The concept of future-proofing is the process of anticipating the future and developing methods of minimizing the effects of shocks and stresses due to future events.
The concepts of future-proofing and resiliency both offer significant and compelling ideas that can be beneficial to the development of design solutions in the built environment and, more specifically, historic buildings. See the individual Principles for more detail.
While the connotations of the term “future-proofing” may be considered negative if the future is thought of in a negative light, similar to bullets and bullet-proofing, future-proofing can also be taken in a positive light. Buildings may also be able to take advantage of the changing attributes of a continually evolving environment, such as the restoration of blighted neighborhoods. If the term “future-proofing” is unpalatable to preservationists, one could also argue for a wider definition of “resiliency” since they both promote very similar concepts.