Institut Futur, Freie Universität Berlin

What Institut Futur, Freie Universität Berlin does

Institut Futur is the designated academic working area (Arbeitsbereich Erziehungswissenschaftliche Zukunftsforschung) for Educational Futures Research within the Department of Education and Psychology at Freie Universität Berlin, a public university in Berlin, Germany. The institute conducts inter- and transdisciplinary research on futures methodology, educational transformation, and Bildung für nachhaltige Entwicklung (BNE — Education for Sustainable Development), with particular focus on systemic transformation in education systems and sustainable development implementation. Its core products and outputs include the peer-reviewed European Journal of Futures Research published via SpringerOpen, the Masterstudiengang Zukunftsforschung (Master's program in Futures Studies) operating since 2010, the BNE-Monitoring research project supporting national UNESCO BNE program implementation, the IF-Schriftenreihe publication series, the telegramm.futur newsletter, the 'Eine Tasse Zukunft' podcast, and the Salon Futur discussion forum.

The institute is led by Prof. Dr. Gerhard de Haan, who holds over 20 years of experience in educational research and serves as the scientific advisor for UNESCO's BNE program 'ESD for 2030' in Germany, providing analytical support to BMBF and national BNE steering committees through the BNE-Monitoring team. Institut Futur is a member of The Millennium Project since 1996, connecting it to a global participatory futures research think tank. The institute's primary stakeholder segments are government policy makers (BMBF, UNESCO, national BNE steering committees), graduate students enrolled in the Master's program, and academic researchers publishing in the EJFR or participating in collaborative research projects.

Institut Futur operates as a non-commercial academic unit within the German state-funded public university system, receiving institutional base funding through Freie Universität Berlin and third-party research grants from BMBF, UNESCO, EU, and research foundations. The institute does not engage in commercial pricing; its Master's program follows standard Freie Universität Berlin tuition frameworks for German and international students. With 5 employees, the unit is a small specialized academic group whose value proposition centers on its unique regulatory positioning as Germany's scientific advisor for UNESCO BNE implementation, its exclusive Master's program in Futures Studies, and its operation of a peer-reviewed international journal in futures research.

Name

Institut Futur, Freie Universität Berlin

Legal name

Institut Futur – Arbeitsbereich Erziehungswissenschaftliche Zukunftsforschung, Freie Universität Berlin

Website

https://institutfutur.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Institut Futur is an academic research unit at Freie Universität Berlin specializing in educational futures research, sustainable development education, and BNE monitoring for UNESCO and BMBF. It serves government policymakers, graduate students, and academic researchers through publications, a Master's program, and policy advisory services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Futures Research

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Applied Research & Innovation Universities (EDAHAEAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Education Systems Strengthening (Policy, Planning, EMIS, Governance) (BPADAKAK)

Keywords

• Futures research
• Education for sustainable development
• Academic research institute
• Futures studies education
• Educational transformation research

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Institutional Government Funding: As a department of Freie Universität Berlin, Institut Futur receives base funding through the German public university system. Research activities are funded through grants from federal ministries (BMBF), the European Union, and research foundations.
2. Research Project Grants: Third-party funded research projects from institutions such as BMBF (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung), UNESCO, and other governmental or international organizations conducting futures research and educational studies.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Institut Futur is an academic research institute that conducts futures research and educational science, delivers the Master's program in Futures Studies, publishes the peer-reviewed European Journal of Futures Research, and provides scientific advisory and monitoring services to UNESCO's Education for Sustainable Development program in Germany. Its core activities center on researching, constructing, and reflecting on future visions in society, politics, and education, with a particular focus on sustainable development transformation in education systems.

Product overview

Institut Futur is an academic research unit (Arbeitsbereich Erziehungswissenschaftliche Zukunftsforschung) at Freie Universität Berlin specializing in futures research and educational science. The portfolio includes the European Journal of Futures Research (peer-reviewed open access journal), the Masterstudiengang Zukunftsforschung (interdisciplinary master's program since 2010), the telegramm.futur newsletter, the 'Eine Tasse Zukunft' podcast, the IF-Schriftenreihe publication series, and participation in international research networks including The Millennium Project and UNESCO's ESD for 2030 program. The institute also conducts research projects such as BNE-Monitoring and hosts the Salon Futur discussion series. Together, these offerings form an integrated academic ecosystem for futures research, education, publication, and public outreach.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• European Journal of Futures Research: A peer-reviewed open access journal providing an international platform for scholarly work on possible, probable and desirable European and global futures.
• Masterstudiengang Zukunftsforschung
• Salon Futur
• telegramm.futur
• Eine Tasse Zukunft Podcast

Products and services

• Masterstudiengang Zukunftsforschung (Master's Program in Futures Studies) An inter- and transdisciplinary master's program offered since 2010, providing foundational knowledge and methods for researching, constructing, and reflecting on future visions in society, politics, and economics. It targets graduate students seeking structured education in futures research methodology.
• European Journal of Futures Research (EJFR) A peer-reviewed open access journal providing an international platform for leading and upcoming scholarly work on possible, probable and desirable European and global futures, published via SpringerOpen. It serves academic researchers, futurists, and policy scholars globally.
• BNE-Monitoring / ESD for 2030 Scientific Advisory A monitoring and scientific advisory offering providing analytical services for the national implementation of UNESCO's Education for Sustainable Development program "ESD for 2030" in Germany. The institute advises BMBF and national BNE steering committees on education policy, with the BNE-Monitoring team providing systematic monitoring and evaluation of BNE implementation.
• IF-Schriftenreihe (IF Publication Series) A publication series featuring research outputs from Institut Futur, providing a structured outlet for the institute's academic outputs in futures research and educational science.
• Salon Futur A discussion forum series hosted by Institut Futur that brings together experts to discuss futures research topics, serving as a public knowledge-transfer and engagement platform for scholars, policy actors, and the interested public.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 20 years of continuous operation as a dedicated futures research institute
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• UNESCOcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProf. Dr. Gerhard de Haan serves as the scientific advisor for UNESCO's BNE (Bildung für nachhaltige Entwicklung/Education for Sustainable Development) program 'ESD for 2030' in Germany. Institut Futur supports the implementation of the national UNESCO BNE program, with the institute's BNE-Monitoring team providing analytical support to BMBF and national BNE steering committees.
• BMBF (Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBMBF (Federal Ministry of Education and Research) funds and oversees the national implementation of UNESCO's BNE program. Prof. Dr. Gerhard de Haan provides scientific advisory services to BMBF and national BNE steering committees, supported by Institut Futur's BNE-Monitoring team.
• The Millennium ProjectmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSince 1996, Institut Futur has been a member of The Millennium Project, a global participatory futures research think tank connecting futurists worldwide. The project brings together scholars, business planners, and policy makers working for international organizations, governments, corporations, NGOs, and universities to improve global foresight.
• Freie Universität BerlincoreOthersInstitut Futur is the 'Arbeitsbereich Erziehungswissenschaftliche Zukunftsforschung' (Department of Educational Futures Research) within the Faculty of Education and Psychology at Freie Universität Berlin, one of Germany's leading universities.
• SpringerOpenmajorTechnology or IntegrationSpringerOpen hosts the European Journal of Futures Research, the peer-reviewed open access journal operated by Institut Futur. The journal provides an international platform for scholarly work on European and global futures, published via SpringerOpen's academic platform.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Institute for the Future (IFTF): Established US-based futures research and forecasting organization with a much larger portfolio spanning corporate foresight, health, work, and climate. Comparable as a global futures research incumbent but significantly broader in scope and commercial reach than Institut Futur.
• Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research (ISI): Major German applied research institute covering innovation systems, foresight, and sustainability transitions; overlaps with Institut Futur in futures methodology and policy research but operates at far greater scale and across broader topics.

Regional players

• Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy: German applied research institute conducting sustainability and transformation research with policy advisory to BMBF and federal bodies; comparable as a domestic peer in the German sustainability research ecosystem.
• Danish Board of Technology Foundation (Teknologirådet): Nordic parliamentary technology assessment organization running foresight and public engagement projects on emerging issues; comparable as a peer in futures-oriented policy advisory and citizen deliberation, though focused more on technology assessment.

Direct peers

• Institute for Futures Studies (Institutet för Framtidsstudier): Stockholm-based independent research institute focused on futures studies across social sciences, with graduate-level research training and policy advisory — closely aligned with Institut Futur's academic futures research and policy engagement model.
• World Futures Studies Federation (WFSF): Global NGO promoting futures studies scholarship and methodology across regions; comparable to Institut Futur as a peer institution advancing futures research as an academic discipline and supporting policy applications.
• Finland Futures Research Centre (FFRC), University of Turku: FFRC is a Nordic academic futures research centre at the University of Turku, directly comparable to Institut Futur in its mission to conduct futures research, train graduate students, and inform national policy on sustainable development and societal transformation.
• The Millennium Project: Global participatory futures research think tank of which Institut Futur has been a node since 1996; operates the State of the Future reports and global foresight methodology that closely parallels Institut Futur's futures research mission.

Others

• UNESCO Education Sector / ESD for 2030 Programme: The UNESCO programme that Institut Futur scientifically advises; included as the institutional counterpart and primary commissioning body for BNE-related research and monitoring activities.
• Club of Rome: Global think tank focused on limits to growth, sustainability, and long-term futures; thematically adjacent to Institut Futur's futures and transformation research, though operating as an advocacy and scenario-planning organization rather than an academic institute.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/iFutur
• Facebookfacebook.com/masterzukunftsforschung
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/institut-futur

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Institut Futur, Freie Universität Berlin