This episode is extra special — for the very first time, The Future With Friends was filmed in front of a live audience at CoCo Place in Mornington! The setting perfectly suits this episode’s theme: ‘The Future of Community’.

This week’s guest is Steph Koster, founder of the co-working space CoCo Place. The energy of being together in the room brings the conversation to life as Simon and Steph explore what it really takes to keep people connected in a rapidly changing world.

They discuss the power of volunteerism, the evolving role of technology, and the emotional bonds that hold communities together. Steph shares a compelling utopian scenario about a small town whose local sports clubs and community life have collapsed after funding is diverted to major city events, and how residents, from elders to teenagers, rebuild connection and purpose.

Steph draws on her experience with Tennis Australia, sharing insights from major marketing campaigns alongside her grassroots work in regional towns. She reflects on how communities are formed through local clubs and what could be lost if they disappear.

Their conversation highlights the wisdom elders pass down, the universal need for belonging, and the importance of collaboration over competition. 

At its heart, this episode celebrates the energy of live conversation and the power of stories to strengthen and reimagine community. It’s a reminder that vibrant, resilient communities aren’t built alone — they grow through connection, collaboration, and shared purpose.

In this episode of The Future With Friends, Simon Waller is joined by leadership expert and good friend Anton van der Walt for a heartfelt conversation about immigration, belonging, and the future of cultural integration.

Anton shares a beautifully written and deeply personal scenario set in 2042. It explores the journey of an immigrant family navigating the complexities of settling in a new country - the challenges they face, the strengths they bring, and the emotional resilience required along the way. It’s a story that reminds us that true belonging isn’t achieved through assimilation or automation, but through time, empathy, and mutual understanding.

Simon and Anton’s conversation weaves through themes of identity, community, and the value of shared experience. They reflect on their parallel journeys in podcasting, the role of technology in fostering connection, and the limitations of a hyper-efficient approach to integration.

It’s a thoughtful discussion on the immigrant experience - one that asks us to slow down, listen more deeply, and recognise the cultural richness that emerges when we make space for difference.

At its heart, this episode is about the power of stories - and the kind of understanding that only comes from sitting down and truly hearing one another, friend to friend.

GUEST: Anton van der Walt

In this episode of The Future With Friends, Simon Waller sits down with long-time friend and human connection expert Anneli Blundell to explore the personal and relevant topic: The Future of Meeting Strangers.Anneli shares a future scenario set in the year 2095 — a world where society has been divided into two classes: creators and connectors. In the pursuit of hyper-efficiency and emotional safety, people are funnelled into roles based on whether they’re better at thinking or relating. But in this divided world, something unexpected emerges: an underground movement where creators are learning to connect again — meeting strangers, holding uncomfortable conversations, and rediscovering their humanity.What follows is a rich conversation about what happens when we start opting out of discomfort — and what we risk losing when connecting with others becomes optional. Simon and Anneli reflect on their own experiences of discomfort, the erosion of social skills post-COVID, and how the pendulum of culture might be swinging too far in the direction of avoidance and efficiency.Together, they explore how technology, isolation, and polarisation are reshaping the way we relate — and how we might gently push back. At the heart of the conversation is a call to action: to do the hard thing, embrace discomfort, and find our way back to one another — one stranger at a time.GUEST: Anneli Blundell

In this episode of The Future With Friends, Simon Waller sits down with long-time colleague and leadership expert Leanne Williams to explore a provocative and timely topic: The Future of Doing Risky Things.

Leanne shares a future scenario set in 2049 — a world so consumed by policies, procedures, and the pursuit of safety that risk itself has become taboo. But instead of creating a safer society, this hyper-regulated world gives rise to something unexpected: an underground leadership experiment where people go to remember what it feels like to not be safe.

What follows is a direct and honest conversation about our shifting relationship with risk. Simon and Leanne reflect on their own experiences with discomfort, and how risk has often been the catalyst for growth. They explore how risk aversion is showing up in leadership, workplaces, and culture — and what it might cost us if we keep trying to safety-proof life.

They also examine how technology, insurance, and a culture of compliance are reshaping our sense of what’s acceptable — and where the line sits between smart safeguards and stifling control.

In this episode, Simon Waller sits down with the sweary and sharp-witted Scottish writer Lizzie Davidson to explore the timely and deeply human topic: The Future of Meaningful.

Lizzie shares a bold and hopeful future scenario set in the aftermath of a great global reset — triggered by the trajectory we’re currently on: climate collapse, pandemics, conflict. But rather than dystopia, this is a world where consumerism has been replaced with connection, and the fundamentals of life — housing, food, education, healthcare — are no longer things people have to worry about.

As Simon puts it, this was “easily the most utopian scenario that someone has produced for the show so far.” But the conversation isn’t naive. Together, they unpack the real-world tensions between individualism and community, and the societal work required for such a future to emerge. It’s a vision rooted in deep congruence — a world where people show up the same in their work lives as they do in their personal lives.

They explore the joy in everyday things, the sticky process of imagining a better future, and how we might each become weak signals for the change we want to see — quietly lighting the way toward what’s possible.

This conversation is both deeply uplifting and quietly challenging. Because maybe meaning isn’t something we find. Maybe it’s something we practice.

GUEST:

Lizzie Davidson

In the second half of our two-part special, Simon Waller and Dr Jason Fox continue their exploration of the future of continuity—this time shifting the focus from the machine to life itself.

Set in the same imagined world of 2043, this scenario envisions a future where humans have reclaimed agency, hard work is meaningful, and governance is grounded in decentralised, transparent systems designed in service to all of life. Together, Simon and Jason dive into the value of scenario planning, the role of friction and creativity in shaping resilient futures, and what it means to lead a quest in times of ambiguity.

This is a future shaped not by optimisation—but by agency.

Welcome to a special ‘double feature’ of The Future With Friends, where we explore a two-part scenario set in the year 2043. In this first instalment, Simon Waller and Dr Jason Fox dive into The Future of Continuity (of The Machine), imagining a world where AI plays a central role in shaping human experiences.

As the machine takes over the stories we tell and the systems we trust, what becomes of creativity, critical thinking, and human connection? This episode unpacks a possible future dominated by optimisation, gamification, and algorithmic control - where megacorporations govern attention, and metrics dictate meaning.

Through the metaphor of the “infinite garden,” Simon and Jason explore the tension between compliance and curiosity, raising urgent questions about what we might lose when everything is engineered to work perfectly.

This is just the beginning. Stay tuned for Part 2, where we explore The Future of Continuity (Of Life).

GUEST:

In this episode, Simon Waller sits down with storytelling expert and actor Megan Davis to explore the uncertain — and deeply human — future of acting.

Megan shares her personal journey back to the craft after a long hiatus, reflecting on the profound impact acting has on personal growth and its role in helping us understand humanity. Together, Simon and Megan unpack the emotional power of performance and how stepping into different roles can help us reconnect with ourselves.

In Megan’s near-future scenario, technology and emotion collide. AI-generated actors and virtual sets challenge our notions of authenticity, empathy, and even art itself!

This opens up a fascinating discussion about our evolving relationships with AI, the importance of emotional depth in human interactions, and the future of acting in a world increasingly shaped by technology — and the cost savings that come with it.

They touch on the rise of automation in the film industry, the battle over digital rights, and the ethical complexity of ultimately owning a face or a feeling. At its core, this episode is a meditation on what makes us human — and whether that can ever truly be rendered.

Because in a world increasingly shaped by machines, acting might just be one of the last places we get to feel something real.

GUEST:

Megan Davis

In this episode of The Future with Friends, Simon Waller and Mykel Dixon explore “The Future of The Past.” Their conversation begins with a reflection on their first meeting and unfolds into a rich discussion on the role of ancient wisdom in navigating modern challenges. They examine how the arts can deepen human connection, how technology might enable cultural renewal, and why a belief in a hopeful future is essential for meaningful change. Grounded in Mykel’s vision, the episode emphasises the need to reconnect with nature, community, and intuition as a pathway to a more inclusive and vibrant world.

GUEST:

Mykel Dixon

In this week’s episode, Simon Waller is joined by long-time friend and collaborator Col Fink for a rich and deeply meaningful conversation about The Future of How We Live.

Inspired by Col’s own lived experience, the episode explores a future where communal living - like the village life of generations past - becomes not just desirable, but essential to our wellbeing. Together, they question whether our obsession with independence has taken us further from what truly nourishes us: connection, shared responsibility, and collective care.

From multigenerational homes to co-living models that prioritise community over consumption, their discussion considers two possible pathways to the same outcome. While Col explores this way of living through choice and privilege, Simon offers a more sobering perspective - one where housing affordability and urban pressures may force us to rethink how we live together.

This conversation invites us to reimagine what a good life looks like - and reminds us that the future we need may be closer to the one we left behind. More than just imagining a different future, Col is actively living it. And perhaps the best way to show our children what’s possible… is to live it ourselves.