1. Maritime Future
Scapes 2050
Finnish Marititime Cluster Futures
workshop: summary and insights for
Breaking Waves think tank
Produced by Futures Research Consulting for
Finnish Maritime Cluster and Centrum Balticum
1

2. Content
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Road to the Finnish Maritime Cluster Futures workshop
Objective of the Maritime Cluster Futures workshop
Futures thinking? A primer
Way of working during the workshop
Manifesting the images of future
Images of Maritime Futures in 2050
Summary and how to use the Images
Futures Reseach Consulting in brief
2

3. Road to the Finnish Maritime Cluster Futures Workshop
3
Organized by
Centrum
Balticum and
FMC to provide a
forum for
learning about
future
possibilities and
challenges in the
Finnish Maritime
Cluster and
discussing future
scenarios
Held 9th of
October in Forum
Marinum, Turku,
Finland
Keynote speeches
on disruptions
and future driving
forces and trends
of maritime as
foundation for
futures workshop
discussion
30 participants
from business,
education, public
and research
organisations

4. The objective of the Maritime Cluster Futures Workshop
We aimed to imagine what the maritime
cluster of 2050 might look like –
and uncover new insights and perspectives
of the future for the Breaking Waves 2018:
Reshaping Maritime conference
4

5. Futures thinking – Why and how
Exploring the
implications of
possible future
systems
through
creativity
We aim to imagine what the
maritime cluster of 2050 could
look like - and uncover new
insights and perspectives of
the future
Different
backgrounds
& cross-pollination
of ideas
A network of
expertise
making the
connections
between disparate
patterns and
variables
New / radical
ramifications
for the future?
5

6. Steps in the process
Our way of working in the workshop
On top, teams drew the different Living
Beings – humans, flora and fauna –
that are affected by the vessel, its
system and infrastructure
Above the system, teams then drew the
Infrastructure around their vessel and
chosen system
Each team chose a System (Value,
Waste, Energy, Pollution or
Information) of the vessel which they
then imagined and mapped.
Future vessel as the starting point:
Each team was given an image of a
futuristic vessel, and the team
developed it further by assigning it
futuristic features
Imagining and exploring the maritime cluster of 2050 -
uncovering new insights and perspectives
As last step,
participants self-
reflected their
own roles in the
developed future &
shared their views
1
2
3
4
6

7. Five teams participated in the workshop
Starting point of discussion: futuristic vessels & systems selected by the teams
Ship image of team 1
Ship image of team 2
Ship image of team 3
Ship image of team 4
Ship image of team 5
7
Value
Value
Value
Waste
Energy

8. Imagining and exploring the Maritime Cluster of 2050
8

9. Images of the
Future
Manifesting the images of Maritime Futures in 2050
Synthesis of ideas and
formulation of the Images of
Maritime Futures in 2050
Analysis of the discussed
systems, infrastructures, living
beings and reflections of the
future
All the inputs from the teams
participating in the Maritime Cluster
workshop were analyzed. Key ideas were
identified and refined.
Ideas where synthesized, grouped
in themes to become the key
elements of the future images.
How were the results of the workshop developed further?
9
From social,
economic,
technological and
cultural perspectives.

10. Five Images of Maritime Futures in 2050
Eternalized
Mariner
Crafted
Sustainability
Experiences
Bio-Reactor
City District
Data Trawler
Array
Flagless Sea
Dwellers
10

11. ETERNALIZED MARINER / In Brief
11
Eternalized Mariner is a future concept driven by AI, digitalization and climate change. It is a global program to
immortalize the lost and disappearing past of maritime cultures in ways that future generations can access
easily. It engages and teaches us and represents the voice of maritime peoples across the globe, across time.

12. ETERNALIZED MARINER / Explained
12
Preserving disappearing
maritime cultures
The Eternalized Mariner provides cultural
sustainability in the midst of rapid climate and
technological change.
Future generations have an access to skills,
memories and knowledge of the past.
Emissary of lost cultures As seas rise, lost cultures are given a voice, and lost
cities representation.
Past cultures are immortalized for educational and
research purposes, and communities who’ve lost
their homes are provided with political and legal
representation.
Modelled on real
persons
Real stories of real people have authenticity and
impact. Immortalization is based on social media
records, interviews, and personal records
Different perspectives and unique voices are
preserved.
Immersive experience
driven by AI and virtual
reality
Voices of lost persons – captains, mariners, fishers,
island people, sea nomads and so on - can be
interviewed across time.
The history of maritime becomes immersive,
personal, engaging and ever-present. Multiple
interfaces to the database of the past – virtual
realities, games, shows, etc.
Key aspects Implications

13. 13
Crafted sustainability experiences at sea are rethought cruise packages that offer wellbeing-as-luxury. These
model communities host networking and sustainable practice events in designer zero-impact onboard
environments.
CRAFTED SUSTAINABILITY EXPERIENCES AT SEA / In Brief

14. 14
360˚ crafted ship-board
environment
Built to be circular or net-positive, extending
beyond the ship’s physical subsystems to the
human, portside and ocean systems.
Hosts’ roles range from horticulturalist to bartender
to psychologist, to craft wellbeing environements
for guests.
Rethought cruise
package – experiential
luxury
This cruise package ”puts your money where your
mouth is”; sit back and enjoy a zero-waste lifestyle
in perfect comfort and good conscience.
Luxury is not needing to worry about the impact of
your actions, nor go to any effort to act sustainably;
all this is taken care of for you.
Boundary breaking in-
person networking
From makers and thought leaders to streamers and
managers, this floating innovation hub hosts cross-
platform conferences and entertainment.
#BornAtSea becomes the tag associated with the
new wave of b-corp social enterprises.
Key aspects Implications
Model sustainable
community
Guests gain know-how and good practice from
onboard workshops, master-classes and tours of the
ships’s circular systems.
Open source sustainable practices and technologies
are exported from ship to shore.
CRAFTED SUSTAINABILITY EXPERIENCES AT SEA / Explained

15. 15
Floating bio-reactor city districts take advantage of the new wave of advances in bio-technology. These districts
act as armatures for bio-processes that utilise waste as a resource to generate value for cities, while retaining the
ability to relocate to the urban areas where their services are most in demand.
FLOATING BIO-REACTOR CITY DISTRICT / In Brief

16. 16
FLOATING BIO-REACTOR CITY DISTRICT / Explained
Armature for bio-
processes
Organisms are partners on board these mobile,
service providing platforms.
Photosynthesizing algae are grown in hydrophonic
’sails’, fed on nutrient rich liquid waste water.
Provides services
-> Ports
-> Cities
The onboard bio-reactors require restocking with
solid and liquid waste, docking services generate
value for ship operators.
Mobile dune/wetlands are moved into position to
protect vulnerable coastal urban zones, as an
additional buffer against storm surges.
Modular closed loop
processing systems
Floating plants reminiscient of the gas refineries of
old process plastic waste at river mouths.
Ocean/landfill plastic waste is broken down by
enzymes to generate energy and a variety of useful
biproducts including reclaimed oil.
Life-cycle thinking The elimination of toxic and synthetic materials
from ship constuction allow many more uses for
hulls.
The boundary between organism and machine
begins to break down, like yeast, samples are taken
from old ships to colonise new hulls with tried and
tested organisms.
Key aspects Implications

17. DATA TRAWLER ARRAY / In Brief
17
Data Trawler Array represents futures in which ships become platforms for collecting, storing, and transporting a broader
array of data about shipping and ocean environments, using networks of sea drones and advanced ship-to-ship
communications. AI could transform this data into an “avatar of the seas,” giving a powerful voice to the oceans.

18. DATA TRAWLER ARRAY / Explained
18
Ships as data centers Ships collect, store, and process maritime ”big data”
about their own activities, marine environments,
and climate and weather
Ships could become fully autonomous and
completely uncrewed, sacrificing life-support
functions to optimize data handling capabilities
Maritime Internet of
Things
Ships become mobile platforms for coordinating an
ecosystem of data collection technologies
Networked sea drones extend the “footprint” of each
vessel, allowing them to cast a broader data
gathering net over their surroundings
Fleets as distributed
sensors
Groups of ships use sophisticated communication
systems to quickly and continuously update a real-
time map of conditions
Collective intelligence increases safety and security
of shipping lanes by rapidly disseminating
information about potential threats
”Avatar of the Seas” Artificial Intelligence could be used to create an
”avatar of the seas” that uses big data to literally
represent and give voice to the oceans
The ”avatar of the seas” could become an important
tool for education and environmental advocacy
Key aspects Implications
Ports as data
clearinghouses
Ports invest in handling data as a form of precious
cargo, and become brokers and intermediaries for
distributing it onshore
Blockchains could play a variety of important roles
in standardizing and securing the transfer of
maritime data assets

19. FLAGLESS SEA DWELLERS / In Brief
19
Flagless Sea Dwellers portrays futures in which overpopulation, sea-level rise associated with Climate Change, or other
forces lead to communities living at sea on a permanent basis. Ships would need to develop new infrastructure and expand
the idea of a crew to become more self-sufficient, but might also take on the responsibility of being agents of environmental
remediation, working to clean up and restore damaged ocean ecosystems.

20. FLAGLESS SEA DWELLERS / Explained
20
Mobile populations
living permanently at
sea
Flagless: Independent city-states might operate
relatively autonomously, but with complex effects
on citizenship, taxation, use of ocean resources, and
international legal conventions
Laying claim: could be used by nation states to take
hold of and secure particular ocean territories and
expand their influence over contested sea zones
Well-developed circular
economy to become
autonomous from land
Self-contained systems for efficiently processing
waste, growing food, and producing energy would be
needed to ensure fulfillment of basic needs
Such systems could be test-beds allowing maritime
and space industries to engage in mutually
beneficial research and development and
knowledge sharing
New concepts of the
makeup of a crew
New types of crew members would be required to
provide essential services for onboard communities,
such as doctors, lawyers, educators, administrators,
etc.
Onboard populations could eventually span the
entire range of different age groups, becoming
multi-generational
Agents of environmental
remediation
Could potentially be floating platforms for collecting
and recycling ocean plastic pollution
Vessels could become net contributors to marine
ecosystems, e.g onboard fish farming could work to
replenish depleted stocks
Key aspects Implications

21. In summary
21
Eternalized
Mariner
Crafted
Sustainability
Experiences
Bio-Reactor City
District
Data Trawler
Array
Flagless Sea
Dwellers
The Eternalized Mariner
is a future concept driven
by AI, digitalization and
climate change. It is a
global program to
immortalize the lost and
disappearing past of
maritime cultures in
ways that future
generations can access
easily. It engages and
teaches us and
represents the voice of
maritime peoples across
the globe, across time.
Crafted sustainability
experiences at sea are
rethought cruise
packages that offer
wellbeing-as-luxury.
These model
communities host
networking and
sustainable practice
events in designer zero-
impact onboard
environments.
Floating bio-reactor city
districts take advantage
of the new wave of
advances in bio-
technology. These
districts act as armatures
for bio-processes that
utilise waste as a
resource to generate
value for cities, while
retaining the ability to
relocate to the urban
areas where their
services are most in
demand.
Data Trawler Array
represents futures in
which ships become
platforms for collecting,
storing, and transporting
a broader array of data
about shipping and
ocean environments,
using networks of sea
drones and advanced
ship-to-ship
communications. AI
could transform this data
into an “avatar of the
seas,” giving a powerful
voice to the oceans.
Flagless Sea Dwellers
portrays futures in which
overpopulation, sea-level
rise associated with
Climate Change, or other
forces lead to
communities living at
sea on a permanent
basis. Ships would need
to develop new
infrastructure and
expand the idea of a crew
to become more self-
sufficient, but might also
take on the responsibility
of being agents of
environmental
remediation, working to
clean up and restore
damaged ocean
ecosystems.

22. How to use these Images of the Future
Thinking about the future is aided by seeing
futures as a multitude of emerging alternatives,
not a single predictable reality. The five images of
the future developed by analyzing the materials
collected through the Maritime Futurescapes
2050 workshop represent diverse maritime
futures worthy of further discussion, but cannot
offer ultimate or definitive answers to questions
about how the maritime sector will continue to
develop and be transformed.
However, considering futures as a set of
alternatives enhances the capacity to effectively
understand the various potentials
22
of the present, and to explore what decisions and
policies can be enacted today to offer the best
opportunities for reaching preferable futures.
More categories of stakeholders should now
become involved in the process of determining
what these desirable futures may be.
These future images will ideally be used as a basis
for guiding further systemic futures thinking,
since foresight should be an ongoing and
continuous practice in fast-changing, complex
environments such as the maritime sector.

23. 23
finnishmaritimecluster.fi
blackswansfsst.wordpress.com centrumbalticum.org