Purpose:

The purpose of this experience is to give participants a deeper understanding of Afrofuturism and its lineage while expanding how they think about imagination, innovation, and the future. Participants will gain the context and vocabulary to engage with Afrofuturism thoughtfully, while learning to see it not simply as a genre or aesthetic, but as a methodology for creative thinking, innovation, and futures-building. They will leave with practical ideas for incorporating Afrofuturist approaches into their cultural programming, creative work, or organizational practices, along with a curated collection of books, music, films, artists, and organizations to continue exploring. For organizations, the experience creates an opportunity to begin translating culturally rooted, imaginative practices into language and strategies that connect with their organizational culture, goals, and KPIs.

WHAT’S INCLUDED:

This can be offered as a standalone 60–90 minute keynote or expanded into a 3–4 part lecture series, depending on how deeply an organization wants to explore each topic. The four core sections can be presented together as one 90-minute lecture, with the option to develop each section into its own session for a more in-depth experience. The 90-minute keynote would serve as a strong entry point, while organizations interested in deeper cultural transformation could explore a multi-session series designed to build on the ideas and practices introduced in the initial lecture.

In Summary:

1. Understanding Afrofuturism: Define Afrofuturism through Mark Dery’s original coining of the term while exploring the deeper cultural and artistic roots that predate the word itself. Introduce the broader Afrofuturist canon across mediums, including opera, music, fashion, literature, visual art, film, and more.

2. Afrofuturism as a Discipline for Building: Explore Afrofuturism as a form of speculative design and futures thinking. At its core, it begins with imagining a future that does not yet exist and using that vision as a starting point for building toward it. This is where the framework can become especially relevant for corporate and university audiences: innovation begins by imagining what is possible before creating the structures to make it real. Afrofuturism offers a culturally rooted methodology for beginning that process.

3. Imagination as Infrastructure: Afrofuturism becomes especially powerful when it moves beyond imagery and aesthetics and becomes an operating principle. Explore how these practices can inform the way organizations, cultures, communities, and creative works are built. This section examines what it means to treat imagination as infrastructure and could serve as a natural bridge into the IAI methodology.

4. LALOVAVI as Case Study: Examine Afrofuturism in practice through LALOVAVI, highlighting two sold-out performances, coverage from The Wall Street Journal, NPR, and PBS, nearly 40% first-time opera-goers, and thousands of students engaged through a prequel comic and mural projects. The case study demonstrates how Afrofuturist practice can move beyond artistic presentation to create meaningful audience engagement and lasting community infrastructure.