Futurist Faith Popcorn’s predictions for 2010. She declares it will be a year of Local Cocooning. See her observations on the growing preference for “Locotainment” –for example, attendance at minor-league baseball games at the expense of major league tickets. She foresees an increased demand for “more approachable venues, more sensible pricing, and a far deeper emotional engagement with “homies”” in all areas of leisure spending.

Popcorn also draws attention to the rise of community college enrollment in contrast to the flat admissions at traditional four year schools. “Look for the community college system to find even closer connections to what they know best – the community” she says. What are the opportunities for museums to help extend the depth and breadth of their local community college content in real space and on-line?

She also envisions a scenario in which many people move back to their hometowns and neighborhoods “to recover roots in a time of stress and uncertainty.” How can your museum reconnect with these returnees, reviving their fond memories of rainy Sundays dawdling among the dioramas and displays?

Popcorn summarizes the social trends in 2010 as a “search for those cultural touchstones we can trust.” Sounds pretty good for museums to me. What do you think—is she on the mark? Do any of the trends she describes bode ill for our profession? How will they affect your museum and your community at the local level?

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(Like this and want to read more? Forecasting by professional futurists, is often featured in the CFM Research Roundup.)