Decision Makers 2010

The pace of change is accelerating.

New technologies are emerging which will shape the ways and means of society, business and politics. Current leaders are often too caught up in the daily rush of events to consider their longer-term consequences, yet their decisions leave long-lasting legacies. Rising leaders, too, must often pay more attention to the next step than to the end goal. As a result, critical gaps can develop between the needs of the present and the needs of the future.

Decision Makers 2010 intends to help bridge this gap.

The conference brought together members of a rising generation of leaders in order to define priorities and options for shaping the future of our societies. The CAP decided to address interlocking problems by confronting experts in a wide variety of fields with broad questions about the global future. In addition to presentations in their areas of expertise, technologists contributed views on social questions, social scientists would addressed the impact of technology, business leaders added to the discussion on values, and government members spoke on how to resolve these questions. Their answers, and the dialogue that followed, provide a guide to the key items on today's global agenda. In the follow-up to the conference, first participants and later other people associated with the project "How We Want to Live Tomorrow" will develop these agenda points into recommendations and action plans.

Decision Makers 2010 looked first at the changes that technology is bringing to developed societies around the world. Then it addressed societal changes that are not directly related to technology. The conference brought these two threads together in a final round on measures we should take now to reach a desirable future.

What parts of life will be changed most by the new technologies?

What social problems or conflicts will advancing technologies provoke?

What can a technologically transformed society offer as solutions?

What are the key rules of the game in future societies, and which actors shape them?

Who are the likely winners and losers, and why?

What element of social change (e.g. globalization, individualization, regionalization) is likely to be most important?

What decisions and concrete measures do we need to take now in order to reach the future that we desire?

How can we organize social and generational contracts in a transformed society?