CC BY 4.0 Attribution 4.0 InternationalRobinson, Jake M.Breed, Martin F.Barrable, AlexiaKönig, ArianeTaylor, RobinTimmis, Kenneth2025-12-012025-12-10Robinson, J.M., Breed, M.F., Barrable, A., König, A., Taylor, R. and Timmis, K. (2025) ‘Creative futures in education: building “imagination infrastructures” for microbiology and beyond’, Microbial Biotechnology, 18(12), p. e70284. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/1751-7915.70284.1751-7915https://eresearch.qmu.ac.uk/handle/20.500.12289/14515https://doi.org/10.1111/1751-7915.70284Alexia Barrable - ORCID: 0000-0002-5352-8330 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5352-8330VoR added 11/12/2025.Education is often reduced to the transmission of knowledge, yet in an era of climate disruption, biodiversity decline and social injustice and unrest, learners require more than facts and skills. They must develop adaptive capacities that enable them to question, critically analyse, imagine, act and empathise. One such fundamental capacity is imagination, which, despite its centrality to scientific discovery, is frequently undervalued in science education, particularly in fields considered ‘hard’ sciences. Microbiology offers a compelling context for better cultivating imagination because its study requires learners to visualise invisible worlds, connect them to ecological and human health, and explore how such knowledge might be applied to societal challenges. Here, we discuss the concept of imagination infrastructures – the environments, tools, practices, inner capacities and symbolic resources that enable collective imagination – as a framework for better embedding imagination into microbiology education and beyond. We illustrate how imagination infrastructures can help democratise learning, expand worldviews and promote a sense of responsibility, citizenship and stewardship. Overcoming curricular, cultural and resource barriers is required. By nurturing imagination as essential infrastructure, education can equip future microbiologists – and citizens more broadly – to navigate uncertainty and co-create regenerative futures.e70284enThis is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2025 The Author(s). Microbial Biotechnology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Imagination InfrastructureMicrobiologyImaginationEducationIMiLIArticle