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UNESCO-PMU Symposium 2023: Towards Evaluation Frameworks for Futures Literacy and Foresight

Register for the Symposium
Registration is now closed as the event is at capacity. For further expressions of interest, please contact futures@unesco.org.
Futures thinking and practice is gaining momentum and recognition worldwide. Many communities, be it public or private institutions or international organizations, are engaging in such practices to rethink their strategies, build capacity to better deal with uncertainty and complexity, or to innovate for greater positive impact. The need to understand the impact of futures and foresight work is more important than ever, not only to establish accountability modalities within the field but also to showcase noteworthy achievements.
The UNESCO-PMU Symposium 2023 serves as a platform of exchange to explore possible processes for review and evaluation, map current evaluation practices, and discuss effective evaluation approaches, both quantitative and qualitative, fit for different purposes and contexts. Participants will be able to share reflections on futures-oriented focuses and explore collaboration synergies among UNESCO Chairs, futures researchers, and practitioners.
Experts in the field are invited to an open dialogue and knowledge exchange, to establish the scope and purpose of this work, to map the existing and anticipated challenges and opportunities, and to recommend future research priorities.
Call for Articles: Online Publication on Evaluation Frameworks for Futures Literacy and Foresight
Submission Deadline: 05 September 2023
UNESCO Social and Human Sciences is pleased to announce a call for articles submission for an Online Publication on Evaluation Frameworks for Futures Literacy and Foresight, following the insightful UNESCO – PMU Symposium held on the 21st and 22nd of June, 2023 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris.


June 21 2023 (Day 1)
Welcoming | 14:30 - 15:15
Welcoming Remarks: Gabriela Ramos, Assistant Director General, Social and Human Sciences, UNESCO
The State of Futures Studies in the World: Sotirios Zygiaris, Dean of the College of Business Administration, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University (Saudi Arabia)
UNESCO-PMU Futures Literacy Playbook Launch: Mariagrazia Squicciarini, Chief Executive Office and Director of Division for Social Policies a.i., Social and Human Sciences, UNESCO
First Panel | 15:15 - 16:35
Moderator: Shermon Cruz, Chair of the Association of Professional Futurists, and Chairholder, UNESCO Chair in Anticipatory Governance and Regenerative Cities at Northwestern University (The Philippines)
Presentations:
- “Advancing Foresight Evaluation Practice and Thinking”
- Annette Gardner, Associate Professor (retired) at the University of California, Director of the Association of Professional Futurists’ Taskforce on Foresight Evaluation (USA) (remote)
- “Organization’s in capacity to anticipate and include over time: evaluating the transformation towards an inclusive future through anticipation practices?"
- Narcis Heraclide, Doctoral Candidate at University of Poitiers, Head of Innovation at Paul Guinot Association (France)
- Fabrice Roubelat, Chairholder, UNESCO Chair on Foresight and Strategic International Intelligence, University of Poitiers School of Management (France)
- “Towards Evaluating Responsible Foresight”
- Ted Fuller, Chairholder, UNESCO Chair on Responsible Foresight for Sustainable Development, University of Lincoln (United Kingdom)
- Anne Marchais-Roubelat, Associate Professor, Le Cnam (Conservatoire national des arts et métiers / National Conservatory of Arts and Crafts) (France)
- April K Ward, PhD Candidate, University of Lincoln (United Kingdom)
Second Panel | 16:50 - 18:10
Moderator: Lourdes Rodriguez, Senior Foresight Consultant, Global Hub Director at Teach the Future (Spain)
Presentations:
- “The Futures Consciousness Scale as a tool to evaluate and assess futures education”
- Sanna Ahvenharju, PhD, Senior Research Fellow and Deputy Director of Finland Futures Research Centre (Finland)
- “A New Approach for Research for Future Education”
- Yu Jinshen, Joint Doctoral Candidate with East China Normal University and Ecole des Ponts (China)
- Bu Yuhua, Professor and Deputy Head of the Institute of Schooling Reform and Development, East China Normal University (China)
- “Survey for Anticipatory Stance Evolution”
- Norbert Kołos, Managing Partner, 4CF (Poland)
Closing | 18:10 - 18:45
- Introduction of Q-Sort (tbc)
- Wrap up and closing
Evening Reception | 18:45 - 20:00
22 June 2023 (Day 2)
Welcoming | 09:00 - 09:30
Third Panel | 09:30 - 10:50
Moderator: Ibon Zugasti, Partner/Director, European Institute for Futures Studies and Strategy (PROSPEKTIKER), Member of the Board of Directors of the Millennium Project and Node Chairman in Spain (Spain)
Presentations:
- “Testing a systems transformation approach to evaluation of strategic foresight”
- Peter Glenday, Programme and Research Director, School of International Futures (United Kingdom)
- “Evaluation strategies in an AI-based horizon scanning process: insights from BMBF project 'Wertschöpfungsradar'”
- Ludwig Weh, Research Fellow, Unit Futures and Innovation, Fraunhofer Center for International Management and Knowledge Economy (Germany)
- Anne Sonnenmoser, Research Fellow, Unit Futures and Innovation, Fraunhofer-Center for International Management and Knowledge Economy (Germany)
- “Evaluation frameworks for Futures and Foresight – practical examples from Sitra, the Finnish Innovation Fund”
- Rose Thompson Coon, Senior Lead, Impact Evaluation, Finnish Innovation Fund, Sitra (Finland)
- Katri Vataja, Director of Strategy and Foresight, Finnish Innovation Fund, Sitra (Finland)
Briefing on UN Work related to Futures for Intergenerational Equity | 10:50 - 11:30
Presenters:
Tiina Neuvonen, Strategic Foresight Lead, United Nations Global Pulse Finland
Christin Pfeiffer, Programme Specialist, Futures Literacy and Foresight, Social and Human Sciences, UNESCO
Fourth Panel | 11:50 - 13:10
Moderator: Muamar Salameh, Director of the Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd Center for Futuristic Studies and Dean of Faculty Affairs, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University (Saudi Arabia)
Presentations:
- “A novel country development planning approach for Botswana: Two proposals for evaluation”
- Tanja Hichert, Chairholder, UNESCO Chair in Complex Systems and Transformative African Futures, Stellenbosch University (South Africa)
- “A Foresight Framework for Building An Anticipatory System for Culture and Tourism: The Department of Culture and Tourism: Abu Dhabi Case Study”
- Fawaz Hazza Abu Sitta, Chairholder, UNESCO Chair in Anticipatory Systems for Prosperous Future, University of Dubai, (United Arab Emirates) (remote)
- “What method should be adopted to evaluate Moroccan national “prospective” exercises?”
- Manal Mouhsine, Doctoral Candidate, Africa Institute for Research in Economics and Social Sciences (AIRESS), UM6P (Morocco)
Free time for lunch | 13:10 - 14:30
Guided Networking Activity | 14:30 - 15:00
Featuring group work to explore upcoming opportunities/joint projects and initiatives.
Fifth Panel | 15:00 - 16:20
Moderator: Erik F. Øverland, President of World Futures Studies Federation (Norway)
Presentations:
- “Future Orienteering Evaluation Model: Forecasting, Foresight and Anticipation Indexes”
- Roberto Poli, Professor of Philosophy of Science and Chairholder, UNESCO Chair in Anticipatory Systems, University of Trento (Italy)
- “Using Paradoxical Thinking to make sense of the Future”
- Laura Bechthold, Professor for Technology Assessment & Cultural Management, Bavarian Foresight-Institute at TH Ingolstadt (Germany)
- “Indigenous knowledge and approaches to evaluating foresight and futures in the Pacific”
- Emily Sharp, Director, Strategy, Performance and Learning, Pacific Community-SPC (Fiji)
Closing: Collective Reflections | 16:20 - 17:30
Speaker Presentations
Below are presentation slides from the UNESCO-PMU Symposium that speakers have agreed to share.
Contact
Christin Pfeiffer, Programme Specialist, Futures Literacy and Foresight, c.pfeiffer@unesco.org
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