Pathway 3.
Speculative Drift

Purpose

Transform insights into speculative narratives from a non-human point of view.

Time

60–120 minutes or longer

Mode

Group

Solo

What is this pathway?

This pathway supports the development of creative and speculative outputs — such as short fiction, visual storytelling, world-building sketches, or narrative fragments — all generated from the imagined viewpoint of a non-human animal or ecological agent.

It is particularly useful in contexts of creativity, scenario building, and speculative design.

ℹ️ In futures thinking and design practice, scenario creation is a common tool to explore different possible worlds or outcomes. Learn more in the UK Government’s Futures Toolkit.

Objective

To write or create from a non-human perspective — imagining what it might mean to inhabit a different body, mode of perception, or way of relating to the world.

Structure

Start from a character: If you’ve completed Pathway 2, use your existing persona or ecological profile. Otherwise, draw a card from the Sensory Channels Deck of Cards to inspire a being and its sensory world.

Choose your orientation: Decide if your story will be:
- Free-form (speculative play, drifting between worlds)
- Context-specific (linked to a research question, project, or concrete ecological agent)
Narrative scaffolding: Use the Guiding Questions for Writing to guide tone, structure, or purpose. You can use them:
- As prompts to get started
- To deepen or shift your narrative mid-way
Choose from the exercises:

Dimensional Drift: a game that invites unexpected shifts in scale, sense, or logic
The Signal That Changed Us: a speculative exercise to inhabit new senses and reconfigure what it means to be human.
Sensory Extinction Chronicle: a storytelling exercise on vanished senses and the worlds they once sustained.

Create: Write, record, draw, or prototype your story. You can stay close to one sensory thread or let the story drift wildly. Focus on holding the non-human perspective without reverting to human metaphor too soon.

Choose your orientation: Decide if your story will be:
- Free-form (speculative play, drifting between worlds)
- Context-specific (linked to a research question, project, or concrete ecological agent)
Narrative scaffolding: Use the Guiding Questions for Writing to guide tone, structure, or purpose. You can use them:
- As prompts to get started
- To deepen or shift your narrative mid-way
Choose from the exercises:

Dimensional Drift: a game that invites unexpected shifts in scale, sense, or logic
The Signal That Changed Us: a speculative exercise to inhabit new senses and reconfigure what it means to be human.
Sensory Extinction Chronicle: a storytelling exercise on vanished senses and the worlds they once sustained.

Create: Write, record, draw, or prototype your story. You can stay close to one sensory thread or let the story drift wildly. Focus on holding the non-human perspective without reverting to human metaphor too soon.

What you’ll get out of it

A short narrative, scene, or design fragment from a non-human viewpoint
Material that can feed into scenario building, workshops, or further fiction
Practice in inhabiting alternative modes of perception, logic, and time

Materials & Tools

Output from Pathway 2 (Non-Human Persona Template or Umwelt Log)

Sensory Channels Deck of Cards

Optional: Text editor, sketchbook, voice recorder, or collaborative writing pad

Optional extensions

Pathway 2 (Umwelt Exploration)

Pathway 4 (Fictional Scenario Construction)

Pathway 3. Speculative Drift