Roots

The Oxford Ministry for the Future (OMF) is an interdisciplinary network of academics, artists and authors from Oxford and beyond, working on the world's grand challenges.

It was initiated in 2024 by Hertford Fellow Anette Mikes and former College Principal Tom Fletcher with the blessing and participation of Kim Stanley Robinson, whose eponymous novel gives OMF its name and mission: to be an interdisciplinary network and movement that amplifies the voices of the humanities in the discussion of our grand challenges, in dialogue with science.

To this end, the OMF invites featured authors to each event — authors who have written and published on the core themes of that gathering. This helps us convey important ideas beyond mere description: we can imagine alternative futures, empathise with nature, with more-than-human species and with future generations. It also allows us to speak in a language that translates across very different academic disciplines.

In this spirit, the OMF invites artists to amplify the discussions taking place on the panel and to help spread the messages that need to be heard about the challenges of today and tomorrow. Commissioned art, visual note-taking and music performances are just some examples of this in practice.

The OMF began as a project within Hertford College at the University of Oxford, with a series of events. It has since developed into much more: its own entity, an international and interdisciplinary network that extends well beyond the events themselves. It is currently expanding into University of Oxford courses, short film production and an author fellowship.