SOLVE THE CLIMATE CRISIS Christophe Bisson

By Derek Woodgate

Conference Chair

THE 24th World Futures Studies Federation (WFSF) World Conference will be held as a hybrid event in Berlin Germany from 26th-29th October 2021. While the focus will be on the in-person gathering at the amazing Humboldt Carré Conference Center in the heart of Berlin, there will be an online program that will include streaming of the key live sessions as well as special programming for online participants extended beyond the in-person conference hours.

The WFSF Conference is presented by our main partner PMU (Prince Mohammad bin Fahd University). The conference will combine plenary sessions, guest speakers, panels, workshops and experiential happenings, the presentation of scientific papers, as well as sponsor and exhibitor displays from across the globe.

The WFSF is a UNESCO and UN consultative partner and global NGO with members in over 60 countries. The conference reflects the values and vision of the WFSF, which brings together academics, researchers, practitioners, students and futuresfocused institutions to provide a forum for stimulation, exploration and exchange of ideas, visions, and plans for alternative futures, through longterm, big-picture thinking and radical change. The expansiveness of the WFSF universe is expressed through the conference theme: The Openness of Futures.

The theme reflects the broad dimensions and dynamics of futures studies and describes an arena in which we explore the expansiveness of our imagination – an open universe prepared to deal with the grand challenges of our time, beautifully articulated as desirable visions of sustainable progress and hope.

The Openness of Futures is an invitation to travel into a new era for futures, one in which you will be able to experiment with technology enhanced methods and teaching, transdisciplinary approaches to opportunity-based problem solving and new paradigms and concepts for global collaboration and societal development.

Those attending the WFSF 24th World Conference will enjoy the beauty and benefits of the Humboldt Carré facility with the program spread over 5 key areas, as well as a lounge for stimulating conversation, friendly debate, networking or simply contemplating the wisdom from the amazing keynotes, presentations, workshops or panels.

The five main rooms will be themed in a way that best expresses the inspiration for the program topics and the mode of delivery. Each room has been given a name that reflects its function and programming.

Starting with the 250+ seater Plenarium this area will primarily be used for plenary sessions, keynote speakers and top level presentations and panels.

The 80-seater Globalarium will provide the perfect platform for interactive presentations on the big challenges, planetary futures and topics such as the future of democracy, ethics and policy implications, and regional collaboration and sustainable development.

The Sensorium, which seats 40, will host presentations, panels, and scientific papers which will reflect the affective aspects of futures, living futures through sensory enhancement that connects us with imaginary worlds and unknown landscapes.

The Laboratorium provides a