Juli Rush – Foresight, Grief, and the Courage to Let Futures End

In this episode of The Unfolding Thought Podcast, host Eric Pratum welcomes Juli Rush, whose work spans educating everyone from middle-schoolers to adults in strategic foresight and supporting individuals as a death doula. Drawing on her background in thanatology (the study of death and dying) and her role as Director of the Foresight Activation Lab at the University of Houston, Juli reveals how these seemingly different fields share a surprising thread:

1. When the Future Dies — Juli explains her framework—Hospice, Vigil, Compost—for guiding both individuals and organizations through endings. It’s not just about literal death; it’s about letting old visions go, so new ones can flourish.
2. Emotional Intelligence & Scenario Thinking — Facilitating “collapsing” scenarios in strategic foresight can trigger strong emotional reactions. Juli shows how grief techniques help leaders remain resilient and empathetic when confronting unsettling possibilities.
3. Fostering Resilience in Children — From teaching kids how to map out the future of war to letting them creatively debate AI, she illustrates why early exposure to foresight concepts can build crucial adaptability in a rapidly changing world.
4. Culture, Systems, and Hard Conversations — Whether it’s organizational “end-of-life” decisions or moral dilemmas around technology, Juli believes in honest—and often uncomfortable—dialogue that unearths root values and reorients us to what truly matters.
5. Beyond ‘Sustain at All Costs’ — At times, sustaining a job, product, or personal project just to avoid the label failure can be more harmful than letting go. Juli describes how knowing when to say goodbye can transform complacency into possibility.

If you’re curious about how deeper reflection on mortality can spark more vibrant futures—for your team, your community, or yourself—Juli’s integrative approach will challenge assumptions and offer practical frameworks you can apply right away.

Go deeper: Read Eric Pratum’s essay, “Organizations Cannot Change Until They Grieve What Is Ending”, which develops Juli’s framework into an argument about strategy, identity, and what organizations must release before meaningful change is possible.

Links:

• When the Future Dies (Juli’s project): Visit whenthefuturedies.com
• University of Houston Foresight Program: Visit uh.edu
• Imagining After Capitalism by Andy Hines: Visit amzn.to
• Theory U (Otto Scharmer / Presencing Institute): Visit presencing.org
• Being Mortal by Atul Gawande: Visit amzn.to
• The Association of Professional Futurists: Visit apf.org
• Juli’s SXSW talk “When The Future Dies: Putting Endings In Our Beginnings”: Visit schedule.sxsw.com
• World Future’s Review: Visit journals.sagepub.com

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