HUMAN FUTURES... December 2021

Page 50

UNITED NATIONS IS INCREASING ITS FORESIGHT CAPACITY By Jerome C. Glenn CEO, The Millennium Project

T

HE United Nations Secretary-

of the Chilean Node of The Millennium

and academic leaders around the world

General Antonio Guterres’s

Project proposed that an open letter

endorsed the letter, calling for a new UN

report Our Common Agenda

be sent to the UN Secretary General

Office of Strategic Threats to coordinate

https://www.un.org/en/content/

suggesting a feasibility study to be

global research on long-range strategic

common-agenda-report/ is the

conducted by the UN Secretariat on the

or existential threats to humanity, and to

most important UN document for

establishment of such a UN Off ice. The

their prevention.

implementing global futures research

letter was circulated among colleagues

and foresight as a function of the UN

of The Millennium Project, the World

f rom The Millennium Project with the

ever produced.

Futures Studies Federation, and the

World Futures Studies Federation and

September 2, 2021 the open letter

Association of Professional Futurists.

the Association of Professional Futurists

Project along with the World Futures

Press releases were issued2, listservs

including 200+ signatories and a

Studies Federation, the Association of

discussed the idea, and many futurists

background memo was delivered to UN

Professional Futurists, and Humanity+

referred to the letter in speeches and

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

conduced World Future Day: the 24-

correspondence.

March 1, 2021 The Millennium

hour around-the-world no agenda

By August 14, 2021 more than 200

Subsequently, when Our Common Agenda report was presented by the

conversation on the future. Among the

leaders in government, business,

Secretary-General to the UN General

many suggestions and insights shared

academia, and futurists including internet

Assembly, we sent an addendum to the

that day was the idea of creating a UN

pioneer Vint Cerf, and Nobel Prize

open letter explaining how the proposed

Office on Strategic or Existential Threats 1.

Laureate Oscar Arias and other business,

UN Office on Strategic or Existential

Ambassador Héctor Casanueva, Chair

political, technological, environmental,

Threats fits into and supports the report:

50

HUMAN FUTURES


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