Hamdan Bin Mohammed Highlights Global Collaboration At Dubai Future Forum 2025
H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, attended the opening of the Dubai Future Forum 2025. This event, organised by the Dubai Future Foundation, is the largest gathering of futurists globally. Held at the Museum of the Future until 19 November, it features over 2,500 participants from around 100 countries and more than 200 speakers including ministers, CEOs, and academics.
Sheikh Hamdan emphasised that future design is a strategic priority for nations and organisations. He highlighted the need for global collaboration to ensure humanity progresses in the right direction. "Dubai’s global model for future design is founded on international partnerships and collaboration with all who share the values of optimism, proactivity, and readiness," he said.
The Dubai Future Forum serves as an annual platform to unite futurists and institutions worldwide. Launched in 2022, it aims to identify priorities, study opportunities, unify efforts, and develop future-ready solutions. Sheikh Hamdan noted that Dubai partners with like-minded entities globally to envision and implement a future that societies aspire to achieve.
During the Forum, Sheikh Hamdan honoured winners of the inaugural Dubai Foresight Awards. These awards celebrate outstanding futurists and visionaries worldwide. The awards recognise excellence in three categories: Foresight Change Makers, Foresight for People, and Foresight for the Planet.
In the Foresight Change Makers category, Fiji’s ‘Pasifika Futures Report’ won first place for integrating indigenous Pacific wisdom into foresight. UNICEF Innocenti Youth Foresight Fellowship in Pakistan secured second place while France’s ‘Sustainable Futures’ initiative took third place.
The Foresight for People category saw Italy’s ‘City Longevity’ initiative win first place for using AI to support healthier urban communities. Greece’s ‘Futures that Heal’ initiative earned second place for addressing social fragmentation through foresight. Australia’s ‘For Our Future’ initiative was awarded third place.
Celebrating Environmental Initiatives
Cameroon’s ‘Congo Basin Futures’ initiative won first place in the Foresight for the Planet category by focusing on biodiversity futures preservation. The US-based ‘Cool Climate Collective’s Three Futures Test’ took second place while Egypt’s ‘Seeding the Future’ secured third place with its scenarios for sustainable agriculture.
The ceremony was attended by notable figures including Omar Sultan Al Olama and Lieutenant General Abdulla Khalifa Al Marri. H.H. also witnessed the graduation of participants from two significant programmes: FEEL: A disruptive Futures Programme and Dubai Future Experts Programme (DEEP).
Empowering Future Leaders
The FEEL programme equips global executives with tools to anticipate future transformations. It included 30 participants from 15 countries selected from over 400 applications. The DEEP programme empowers Emirati talent in government roles to become future experts through practical training.
Day one of the Forum featured speeches and panels on themes like AI's impact on society and proactive medicine's next leap. Workshops explored topics such as migration futures and alternative foresight methods globally.
Exploring Future Opportunities
The Forum also offered immersive AR and VR experiences alongside creative activations engaging participants in exploring future opportunities. Day two will cover topics like city futures, space exploration advancements, youth roles in innovation, community partnerships enhancement, resource resilience strengthening, and building global readiness.
Sheikh Hamdan reiterated Dubai's commitment to harnessing future opportunities through collaboration among experts and institutions. He stressed that societal needs should remain central to progress while leveraging advanced technologies to address future challenges effectively.
With inputs from WAM
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