The unprecedented speed and rate of change of globalization, technological development and dissemination and social evolution are raising fundamental questions and generating new types of challenges and complexities that express in terms of climate change, financial crises, skills gap, widening inequalities, immigration, increasing insecurity, and other fundamental doubts about the future. This conference will explore both the challenges and human responses to them and what needs to be done to moderate the consequences of rapid technological change, mitigate its disruptive impacts and maximize its positive potential derived from the increasing scientific, technological and organizational knowledge and capabilities we possess in the 21^st century.

All these changes necessitate a rapid evolution of knowledge in the world along multiple dimensions: knowledge of the global impacts and effective means for global coordination; knowledge of the interconnectivity between different sectors of society and development of integrated concepts expressing their interrelationship; knowledge of the social process by which we translate ideas into effective action in society. Thus, this conference seeks to develop the comprehensive and inclusive knowledge required to transform rapid change into progressive global social evolution.  

IIASA Acting Deputy DG/CEO Nebojsa Nakicenovic will give a keynote talk in the closing session on The World in 2050 and the Six grand transformations (May 17 16:45-17:30).

Last edited: 08 May 2019