About the series
Ursula, an AI instructor from the future, encourages listeners to study the turbulent 2020s. Mixing speculative fiction and documentary, leading sci-fi authors bring us three futures that seem like fantasy: animals are people, capitalism is banned from outer space and humans and AI have become kin. We meet the writers who dream of these futures and the activists, scientists and thinkers who are turning fiction into fact.
The Necessary Tomorrows podcast is from Doha Debates and is presented by Al Jazeera Podcasts. It is produced by Imposter Media and Wolf at the Door Studios.
Season 1 is out now, wherever you get your podcasts.
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Indigenous AI
Indigenous artists and computer scientists explore how to build AI systems based on their traditional knowledge.
Almost Real
What if an Indigenous nation created an AI knowledge-keeper? Written by Quelemia Sparrow (Musqueam Nation).
Sharing the Stars
How can we explore space while avoiding the colonial mistakes of the past?
A Feast For Cobalt
What if we discovered that outer space has the green minerals we needed for a carbon-free future? Written by sci-fi author Deji Bryce Olukotun.
The Rights of Nature
A science-fiction author and an Indigenous lawyer explore an emerging legal movement.
The Last Impala
What if nature had the same rights as humans? Written by Christopher Brown.
Necessary Tomorrows trailer
Ursula, an AI instructor from the future, encourages listeners to study the turbulent 2020s. Mixing speculative fiction and documentary, leading sci-fi authors bring us three futures that seem like fantasy: animals are people, capitalism is banned from outer space and humans and AI have become kin. We meet the writers who dream of these futures and the activists, scientists and thinkers who are turning fiction into fact.
Teaching guides
The teaching guides for Necessary Tomorrows—one to accompany each episode—have been designed by the education team at Doha Debates to spark imagination, hope and a new way of thinking about our future. We chose to co-create these units with young people involved in the Doha Debates Ambassador Program, because we believe that youth perspective is critical to the design of educational curriculum.
At the heart of all Doha Debates curriculum is the concept of the Majlis, a space for generative conversation driven by the interests of the participants. In the Arab world, the traditional Majlis is a meeting ground to openly discuss personal and community issues; a social space where debate is couched in hospitality and welcoming. Gathering and circling in a Majlis—and many traditional places for discourse in communities across the globe—requires the thoughtful, curious and open-minded participation of each person. It privileges shared thinking, respectful dialogue and collective reasoning.
All units allow educators to use a pair of Necessary Tomorrows episodes as a jumping-off point to encourage multi-perspective dialogue about the possible future scenarios similar to those envisioned in the podcast.
Download our teaching guides for episodes 1 and 2. This unit builds on themes in “The Last Impala” and “The Rights of Nature,” including the rights of nature, climate refugees and traditional knowledge.
Download our teaching guide for episodes 3 and 4. This unit builds on themes in “A Feast for Cobalt” and “Sharing the Stars,” including space exploration and colonialism.
Download our teaching guide for episodes 5 and 6. This unit builds on themes in “Almost Real” and “Indigenous AI,” including Indigenous knowledge, AI and colonialism.
Writers and contributors
