Young People and the Future of Scotland: participatory horizon scanning engagement
As part of its Horizon Scanning work, Scottish Government worked with Demos Helsinki, the Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP) and the UK Government Office for Science to undertake a futures-focused engagement with young people aged 14-19. The engagement findings and the methodology are presented in this report.
Footnotes
1 For more explanation and resources, see the Futures toolkit for policymakers and analysts.
2 For more explanation of this term and its value, see Demos Helsinki’s work for a resilient and transformative future.
3 As one example, this research undertaken by UNESCO highlights the need for pluralism and how foresight can challenge the dominance of conventional expertise via providing space for diverse perspectives.
4 Scottish Government (2025) Policy: Human rights – Children’s Rights.
5 For example, research by King’s College London and Ipsos on perceptions around gender (of young people aged 16+) and research on perceptions of democracy by young adults over 18 (e.g. Open Society Barometer 2023, p.17 ; multiple 2025 reports and surveys debating the views of Gen Z on democracy and dictatorships e.g. Channel 4’s report and response to it from King’s College London)
6 Scottish Government’s Justice for children and young people: vision and priorities 2024-26
7 In 2024, John Burn-Murdoch at the Financial Times reported that there are widening ideology gaps between young men and women (aged 18-29) across the globe.
8 Scottish Youth Parliament (2025) Article 12 and young people's right to be heard.
Contact
Email: foresight@gov.scot