At "what if," we're pioneering a groundbreaking fusion of constructive dialogue, futures thinking, and conflict-sensitive journalism. Our mission is bold: we aim to redefine how society approaches crises and conflicts. We envision a world where conflict resolution isn't just about reacting—it's about proactively shaping peaceful futures. Our purpose is clear: to empower change agents and decision-makers to envision and implement tangible solutions that transcend the 'what' of future scenarios, focusing instead on the transformative 'who we'll be' amidst change.

Through applied future thinking methods and techniques combined with narrative storytelling and conflict-sensitive journalism, we guide our dialogue participants in navigating the complex landscape of a specific conflict and crisis topic. By doing so, we view ourselves not just as observers. We are catalysts for change.

Therefore “what if” is grounded on a decentralized collective of diverse talents and perspectives, we bring together experts, change agents, and community members to engage in collaborative sensemaking and solution-building. Our approach is dialogue-focused, hands-on, pragmatic. We challenge assumptions, connect dots, and spot patterns to illuminate pathways towards sustainable resolutions in crisis and conflict regions.

At "what if," we don't just think the future – we actively shape it. Our platform serves as a nexus for bold thinkers and doers who share our commitment to building better worlds. We dive deep into local, regional as well as global challenges and societal shifts, leaving no stone unturned in our quest for innovative solutions.

But our mission goes beyond future thinking; we're in the business of co-creating futures. We amplify the voices of those directly impacted by conflicts and crises, ensuring that their perspectives drive our narratives, storytelling, solutions and actions. Together with our co-conspirators, we're rewriting the script of conflict resolution, one constructive dialogue at a time.

In order not to run out of ideas, the what if team has a bank of design fiction and future thinking activities (like Backcasting, Future Wheel, Future Cone, STEEP or Future Headlining, just to name a few) recommended by experts and used in various parts of the world. However, we try to tailor these activities to the context of each country, especially if it is in the midst of conflict or post-conflict.

Usually, in each activity we try to highlight a hypothetical question, as this is our mission as an organisation: to imagine peaceful and possible futures. That is why we use the question: "What if...?"
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Our impactful dialogues inspire constructive, conflict-sensitive and peace-oriented journalism, showcased within our whatif.zone through content in various formats. Simultaneously, our use of futures thinking tools and methods leads to co-created scenarios and solutions – prototypes that not only promote the "what if" concept but also offer measurable impacts of our dialogues.