Stimulating the imagination of what is possible
The moment that changed everything came in 2003. Donna Dupont was a frontline Registered Respiratory Therapist in Ontario when SARS arrived — the first global pandemic of the 21st century. She watched a health system struggle to get ahead of something it hadn't seen coming. The crisis was managed. But the experience left a mark. Something was missing from the way organizations prepared for the future.
That question followed her through twelve years at the Ontario Ministry of Health — first as a policy and planning advisor designing and implementing multi-million dollar health system initiatives, then as a health emergency manager responding to wildfires, floods, infectious disease risks, and CBRN events. She was recognized with six team awards for her work. She co-authored the Radiological Health Response Plan for the Province of Ontario. And she burned out — repeatedly — running from emergency to emergency in a system that had no time for anticipation, no tools for uncertainty, and no language for what she kept sensing was possible.
Multiple rounds of burnout took a real toll on her health. But inside the exhaustion was a conviction that wouldn't let go: a better future was possible. Organizations could learn to anticipate, not just react. Leaders could be equipped with the tools to see what was coming — and build stronger, more adaptive strategies. In 2015 she enrolled in the Strategic Foresight and Innovation program at OCAD University. Her master's thesis — Anticipation in Emergency Management — placed in the global top 3 by the Association of Professional Futurists. In 2017 she founded Purple Compass.
Nearly a decade later, Donna has led foresight work across healthcare, public safety, defence, global health security, and international development — including as principal investigator on internationally funded research supported by International Development Research Centre (IDRC), the UK Government, and the Global AMR Innovation Fund, and as a foresight practitioner for the Canadian Forces College, NATO Climate Change and Security Centre of Excellence, and Global Affairs Canada as part of the Archipelago of Design collaborative. What she has learned is that foresight is not a methodology you plug in and the answer magically flows out. It is fundamentally about how open an organization is to change — and whether its leaders have the courage and the clarity to shape what comes next. Her vision is a world where people and communities are curious, courageous, and have the agency to boldly shape a better world for future generations.
Because the future belongs to everyone.
These values have guided Purple Compass since its founding — and they shape every engagement we take on.
Collaboration and co-creation is part of our DNA.
Leadership
We foster anticipatory and adaptive leadership — equipping leaders with the foresight tools, shared language, and North Star clarity to shape what comes next, not just respond to it.
Knowledge
We believe the most powerful insights already exist inside your organization. Our role is to surface that collective intelligence — organizing it, building on it, and moving it forward into action.
Inclusiveness
The future belongs to everyone. We design foresight processes that bring diverse voices, lived experiences, and regional perspectives into the room — because the best futures are built collectively, not handed down.
Regeneration
We work with leaders who are committed to more than maintaining the present — actively restoring, renewing, and revitalizing the living systems, communities, and economies they serve. Our work is oriented toward net-positive impact — building strategies and futures that don't just meet the needs of today, but create better conditions for the generations that will inherit what we create.
Meet our team
