The Institute for Futures Studies has become the coordinator for the FuturICT Nordic Hub. The FuturICT Nordic Hub represents Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, and is a p

After two of the most damaging hurricanes in history affected the Gulf of Mexico just a few days apart, the impact of climate-induced catastrophes is finally getting some attention. However, in truth,

Why do we need social progress? On July of 2014 a monumental task began as hundreds of the world's leading academics came together to set new standards for a just, secure and healthy global society. T has been tirelessly forming a non-partisan report addressed to all social actors, movements, organizations, politicians, and decision-makers in order to provide an architecture for present and future global issues and crises.

Gustaf Arrhenius will give the Tore Browaldh-lecture this year in Gothenburg. One of the most important insights to emerge over the past hundred years is that the actions of the current generation – th

Do you frown at people who sneeze in their hand instead of in a tissue? Would you be prepared to punish that person by frowning at him or her, showing you dislike the behaviour? In that case you are a

International Panel on Social Progress (IPSP)

Many wealthy societies face challenges and developing countries tend to attempt to imitate their solutions in order to end poverty and hardships instead of finding new models. Can we hope for a better society in the future?

Jonathan Boston, Professor of Public Policy, School of Government, Victoria University of Wellington.ABSTRACTFundamental to good governance is the active anticipation, assessment and management of risBased on this analysis, the paper applies the concept to the policy challenges posed by climate change adaptation, particularly sea-level rise. In this regard, humanity is confronted with a slow-motion disaster that will grow progressively in scope and scale, sometimes abruptly. Societies will face significant uncertainty, multiple and compounding risks, immense costs and difficult intertemporal and intragenerational trade-offs. More specifically, rising sea levels will have a major and increasing impact on the built environment in coastal regions. Globally, hundreds of millions of people could be forced this century to relocate from areas at risk from coastal erosion and inundation, higher water tables, and more frequent and intense rainfall events. Mitigating some of the risks and increasing societal resilience via anticipatory, pro-active, prudent and adaptive policy responses will be politically challenging, not least because of the large upfront costs, the likelihood of powerful blocking coalitions, and the complexities of inter-governmental and inter-agency coordination. This paper outlines how, in the interests of sound anticipatory governance, these challenges might be addressed through the creation of new governmental institutions, funding mechanisms and revised planning processes.

Åsa Burman, Director of Studies in practical philosophy at Stockholm University and affilited researcher at the Institute for Futures Studies & Katharina Berndt Rasmussen, Researcher at the Institu

Venue: Holländargatan 13, Stockholm Research seminar with Erez Maggor, Assistant Professor at Ben-Gurion University. He studies the political economy of industrial policy and innovation. Register here &

On the 25–26th of March, UNESCO organizes a big international workshop titled "Measuring Social Public Policies: Inclusiveness and Impact" in Paris. The workshop is organized within UNESO's Management