We can only plan for the future we want if we imagine that future in the first place. Join the Office of University Interdisciplinary Programs, the Initiative for Community Growth and Development and NC State University Libraries as we ask scientists, artists, engineers, writers and other experts from across the disciplines to outline the future that they think is most likely -- a business-as-usual future -- and the better future they are working toward. In thinking about those better urban futures, scholars will consider beauty, sustainability and livability, among other urban elements. Throughout these presentations, a focus will be placed on the recognition that the human story is embedded in the broader story of the living world, one part of a bigger whole.

This event will feature a series of short, TED-style talks and poster presentations by faculty, students and staff from around the world at the messy interface between cutting-edge research and big-picture thinking. There will also be food and drink, music and artistic interpretations of envisioned urban futures.