Futures & Foresight events
Upcoming events
Discover future Futures & Foresight events, conferences, festivals and much more!
Find a mix of ANTICIPATE-hosted events and courses, and other forward-thinking gatherings focused on the latest trends, new technologies, and fresh ideas shaping the futures.
African Futures Conference 2025: Insight, Imagination, Action
The African Futures Conference is the continent’s leading platform for exploring and amplifying African-led foresight. The 2025 edition brings together policymakers, analysts, researchers, young changemakers, and foresight practitioners for two days of bold thinking, rigorous analysis, and practical collaboration.
Reimaginando Futuros: Oportunidades de la Transición Ecológica (ANTICIPATE Webinar)
We’re partnering with T’inki – Centro de Pensamiento del Futuro (Ecuador) for an international webinar exploring the future of ecological transition in Latin America. This bilingual online session will bring together global and local perspectives to explore how futures thinking, scenario planning, and speculative design can help navigate one of the region’s defining challenges: balancing short-term economic pressures with long-term sustainability, indigenous rights, and planetary well-being.
Fixing the Future 2025
October 24th-25th in Barcelona, Spain
Over two packed days, Fixing the Future will gather the top 25 future-shaping projects from around the globe, showcasing innovative solutions in areas such as AI technologies, farming innovation, drought mitigation, and creative recycling.
SEWF25: Shaping Tomorrow – Collective Action for People and Planet
Oct 27-31, Taipei, Taiwan
The Social Enterprise World Forum (SEWF) returns in 2025 with a landmark edition hosted in Taipei, in collaboration with Impact Hub Taipei. As the world’s largest gathering of social entrepreneurs, SEWF25 brings together mission-driven leaders, innovators, and changemakers committed to transforming economies to prioritize people and the planet.
Future Tense 2025: Copenhagen
Oct 28th, 2025 in Copenhagen, Denmark
Future Tense, an international future-oriented business conference, will take place in Copenhagen for the first time on May 27, 2025 in partnership with the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies (CIFS).
World Futures Studies Federation – World Conference 2025
The 26th World Futures Studies Federation (WFSF) World Conference will gather global voices to address the convergence of economic, ecological, technological, political, and social challenges shaping the future. Under the theme Thriving Together, the event will focus on moving beyond resilience to envision sustainable and inclusive futures.
Falling Walls Science Summit 2025
The Falling Walls Science Summit is the international, interdisciplinary, and intersectoral forum for global science leaders. Held annually on the anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Summit asks: Which are the next walls to fall?
ESPAS 2025: Europe towards 2040
The European Strategy and Policy Analysis System (ESPAS) will host its 12th Annual Conference in Brussels, co-organized by the European Commission and the European Parliament. At a time of upheaval and growing uncertainty, this year’s conference will focus on the long-term strategic choices Europe faces as it looks ahead to 2040.
Dubai Future Forum 2025
Nov 18th-19th 2025, Dubai, UAE
The Dubai Future Forum is an annual event hosted by the Dubai Future Foundation at the iconic Museum of the Future that brings together futurists, foresight practitioners, thought leaders, and experts from academia and various industries as well as government to anticipate challenges, imagine opportunities, share foresight, and shape the future.
Megatrends: See the Futures in a New Light (ANTICIPATE Lecture)
Dec 1st, 2025, Aarhus, Denmark
In collaboration with Folkeuniversitet, we are hosting a lecture exploring what the world looks like when seen through the lens of megatrends. In this lecture, we will be introduced to eight global shifts that are already shaping our future - from technological breakthroughs and climate change to changes in the way we live and work.
UNESCO World Futures Day 2025
Dec 2nd, 2025, Global
To underscore the universal nature of anticipatory activities and advance futures thinking, UNESCO has designated December 2nd as World Futures Day, emphasizing the role of foresight in addressing present and future challenges. Aligned with the UN Secretary-General's "Our Common Agenda," this initiative advocates for using foresight to secure a sustainable future. A key aspect of UNESCO's approach is the promotion of futures literacy as a capability for all, fostering inclusive discussions.
Global Dialogue Platform on Anticipatory Humanitarian Action
The event facilitates dialogue, collaboration, and innovation to better prepare for and respond to humanitarian challenges. This 10th anniversary edition reflects on the platform's impact over the years while continuing to promote proactive approaches to humanitarian work.
Megatrends: See the Futures in a New Light (ANTICIPATE Lecture)
Dec 2nd, 2025, Aalborg, Denmark
In collaboration with Folkeuniversitet, we are hosting a lecture exploring what the world looks like when seen through the lens of megatrends. In this lecture, we will be introduced to eight global shifts that are already shaping our future - from technological breakthroughs and climate change to changes in the way we live and work.
Vision Weekend US 2025
Foresight Institute’s flagship annual event brings together researchers, entrepreneurs, funders, and policymakers to explore bold ideas and practical strategies for flourishing futures. Across three days, participants will engage in talks at the frontiers of science and technology, curated 1:1 meetings, office hours, unconference sessions, tech demos, interactive art, and a $10,000 project pitch contest.
Masterclass: Augmenting Foresight (ANTICIPATE)
Augmenting Foresight Masterclass
Using AI to expand your foresight practice
AI is rapidly changing how we work with the futures, from scanning signals to creating scenarios and prototyping solutions.
But how do you use these tools without losing the depth and discipline of good foresight? In this hands-on and reflective masterclass, foresight experts Mathias Behn Bjørnhof (ANTICIPATE) and Chloé de Ruffray explore how AI can become a powerful partner in your futures work. Instead of an easy (but dangerous) shortcut, it can become a great catalyst for creativity and clarity.
You’ll learn practical tools, smart prompts, and the do’s and don’ts of AI-augmented foresight.
Designed for foresight professionals, strategists, and curious thinkers ready to expand their craft.
💻 Online – 90 minutes
📹 Recording + slides available for all registered participants right after the session
Join the waitlist here: https://tally.so/r/w872Qz
Scenario 2025: Scenario Planning and Foresight Conference
The fourth international conference on Scenario Planning and Foresight will take place at Warwick Business School under the theme “Making Connections.” Building on the success of previous editions (2015, 2018, 2023), the conference expands its scope to include both scenario planning and the wider field of foresight.
World Futures Day - Young Voices 2026
An annual 24-hour global conversation about the future, co-led by young people and futurists. Every hour, participants from different time zones join online to share their ideas, aspirations, concerns, and visions for the future. Launched in 2021 by Teach the Future in collaboration with The Millennium Project and other partners, the event creates a dedicated platform for youth to be active contributors in shaping the futures they will inherit.
SXSW 2026
SXSW 2026, taking place in Austin, Texas, will once again feature its hallmark blend of music, film, and interactive programming — including an Innovation-focused event and a dedicated Futurism track. The Futurism track will gather thought leaders, creatives, and technologists to explore long-range thinking, speculative design, and the societal impacts of cutting-edge developments.
World Beautiful Business Forum
In 2026, the House of Beautiful Business turns ten, marking the milestone with the launch of the World Beautiful Business Forum, a new gathering for those who dream bigger, aim higher, and seek more. The forum invites bold, original, and whimsical minds from across disciplines to think, feel, and do business beyond business.
Future of Everything Festival 2026: Work, Wealth and Health in an AI-Enabled Future
The Wall Street Journal’s flagship live event, The Future of Everything, brings together leading voices and influential figures from across the full spectrum of the Journal’s coverage—from business, technology, and economics to sports, entertainment, and style.
Rulebreaker Future Congress 2026
The Rulebreaker Future Congress returns in 2026, setting new standards for inspiration, innovation, and foresight. Celebrating its 25th anniversary, this landmark event promises to be bigger, bolder, and more relevant than ever before, bringing together people whose ideas are changing the world.
Futures Conference 2026: Sustainability, Temporalities and Futures
The Futures Conference 2026 will explore the theme Sustainability, Temporalities and Futures, examining how different concepts of time shape sustainable transitions and long-term thinking. The event will bring together researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to address pressing global challenges from temporal, ecological, and societal perspectives.
EADI/IOB 2026 Conference — Shaping Sustainable Futures: Global Challenges, (G)local Solutions?
The 2026 EADI/IOB conference will explore the dynamics of sustainability across ecological, socio-economic, cultural, and political dimensions, with a focus on how global challenges intersect with local realities. The event will examine tensions and synergies between global frameworks—such as climate agreements, the Sustainable Development Goals, and international trade policies—and local, context-driven approaches to sustainability.
Anticipation Conference 2026
The 6th International Conference on Anticipation will convene at the Design Department of Politecnico di Milano, bringing together researchers, designers, philosophers, policymakers, and practitioners to explore how ideas about futures operate under uncertainty, indeterminacy, and unknowing.
2026 Transition Design Conference: Weaving Regenerative Futures
The fifth Transition Design Conference will gather academics, researchers, and practitioners working on sustainability transitions and systems change, as well as those new to the field.
ATINER's 12th Annual International Symposium on Foresight
The symposium aims to gather scholars, researchers, and students from various fields related to Futures Studies. Participants will explore a range of methodologies, including scenario-building, horizon scanning, forecasting, roadmapping, back-casting, technology assessment, Delphi surveys, and the use of social platforms.
Curious2027 Future Insight Conference
July 2027, online and Mainz, Germany
The Curious – Future Insight™ Conference is a large gatherings focused on the future of science and technology. The conference brings together top scientists, innovators, and industry leaders to discuss breakthroughs in health, artificial intelligence, synthetic biology, material sciences, energy, robotics, mobility, space flight, and more.
Human Futures Summit 2025
Oct 21st, London, UK
The Human Futures Summit is an invite-only gathering of radical thinkers, builders, and funders exploring the far edge of human possibility. Hosted by Unruly Futures, the summit delves into what it means to be human in a world shaped by artificial general intelligence, robotics, and life-extension technologies.
Utopian Hours 2025
October 17–19, 2025, in Turin, Italy.
Utopian Hours is an annual festival dedicated to "city making," showcasing ideas, projects, and places that enhance urban life globally. This event serves as a platform for city makers, activists, architects, and innovators to share experiences and stimulate new visions for urban evolution.
The Asia Pacific Futures Network Conference 2025: Can AI Create Ethical & Green Futures?
Oct 16th-17th 2025, New Taipei City, Taiwan
The 11th Asia-Pacific Futures Network (APFN) Conference will take place at Tamkang University in New Taipei City, Taiwan. This event will bring together foresight practitioners, researchers, and policymakers from across the Asia-Pacific region to exchange ideas, explore emerging trends, and advance futures thinking in a collaborative environment.
Megatrends: See the Futures in a New Light (ANTICIPATE Lecture)
Oct 8th, 2025, Copenhagen, Denmark
In collaboration with Folkeuniversitet, we are hosting a lecture exploring what the world looks like when seen through the lens of megatrends. In this lecture, we will be introduced to eight global shifts that are already shaping our future - from technological breakthroughs and climate change to changes in the way we live and work.
Masterclass: Doing Foresight (ANTICIPATE)
Doing Foresight Masterclass
A hands-on guide to frameworks and foresight intelligence
Foresight is a great asset to explore future possibilities, but without guidance on which tools to use when and how, it can quickly become overwhelming. In this practical and inspiring masterclass, foresight experts Mathias Behn Bjørnhof (ANTICIPATE) and Chloé de Ruffray share how to unlock the strategic value of foresight for your clients or your team by choosing, applying, and mastering the right tools. Perfect for new and seasoned foresight professionals, strategists, and curious minds eager to sharpen and expand their practice.
💻 Online – 75 minutes
📹 Recording + slides available for all registered participants right after the session
Get the replay here: https://www.anticipate.dk/store/p/doing-foresight
Thoughts for Future Festival 2025
Thoughts for Future Festival is a student-organized gathering that explores diverse perspectives on sustainability through workshops, talks, and open discussions. It’s a space where dialogue, imagination, and learning can flourish across disciplines and perspectives.
Join ANTICIPATE for a creative futures workshop at the festival
Ljubljana Forum 2025: City of Wellbeing
The Ljubljana Forum celebrates its 15th anniversary as a leading platform for the future development of cities. This year’s theme is “City of Well-Being: Sports & Recreation Infrastructure”, exploring how sustainable, smart, inclusive, and resilient approaches can shape urban futures.
Mathias Behn Bjørnhof will speak on “Anticipating the City of Well-Being”
Festival for the Future 2025
At the end of September, Copenhagen will host the Festival for the Future, a two-day celebration where imagination meets action. Set in the historic City Hall, the event will create a “time portal” to 2030, inviting participants to rehearse the future we want to build.
Congreso de Futuros RIBER 2025
The Congreso de Futuros of the Ibero-American Foresight Network (RIBER) is a forum for intergenerational and cross-sector dialogue on the futures of El Salvador and Ibero-America. The 2025 edition explores transformative possibilities across technology, renewable energy, agroindustry, and manufacturing, with a horizon to 2050.
Future Festival World Summit 2025: How to Innovate in the Era of AI Super Agents
Marking its 10th anniversary, Trend Hunter’s flagship Future Festival World Summit returns to Toronto with an immersive three-day experience dedicated to navigating the rise of AI Super Agents and their transformative impact on innovation, industries, and human potential.
esse-sense Future Forum 2025
The esse-sense Future Forum 2025 will take place over two days in Tokyo under the theme “The Path to the Future – Co-Creation of Knowledge and Future Pathways.” Organized by esse-sense Inc., the forum will convene researchers, entrepreneurs, business leaders, and policymakers to explore how research knowledge can help shape and realize future societies.
CIMIC Foresight Conference 2025
The Annual CIMIC Foresight Conference (ACFC25) will explore the future of Civil-Military Cooperation (CIMIC) in an era of instability, misinformation, and complex crises. Building on the momentum of ACFC24, this year’s edition will focus on evolving CIMIC capabilities, the role of Multi-Domain Operations (MDO), and the military’s contribution to human security.
TechBBQ 2025: Build to Matter
What started as a small barbecue in a Copenhagen park in 2013 has grown into Scandinavia’s leading tech summit, where innovation meets community spirit. This year’s guiding theme Build to Matter focuses on entrepreneurship, innovation, and technology with a sharper emphasis on building intentionally and collaboratively.
Our founder Mathias Behn Bjørnhof will moderate a panel on the Future of Work and AI.
The Future of Creativity & Compassion
Aug 15-17 in Toronto, Canada
The Association of Professional Futurists (APF), in collaboration with OCAD University, will host a unique gathering dedicated to exploring transformational futures through the lenses of creativity and compassion. This marks APF’s first event since 2023 and its return to Toronto since 2010.
Masterclass: Selling Foresight (ANTICIPATE)
July 29th, online
Foresight is gaining traction, but selling it remains one of the toughest parts of the job. Join Chloé de Ruffray and ANTICIPATE founder Mathias Behn Bjørnhof for Selling Foresight, a 75-minute masterclass for those looking to build trust, shape compelling offers, and overcome the resistance many of us face. We’ll explore how to start small, tailor your offer, build credibility over time, and turn interest into action. Whether you’re freelancing or driving change in-house, this session will give you sharp strategies, honest insights, and practical tools to make your foresight work land. Replay and slides included.
ATINER's 11th Annual International Symposium on Foresight
July 28-31 2025, Athens, Greece
The symposium aims to gather scholars, researchers, and students from various fields related to Futures Studies. Participants will explore a range of methodologies, including scenario-building, horizon scanning, forecasting, roadmapping, back-casting, technology assessment, Delphi surveys, and the use of social platforms.
Festival der Zukunft 2025
July 3rd-6th 2025, Munich, Germany
The Festival der Zukunft 2025 will once again bring together leading thinkers, innovators, and artists to explore the technologies and ideas shaping the future. Hosted at the Forum der Zukunft in the Deutsches Museum, the festival will feature keynotes, panels, exhibitions, workshops, and cultural performances, providing a dynamic space for exchange and exploration.
Possibility Studies Conference 2025: Communities of Possibility
June 30th-July 4th, Dublin, Republic of Ireland
The 5th International Conference of Possibility Studies will take place at Maynooth University, Ireland, under the theme "Communities of Possibility." The event will gather scholars, researchers, and practitioners from across disciplines to explore the methods, applications, and impact of possibility studies in various contexts.
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[Y]our 2040 Annual Gathering 2025: Tomorrow Envisioned
June 24-27, 2025 in La Punt, Switzerland
The [Y]our 2040 Annual Gathering 2025, themed "Tomorrow Envisioned" will be set in La Punt, Switzerland. This event will convene a diverse community of futurists, innovators, and change-makers dedicated to shaping positive, pragmatic, and regenerative futures.
LSE Festival 2025: Visions for the Future
June 16-21, London, UK
The LSE Festival returns with a powerful theme: Visions for the Future. In June, the London School of Economics and Political Science will host a series of free events exploring the urgent challenges and transformative opportunities shaping our collective tomorrow.
Presidents' Summit 2025: Connecting the Leaders of Tomorrow
June 10th-11th, 2025, Copenhagen, Denmark
Presidents Summit is one of Northern Europe’s premier business conferences. The Summit provides a vital platform for business leaders and decision-makers from across Europe and beyond to develop their businesses, explore new ideas, and expand their global networks.
The Futures Conference 2025: Futures of Technologies
June 10-12 2025, Turku, Finland
The Futures of Technologies international conference, taking place in Turku, Finland, in June 2025, will serve as a cross-disciplinary platform for researchers, professionals, and innovators to explore and discuss the dynamic interaction between society and technology. The conference will focus on the mutual shaping of socio-technical transformations, emphasizing how technology and society influence each other in the development of future systems and practices.
Creative Bureaucracy Festival 2025
June 5th 2025 in Berlin, Germany
The Creative Bureaucracy Festival returns to Berlin in 2025, bringing together nearly 2,000 participants from government, politics, civil society, and other change-making organizations to celebrate and rethink public sector innovation. Known as a platform for forward-thinking ideas and transformative solutions, the festival aims to revolutionize the principles, processes, and practices of public institutions.
Unlocking the Future (IASP 2025 Global Conference)
June 2nd-4th 2025, Philadelphia, USA
The 2025 IASP Global Conference will focus on the theme "Strategic Resilience: Fostering a Culture of Adaptive Planning & Execution”. This conference will explore how embedding adaptive planning and execution into organizational culture can enhance resilience and responsiveness in a rapidly evolving world.
SXSW London 2025: Beautiful Collisions
June 2-7th 2025 in London, UK
London will host the first-ever European SXSW from 2-7 June 2025 in Shoreditch, a vibrant hub for creativity and technology. The event promises a dynamic convergence of industries, disciplines, and artforms, offering a platform for innovation, discovery, and collaboration. Attendees can expect keynote talks, artistic interactions, screenings, showcases, fashion activations, and much more, all centered around the theme of "Beautiful Collisions."
Future of Everything Festival 2025
May 21st-22nd, 2025, New York City, USA
Experience The Wall Street Journal’s Future of Everything Festival. Engage with global newsmakers discussing transformative trends, opportunities and challenges across various sectors: business, tech, economics, finance, government, science, sports, style, entertainment and more.
Rulebreaker Future Congress 2025
The Rulebreaker Future Congress returns in 2025 with an expanded program, featuring cutting-edge discussions on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Longevity. The congress brings together global experts, business leaders, and innovators to explore the latest advancements in technology and strategy.
ANTICIPATE will be on stage, see you there!
The Festival for the Life-Centered Economy│House of Beautiful Business
May 15-18th, 2025, Tangier, Morrocco
This event brings together a global community of business leaders, scientists, creatives, policymakers, activists, and educators, along with local entrepreneurs and artists, to explore and reimagine the future of business. Tangier, a city known for its cultural and geographical significance, serves as the backdrop for this unique gathering.
Futures4Europe Foresight Conference 2025
May 15-16th 2025 in Vienna, Austria
The Futures4Europe Foresight Conference 2025 will explore the transformative concept of Future-Oriented Collective Intelligence (FOCI) as a means to address complex and interconnected challenges. This inaugural event, hosted by the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology under the Eye of Europe Project, will convene the international Research & Innovation Foresight Community in Vienna’s vibrant 7th district.
University:Future Festival 2025
13-15 May 2025, Berlin, Germany (hybrid)
The University:Future Festival will return for its fifth edition from 13-15 May 2025, continuing its role as the largest event focused on the (digital) future of academic education. Topics for this year’s event include artificial intelligence (AI), future skills, didactics, and strategic processes.
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