplinary team working across a wide range of schools and portfolios.
Two decades of experience in cutting-edge science from dark matter to supercomputing modelling, has created a multi-million dollar spinout mDetect using particles from space to scan mine sites, leads major international applied multi-disciplinary research projects as a Pro Vice-Chancellor at Swinburne.
Lead on applied foresight, futures literacy and anticipatory capability; pracademic and professional futurist with approximately three decades of industry experience in strategy and innovation. Holds a Master's in Strategic Foresight from Swinburne. Past Board Member of the Association of Professional Futurists; named one of the World's Top 150 Female Futurists.
Lead on persistent AI-assisted world-building activity and responsible use and integration of AI technologies. Doctoral work on design cognition; current research programme on how generative AI changes the way designers and design teams think, act, and learn. Active publication record on Midjourney, ChatGPT, and image-generation tools for speculative architectural futures.
Lead on AI-assisted narrative design activity; Bioethicist and public health scientist specialising in the ethics of emerging technologies, anticipatory ethics and governance, and scenario-based ethics. Research spans reproductive biotechnologies, public health ethics, space ethics, and bio/necropolitics.
Link between the Catalyst and Swinburne's analytical operations through her role as the Director, Market Insights, Analytics and Performance. Experienced management consultant supporting ASX listed companies with futures-based scenario planning. Government experience leading M2050 Vision for Melbourne.
Lead on the analogue and sensitive-context activity; pop-culture and media academic with published research and commentary on captioning, subtitling (including Netflix accessibility), fan studies, and accessibility in screen culture. Practical expertise in graphic facilitation and analogue capture of group discussions — a capability deliberately preserved by the Catalyst for sensitive contexts where digital recording is inappropriate.
Transdisciplinary academic, artist, and physiotherapist; recent research outputs in biophilic design in extended reality (XR) nature experiences to Posthuman storytelling practice (environments, animals, technology).
Translating regulatory obligation, organisational risk, and staff experience into operational practice.
Clinical experience across forensic, inpatient, and community mental health settings; research interests include narrative psychiatry, medical and health humanities, simulation, and creative writing as clinical practice.
Engagement
Hosts Associate Professor Evie Kendal (left) and Dr Linus Tan (right).
Research for Health webinar series
Episode 1: Ethics in a rapidly changing world
Informed consent is often considered the cornerstone of ethical research involving human participants – but how can we achieve this for novel interventions when risk/benefit data may not be available at the time decisions need to be made?
As part of this webinar, hosts Associate Professor Evie Kendal (Health Promotion, School of Health Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology) and Dr Linus Tan (Senior Lecturer in Generative AI, Design Cognition and Design Behaviour, School of Design and Architecture, Swinburne University of Technology) presented for the WHO Western Pacific Regional Office series. They introduced potential strategies for dealing with uncertainty in health research, including practical applications for those involved in writing and reviewing research protocols, ethics applications and consent forms.
It also explored the case study of Generative AI in health record management, and the potential impacts on privacy and dignity for research participants.
Since future applications of AI may be unknown at the time data is collected, this particular discussion highlighted one area of health research where methods for future proofing informed consent may be particularly valuable.
Convergence 2026 Event 1: Science Fiction/Futures IV
Convergence 2026 Event 1: Science Fiction/Futures IV was held on 7 April in Adelaide. Co-hosted by Sumen Rai, Director of the Defence Innovation Partnership, and Associate Professor Evie Kendal from Swinburne University of Technology, the event brought together a diverse audience, both in-person and virtually, to explore the vital role of speculative fiction and strategic foresight in shaping our understanding of the future.
Live presentations featured Bridgette Engeler, from the Swinburne Futures Catalyst Group, and Jeremy Aubert, a Defence & Space Executive in Adelaide, providing attendees with a blend of perspectives from both academia and industry. Internationally acclaimed authors Kim Stanley Robinson (noted for the Mars Trilogy and Ministry for the Future) and Peter W. Singer (author of Ghost Fleet and Burn-In), shared their insights on the intersection of fiction, technology, and real-world strategy.
In-person attendees also benefited from dedicated networking opportunities, further strengthening connections within the futures and innovation community.
Science Fiction/Futures IV successfully highlighted the value of speculative thinking in navigating uncertainty and fostering innovation in an increasingly complex world.
Collaborate with us
Be part of strategic preparedness and contribute to real-world positive change. Send your enquiries to futurescatalyst@swinburne.edu.au.