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Since 2020, UNESCO's Management of Social Transformations & Foresight Section (MOST), within the Social and Human Sciences Sector (SHS) and the Prince Mohammad bin Fahd University (PMU) have forged a dynamic partnership dedicated to advancing global futures capacity-building. Together, we have engaged in a multifaceted approach encompassing research, publications, teaching, and the facilitation of high-level stakeholder discussions. Our collaborative efforts have led to the successful execution of futures workshops, the hosting of significant events like the Futures Literacy Summit and World Futures Day, as well as the groundwork for the establishment of a master’s degree in Futures Studies at PMU. Notably, the partnership has also given rise to the UNESCO Chair in Transitional and Intergenerational Anticipation at PMU. 

The UNESCO-PMU Symposium, a cornerstone of our collaboration, has explored crucial themes such as the mainstreaming of futures studies into university curricula worldwide in 2021, the advancement of evaluation frameworks in futures studies in 2023, and in 2024, a focus on youth and future generations. This symposium serves as a platform for research and thought leadership, fostering dialogue and innovation across policymakers, civil society and the private sector.

Youth and Future Generations

More than half of our global population is below the age of 35, a testament to how critical it is that needs of young people do not go unnoticed in policymaking. It is vital for leaders of today to foster meaningful engagement with youth and consider their responsibilities to future generations. 

In 1997, UNESCO established the Declaration on the Responsibilities of the Present Generations Towards Future Generations. Since then, the United Nations has continued to take steps toward meaningful youth engagement, representation of futures generations and intergenerational equity. These include the United Nations’ Secretary General’s  that proposed, among other initiatives, the establishment of the UN Futures Lab, the forthcoming appointment of a UN Special Envoy for Future Generations, and the upcoming Summit of the Future (September 2024). Furthermore, alongside UNGP, UNESCO recently published an  and an open access  for mainstreaming intergenerational equity.

Symposium Objectives

• Uncover global opportunities for youth civic engagement and social action through futures and foresight;

• Identify the ways in which the use of futures literacy and foresight can amplify youth representation indecision-making processes;

• Invite exploration on how futures literacy and foresight can be applied to the development of novel processes that center youth voices in efforts to address modern-day challenges;

• Facilitate the dynamic exchange of ideas, research findings and insight on how to protect and empower youth and generations to come by leveraging foresight and futures literacy;

• Translate futures research, inquiries and knowledge on anticipatory systems, processes and patterns into actionable recommendations and ideas for policy innovations to effectively promote meaningful youth engagement and intergenerational equity.

We encourage you to share your latest futures research findings and thoughts on evidence-based policymaking concerning meaningful engagement of youth, intergenerational equity and inclusion. We ask you to shed light on potential pressing challenges that future generations might face, identify and propose solutions to policy gaps that do not adequately consider the needs of young people, and outline best practices.

Call for Papers

We invite submissions from: young researchers (aged 18-35), experienced researchers, and practitioners in the fields of futures studies, anticipation, applied and strategic foresight, futures literacy and youth science. Submissions are to be processed via . 

• Original working research papers featuring primary or secondary futures research on intergenerational equity and/or design considerations for processes to effectively engage younger generations around current and future challenges (with a maximum length of 5000 words); or

• Recently published Research Papers featuring primary or secondary futures research around intergenerational equity and/or design considerations for processes to effectively engage younger generations around current and future challenges (with a maximum length of 5000 words); or

• Abstracts of research papers (with a maximum length of 500 words) or;

• Original Discussion Papers that can be based on primary or secondary research, offering contextual analysis drawing on the existing literature and explicitly addressing the topic of futures research and applied foresight interventions aiming at policy innovation for intergenerational equity and solutions that speak to the needs of younger generations (with a maximum length of 3000 words).

Potential Areas of Focus

The below serves as a non-exhaustive list of key areas of interest related to futures studies, youth empowerment and intergenerational equity. 

• Futures and research methods for effectively engaging youth in decision-making processes;

• Futures scenarios prioritising policy innovation for Youth Empowerment and/or Intergenerational Equity

• Futures theories and research methods for the management of Youth Empowerment and/or Intergenerational Equity;

• Futures inspired capabilities which enable Youth Empowerment and/or Intergenerational Equity;

• Future skills for the Youth of the Futures;

• Futures-oriented, preferably youth-led, research initiatives or case studies or real-life cases aiming at intergenerational equity, social inclusion, sustainability;

• Ethics of Futures Studies and Youth Engagement;

• Critical and Decolonial perspectives around youth empowerment, intergenerational equity and/or our responsibilities toward both young and future generations;

• Futures images and collective imaginaries on youth and intergenerational relations – exploring public discourse, arts, science fiction and poetics.

Applicants are encouraged to highlight the importance of their research area, demonstrate scope for impact, potential policy implications for different contexts and stakeholders, and where relevant, share reflections on the feasibility of the recommendations presented. Priority will be given to research connected to the fields of Futures Studies, Anticipation, Applied Foresight, Futures Literacy and Youth Science. Futures-oriented research from the Social and Human Sciences is also acceptable. Young Researchers are strongly encouraged to share their research findings and to participate in the Symposium. 

Authors of the selected papers will be invited to present at the UNESCO-PMU Symposium (preferably in person). 

Selected papers will also be considered for publication in the PMU Futures Journal.