READ ANTICIPATE’S TAKEAWAYS
DAY 1
DAY 2
Join the Futures of Democracies Conference in Reykjavík, taking place from February 21st to 23rd, 2024. This event seeks to inspire global efforts in renewing democracy for the 21st century, addressing wicked global challenges through participatory measures, citizen engagement, and group action.
Conference Overview
The three-day event, hosted in the vibrant city of Reykjavík, aspires to co-create concrete measures that leverage democratic values in tackling complex global issues. Participants are invited to engage in discussions, workshops, 'do-shops,' and talks, collaboratively developing specific solutions and ideas. Utilizing future thinking and methods, the conference aims to explore the concept of "Democracy+" as a tool for envisioning a 21st-century societal contract, linking democracy to civil society, social innovation, and peace.
Agenda Highlights
Wednesday, 21 February:
Opening ceremony with a welcome speech by Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Prime Minister of Iceland.
Dialogue and Democracies session featuring Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, former president of Iceland.
Exploration of climate, governance, institutions, and AI shaping the future of democracies.
Introduction to Labs and a social event at the Icelandic parliament, Alþingi.
Thursday, 22 February:
Democracies in a turbulent environment session addressing AI, open and collaborative governance, and social innovation.
Labs – Session 1 focusing on climate, paradigms, governance, institutions, and AI shaping tomorrow’s democracies.
Conference dinner at the restaurant Monkeys.
Friday, 23 February:
Societal changes and attitudes sessions with discussions on information warfare threats, anticipatory governance, and new leadership rules.
Lab sessions continue, followed by sharing results and plenary discussions.
Establishment of the Nordic Chapter with the signing of a memorandum of understanding.
The road ahead and closing remarks by conference leaders.
Why Participate?
The conference responds to the erosion of societal foundations, emphasizing the need for a renewed democracy capable of addressing climate change, short-termism, and non-science-based policy-making. Nordic Europe sees an opportunity to reshape democracy collaboratively, incorporating the voices of young people in a multigenerational co-design process.
How to Tackle Challenges?
The conference employs various future methods such as positive thinking, rapid prototyping, cartography, and scenario planning to co-develop new, action-based approaches. Participants will not only explore innovative solutions to wicked problems but also test prototypes in real-world environments.
Takeaways
Participants will leave with concrete prototypes to test in their communities, contributing to an iterative process and the creation of local Future Labs. The goal is to establish a network of interconnected Future Labs working towards the ongoing renewal of European democracy.
Who is Behind It?
The Nordic Chapter of the World Futures Studies Federation (WFSF), in collaboration with UNESCO and UN consultative partners, spearheads this initiative. Organizing committee members include the Icelandic Centre for Future Studies, Finland Futures Research Centre, and the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies, along with independent foresight practitioners in the Nordic countries, the Netherlands, and Germany.