Fred Polak
Frederik Lodewijk Polak was one of the Dutch founding fathers of futures studies, perhaps best known in the field for theorising the central role of imagined alternative futures in his classic work The Image of the Future.
Career Journey
Background
- Born in
- Amsterdam
- Educated at
- University of Amsterdam
- Doctoral Students
- 📖 Koos de Valk
Trending & Selected Quotes
Trending topics shown first"Awareness of ideal values is the first step in the conscious creation of images of the future... for a value is by definition that which guides a ‘valued’ future."
"My own philosophical position, if I may put it that way, is very briefly as follows:"
"Once he became conscious of creating images of the future, he became a participant in the process of creating this future."
"Values, means and ends... stagger under the double load of not only having to construct own future but having to create the values that will determine its design."
": Determining one’s own destiny implies two things: ready acceptance of a stewardship for the future and of the duty to make a choice;"
"The rise and fall of images of the future precedes or accompanies the rise and fall of cultures. The image of the future can act not only as a barometer, but as a regulative mechanism which alternatel…"
Works & Publications
No works or publications documented yet.
Timeline
1907
Born
Birth1985
Died
Death
Influenced By
Thinkers whose ideas shaped Fred's philosophy
No known influences documented.
Influenced
Thinkers whose work was shaped by Fred's ideas
No influenced thinkers documented yet.
Source Attribution
Information about Fred Polak is sourced from curated knowledge bases and cross-referenced for accuracy. Influence relationships are scored by thematic overlap and historical plausibility.
