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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Futures Studies in the European Ex-socialist Countries FORESIGHT STUDIES IN ROMANIA Mircea Malitza Brief preliminaries Prospective concerns became manifest in Romania at the end of the sixties and was maintained for some ten years. In 1968 the Chronicle of the Year 2000 first appeared as a press serial and was published as a volume in 1969. In 1973, the futures studies international community met in Bucharest, creating today’s WFSF.

At the beginning of the 70s the Prospective Commission of the Romanian Academy was set up, which is working even today. In a series under the heading of Global Issues of the Mankind , the Commission has published 15 volumes. In the same period was created the International Center for Futures Studies Methodology with Mihai Botez (author of the first Handbook of Prospective Techniques in Romania, and later a known dissident of the regime) as its director.

Today, the members of the group are distinguished researchers (World Bank, city planning, science and technology, management, etc.). The Bucharest group maintained close relationships with their colleagues in other countries: Bertrand de Jouvenel, Johan Galtung, Eleonora Masini, Robert Jungk , who often visited them. The problem they faced at home was that of accepting “several possible futures” ( de Jouvenel ) in contradiction to the uniqueness of aim as according to State socialist planning.

In 1977, the Center was expulsed from its headquarters. Meanwhile, it had succeeded to participate in the world perspective movement and in international projects such as that of the Development’s Indicators at the UN University. The present situation After the 1989 Revolution, prospective preoccupations were gradually resumed, and at the end of the 90s they became of topical interest.

A summary selective presentation must leave aside a big number of Prospective Clubs that work in cities ( Galati , etc.), within large professional associations (AGIR) or in schools and universities. I shall only mention the Black Sea University Foundation, the UNESCO Prospective Chair of the Cluj University, the Institute of Economic Forecasting and the Romanian Academy’s Commission for Prospective Studies. I shall mention each one’s present activities and projects for the future. 2.1.

The Black Sea University Foundation (BSUF) This was created in 1993.