Welcome to the PFI Website

The purpose of the Society of Police Futurists International (PFI) is to foster excellence in policing by promoting and applying the methodologies of futures research.

Welcome to the PFI community! Whether you’re a first time visitor to this site or a long-standing member, I encourage you to browse the various links and visit often to check for new resources and other updated notices or additions. The PFI Board strives to keep this site dynamic in content, and encourages members to make suggestions for new links, articles, descriptions of books, and other items of interest to policing and futures studies.   

PFI is a virtual organization. Members include active and retired law enforcement officers, civilian policing professionals, educators and other members of the academic community, students of criminal justice and futures studies, and other governmental and private sector security experts from around the world.

Membership in PFI allows access to a vigorous listserv where issues of emerging interest are discussed and debated from a variety of viewpoints. Access to the members’ login also provides resources for practitioners and academics working in criminal justice, from links to futures research and papers to affiliate sites and other members. 

PFI collaborates with the FBI through the Futures Working Group (FWG), whose purpose is to develop and encourage others to develop forecasts and strategies to ethically maximize the effectiveness of law enforcement bodies at all levels. Most FWG publications are shared with members at the point of publication; others are available for download on this site. FWG deals with a myriad of topics, from police leadership to cybercrime and futurist perspectives. Check the member login to see what they’re up to.   

As police futurists, we share common interests in visioning and creating the policing of tomorrow. The Board of Directors encourages members to further those interests by seeking out opportunities locally to promote the goals of PFI, share their knowledge, and foster a futurist approach.

We welcome the involvement of all members, seasoned and new, in many other activities that make PFI a thriving endeavor. Being a non-profit organization, we depend on voluntary support and encourage members to contribute to our growth through discussions, collaborations, and through volunteering for Committee or Board vacancies as they emerge.  We encourage any member in good standing to pursue the chance to make a difference!

What’s new for members

Be sure to check out both the World Future Society conference 2008 and Third Annual Proteus Futures Academic Workshop links. Both offer excellent experiences for police researchers and futurists.