ABSTRACT
Generally, democracies do not excel in long-term policy investments, mainly because the inherently shortsighted nature of electoral politics push policymakers toward worrying about the present. Still, many of the most prominent societal issues demand a markedly future-oriented perspective. How can democracies better address impending societal issues, which primarily affect future citizens, but who lack democratic power, value and agency? This book examines future-regarding governance from the viewpoint of policymaking elites, focusing especially on the structure, operation and products of the Finnish national foresight system, which is commonly considered as the most advanced governmental foresight system in the world. Relying on extensive and robust original data (expert interviews, surveys and official documents), which portray the views of different policymaker groups, the book demonstrates how institutions, specifically designed for the purpose, can facilitate inter-elite interaction, build a shared future-regarding understanding and also put it into action. Additionally, the book identifies factors, which in the future may jeopardize the functioning and stability of the future-oriented policymaking system in Finland. An in-depth analysis of the Finnish case produces a theoretical and empirical benchmark for future studies on elite-level anticipatory governance and offers practical advice for the development of a more strategic democratically controlled public administration.
