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There are two people, and only two, whose ideas must be taught to every MBA in the world: Michael Porter and Henry Mintzberg.  This was true more than 25 years ago, when I did my MBA at USC. These are two academics who have had real impact for a long time.  Part of their success, beyond having big relevant ideas, is due to their clear and concise writing skills (There is certainly a lesson in there for many of us business school academics). Both have been very influential in the study of strategy, an area of considerable interest to many Forbes readers.  You can contrast their two views as Porter's taking a more deliberate strategy approach while Mintzberg's emphasize emergent strategy.   Both are still taught, in fact, I taught Porter's 3 Generic Strategies and his 5 Forces Model not two weeks ago in an undergraduate strategy course at McGill. Which is most useful today?

Provides insight + surprising solutions for the dramatic field of peri-urbanisation in Europe Introduces innovative tools for planners, scientists and lay-persons allowing to integratevily analyze the impact of peri-urbanisation onto sustainable development Has unique maps showing EU-periurbanisation effects on a pan-European level Has a conclusive didactic approach + text structure (e.g.  inserts, boxes ...) Presently, peri-urbanisation is one of the most pervasive processes of land use change in Europe with strong impacts on environment and quality of life. Urgently strategies and tools in support of sustainable development have to be developed. The book synthesizes results of PLUREL, a large European Commission funded research project (2007-2010). Tools and strategies of PLUREL address main challenges of managing land use in peri-urban areas. Results will be presented and illustrated through 6 case studies which are at the core of the book. A novel, futures oriented approach to the planning and management of peri-urban areas with a main focus on scenarios and sustainability impact analysis. The book is unique: - futures oriented (e.g. IPCC framework), - links quantitative modeling and sustainability impact analysis with qualitative & in-depth analysis of regional strategies - links study at European level (Nuts 2&3 regions) with case study work - involves a Chinese case study

" Ask yourself Is your organisation being digitally disrupted? Does your future strategy lack clarity and buy-in? Is your analogue business model ready for the digital future? Do you currently balance the timeless wisdom of your organisation with timely and future-compatible strategies and action? Are your teams inspired by your brand's 2020 Vision? Do your leaders and staff suffer from change fatigue?"

"Increasingly, the energy we consume to heat and power our communities, will be produced locally. Unfortunately, many of the strategies we use to produce energy are vulnerable due to specialization. We are too dependent on specific forms of energy and the dedicated equipment used to utilize it. "

"In the last quarter of the century, corollaries were added: "focus tightly on maximizing shareholder value"; "strategy is about coping with competition"; and "lower costs by off-shoring." These principles worked as long as oligopolies dominated the marketplace. Firms could succeed with limited innovation, often by copying what had already been pioneered by others."

"Watch an exclusive interview with Rafael Ramirez, Director of the Oxford Scenarios Programme and Fellow in Strategy at the Saїd Business School and Green Templeton College, Oxford University. A world expert on scenario planning and a founder of theories on the aesthetics of business, work and organisation, Rafael Ramirez has worked in over 25 countries, spanning many corporations, governmental and inter-governmental organisations, trade union federations, NGO's and professional associations. As Director of the Oxford Scenarios Programme he leads one of the most highly respected programmes on the subject in the world."

Despite an uncertain global economy and a continually shifting regulatory environment, the top teams at the world's leading banks are starting to plot paths toward growth. With no proven economic model to point to, bankers are attempting to understand the many possible futures they could confront over the next decade. In the industry's first-ever interactive eBook published by Ernst & Young and Knowledge@Wharton, "Global Banking 2020: Foresight & Insights," banking leaders explore a spectrum of potential scenarios - including some extreme possibilities - that could develop in the coming decade, along with strategies to help global banks thrive.

About the ProjectThe Future We Want (FWW) is a global initiative to envision what we want our lives and communities to be like 20 years from now. Gathering Promising IdeasUsing everything from modern technologies like the web and social media to traditional grassroots communication we intend to reach people on a worldwide scale. We will ask everyone, at every level of society, to submit their visions for a positive future. From solutions addressing poverty and injustice to strategies for creating sustainable and environmentally responsible communities, we will gather ideas internationally. But we won't stop here.

Because of the hectic pace of China's economic and social development, Chinese energy demand will continue to grow rapidly in next 40 years. Beijing appears determined to pursue a low-carbon development strategy, and wind energy is going to be one of the main resources for achieving China's low carbon goals.

This is a very interesting article by futurist Stuart Candy. He discusses "artifacts of the future" - physical artifacts that have a pre-figurative element, they invoke contemplation of future possibilities. For the purpose of the project, they may be one strategy by which to ramp up the "tactility" or experiential basis of crowdsourced foresight. Ask (or allow) that each contribution have a picture and snap shot or fragment from the future.

"AAM's Center for the Future of Museums (CFM) helps museums explore the cultural, political and economic challenges facing society and devise strategies to shape a better tomorrow. CFM is a think-tank and research and design lab for fostering creativity and helping museums transcend traditional boundaries to serve society in new ways."

Open FutureInterested in Open Innovation & Crowdsourcing? Follow Open Innovators on twitter or subscribe to the Open Innovators RSS feed! In addition to tracking specific trends about open innovation and crowdsourcing, it is important to build a broader view on those trends' underlying drivers and facilitators, and how they could evolve in the years to come. Trends, forecasts and scenarios about the power of the Internet, Web 2.0, the rise of virtual worlds, consumers becoming prosumers… The Open Future report is somewhat atypical, as it is build around interesting videos and quotes. It explains why and how one should constantly keep track of (disruptive) trends, build different scenarios, and have corresponding strategies prepared.

" Interview on futures studies, foresight and strategy transformation. Case studies of futures thinking, scenario planning and visioning. Analysis of what works. "

"ZGF Architects and PoSI teamed up to provide a concept submission for the International Living Future Institute's 2011 Living City Design Competition which has been recently awarded a People's Choice Award voted by the attendees of the Living Future 2011 conference. Their submission entitled Symbiotic Districts: Towards a Balanced City explores the symbiosis between five EcoDistricts in Portland, Oregon as well as regional systems and examines how strategies in a single district contribute to the city's overall performance. "

"San Francisco earned the recognition of being the greenest among 26 other major cities examined by the United States and Canada Green City Index, a study commissioned by Siemens Corporation. The city bagged the greenest city title by scoring high points from its sustainability strategies in air quality, buildings and transportation as well as topping the waste category."

Over the next few decades, the global food system will come under renewed pressure from the combined effects of seven fundamental factors: population growth, the nutrition transition, energy, land, water, labour and climate change. The combined effects will create constraints on food supply and if action is not taken, there is a real potential for demand growth to outstrip increases in global food production. Effects on developing countries would be devastating. Developed countries will be affected too. Expectations of abundant and ever cheaper food could come under strain. The UK can no longer afford to take its food supply for granted.