At the World Federation for Futures Studies’ 50th anniversary world congress, we celebrated both its past and, of course, above all, discussed what kind of future we want, what methods we use to uncover its mysteries, and how we measure and evaluate progress towards the future we want or the future we fear. When the World Federation for Future Studies was founded, its aim was to reconcile divergent visions and divergent voices about the future on both sides of the Iron Curtain. Today, the world seems much more complex, even more divided and no less dangerous than when the World Futures Studies Federation was established in the 1970s. This makes it all the more important that there is a platform for dialogue and that it is possible to participate freely. I represented the Polish Society for Futures Studies at the congress thanks to the support of Narodowy Instytut Wolności. 

Some of the questions we sought answers to have changed over these 50 years. Today, we ask about the human of the future and the future of humanity. We ask about the relationship between humans and machines, but no longer on a media or production level, but on a cognitive level, seeking answers to scenarios for the development of artificial intelligence, perhaps the emergence of artificial general intelligence. But we also keep talking about those things that unite and divide us, talking about the search for methods and techniques to reconcile different visions of the future and to find constructive answers to the questions that trouble and bother our clients, whether from institutions and public authorities, large companies or all stakeholder organisations that want to shape this future in a beneficial way. 

The global future studies community is growing, interest in our field is increasing. We are delighted to have been able to attend the congress thanks to the support of Narodowy Instytu Wolności and to meet friends and partners and debate with those who hold similar but also different positions.