Madeline Ashby

Artengine's Future Cities Forum

Madeline Ashby, a noted science fiction writer and futurist, delivered a thought-provoking talk at Artengine’s Future Cities Forum, focusing on the future of cities and their evolving roles in society. She began by emphasizing the importance of imagination over visual aids, setting the stage for a discussion about possibilities yet to be envisioned. Ashby introduced her work, including her novel “Company Town,” which imagines a city built around an oil rig, highlighting her unique approach to envisioning urban futures.

Ashby skillfully used her platform to underscore the significance of acknowledging the historical and ongoing human connections to land, particularly the traditional, unceded territories, bringing attention to deeper definitions of humanity—themes often explored in science fiction. She shared insights from her experiences writing science fiction prototypes for various organizations, where she speculates on future uses of technology and urban development, blending her narrative talents with strategic foresight.

Throughout her talk, Ashby proposed several innovative ideas for urban development, emphasizing the necessity of accessible public transit, affordable housing for students, and smart, sustainable housing that accommodates families. She challenged the audience to consider not just “smart” cities in terms of technology but also “wise” cities that cultivate gentleness, compassion, and justice—qualities essential for sustaining livable urban environments for future generations. This call to rethink urban spaces underscored her belief in the power of community and the potential of cities to adapt and thrive amid changing societal needs.

Presented by Artengine and Impact Hub Ottawa in partnership with the National Capital Commission Urbanism Lab

A trio of keynote speakers kicked-off the Future Cities Forum including science-fiction writer and futurist Madeline Ashby, urban designer Ken Greenberg, and professor Tracey Lauriault, a researcher who specializes in big data and the city.

This diverse group shared their speculations on future cities in the context of emerging and disruptive technologies. How will and can we adapt the key lessons of urban design of the twentieth century and not be seduced by the same techno-utopianism that shaped cities in the past? As we are transformed and extended into the network, how will a citizen be in public or private in our new data-driven city? Who will be the heroes and anti-heroes of the cities to come?

Madeline Ashby graduated from the first cohort of the M.Des. in Strategic Foresight and Innovation programme at OCADU in 2011. It was her second Masters degree. (Her first, in Interdisciplinary Studies, focused on cyborg theory, fan culture, and Japanese animation!) Since 2011, she has been a freelance consulting futurist specializing in scenario development and science fiction prototypes. That same year, she sold her first novel, vN: The First Machine Dynasty, to Angry Robot Books. It is now a trilogy of novels about self-replicating humanoid robots (who eat each other alive). She is also the author of Company Town from Tor Books, a cyber-noir novel which was a finalist in the 2017 CBC Books Canada Reads competition, and a contributor to How To Future: Leading and Sense-making in an Age of Hyperchange, with Scott Smith. She is a member of the AI Policy Futures Group at the ASU Center for Science and the Imagination, and the XPRIZE Sci-Fi Advisory Council. Her work has appeared in BoingBoing, Slate, MIT Technology Review, WIRED, The Atlantic, and elsewhere.

How do we build the cities of the future without building something hollow and meaningless? It’s more than just driverless cars and surveillance everywhere. It’s how neighbors relate to neighbors. It’s how businesses relate to customers. It’s how we decide what we owe to each other. How do we incorporate the best of what we already have and then build something better so quickly?

Cities are a great way to talk about the future because cities are where the past and the future meet.

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