Marina Gorbis

Marina Gorbis is the Executive Director at the Institute for the Future (IFTF), a 50-year old non-profit research and consulting organization located in Silicon Valley. Gorbis has collaborated with hundreds of organizations across business, education, government, and philanthropy to foster strategic development and innovation. Her work is distinguished by a global perspective and deep ethnographic research, focusing on the daily lives of people in diverse regions including Brazil, Russia, India, China, and Silicon Valley. Gorbis has also launched initiatives such as the Workable Futures Initiative at IFTF, aimed at understanding new work patterns and prototyping Positive Platforms for work. Additionally, she introduced the concept of Universal Basic Assets (UBA), which considers different types of assets and their roles in economic security and equity.

Gorbis has authored two significant publications. Her first book, "The Nature of the Future: Dispatches from the Socialstructed World," delves into the connections between technological infrastructure changes and organizational landscapes across various sectors. Her latest book, "Socialstructing: Designing for the Future," offers insights into a de-institutionalized economic landscape, further establishing her expertise in transformative economic structures. Gorbis is a recognized speaker, having keynoted at prestigious events such as the World Business Forum and the National Association of Broadcasters annual convention.

Gorbis holds a bachelor's degree in psychology and a master’s degree in public policy from University of California, Berkeley. Her contributions to future-oriented discourse extend to digital media, where she has been a guest blogger on BoingBoing.net and writes for major media outlets. Gorbis's leadership also includes founding the Global Innovation Forum and the Global Ethnographic Network (GEN), initiatives that enhance global cooperation and understanding in innovation and ethnographic research.