June 24 - 25, 2009, The Corn Exchange

The FutureFest Conference will deliver crucial insight into core issues underpinning our future. Drawing on the knowledge, insight and opinions of globally recognised 'thought leaders' we will investigate and debate key drivers behind future waves of innovation and technology as well as exploring cross over opportunities and pitfalls that may exist between the four key tracks: Earth, Communication, Life and Machine.

The Conference will be staged over two days in a format that enables highly focused presentations, interactive debates, demonstrations and discussions around the principle themes. The intellectual engagement, initiated on the conference floor will extend across the Festival through the Lectures, the Courts of Technology and a series of open events that will broaden the challenge to include an even wider audience.

The conference will create a unique event for thinkers, creators, innovators and entrepreneurs from across the globe and will involve key speakers from the global science and technology community, the innovation finance community, entrepreneurs, and influencers. The conference agenda and speaker acquisition is being defined and implemented by an Advisory Board led by Doug Richard.

Conference themes:

• Earth - Climate, Space, Environment and Change
• Communication - The 'Now' Generation
• Life - Personalised Medicine and Gerontology
• Machine - Changing the Mechanised Landscape

FutureFest will culminate in a Grand Finale with an open session for everyone who participated in the Festival. All participants at the Lectures, The Courts and visitors to The Exhibition of the Future will be issued with tickets to the event during their visit.

The Grand Finale will take place at the Conference venue in the Corn Exchange between 17:30 and 18:30 and comprise an Awards presentation for FutureFest Prize Winners, a closing Keynote delivery from a well known speaker and a summary and close from FutureFest curator, Doug Richard.