Occupy the future at FutureFest 2018

• Nesta’s ‘festival of the future’ will return on 6-7 July 2018 to take place at Tobacco Dock, London
• First speakers and experiences announced
• Save up to £30 by booking your ticket now. Ticket prices until April 3rd: Two day pass - £50, Student two day pass - £40

FutureFest, organised by Nesta - the innovation foundation - returns for its fourth year, bringing all the fun and flair of the future. The two-day festival, taking place on 6-7 July, invites the public to explore new possibilities and immerse themselves in alternative futures.

The 2018 festival will bring together comedians with economists, performers with activists and authors with gamers, all in the pursuit of imagining, creating and debating the shape of our world.

The lineup for 2018:

• Ruby Wax, comedian, mental health campaigner and author will talk through mental health and how to reconnect with our humanity in a digital age.
• Imogen Heap, singer, songwriter, audio engineer and founder of Mycelia and Creative Passport, will perform with her mi.mu Musical Gloves and talk through what new technologies, such as blockchain, could mean for the music industry.
• Paul Mason, commentator, radio personality and former economics editor for Channel 4 News, will discuss his belief that our recent political turmoils are revealing a new force for good - connected, optimistic and tech-literate millennials, who are leading the way to a better system.
• CrimeForce is a sci-fi cop adventure set in the year 2050. Audiences will be immersed in the game exploring crime in the mid-21st century, to see how the decisions we are making today will influence the criminal justice system of the future.
• Douglas Rushkoff, writer, documentarian, lecturer and author of fifteen best selling books, will talk about his “Team Human” movement - which aims to put people back in the saddle of technology.
• Kate Raworth, renegade economist and author of Doughnut Economics, will present her vision for the future of economics.

At a time when public services and our democracies are under increasing strain, and the fast pace of technological change has left us feeling uncertain, it has never been more important to come together and think about what we want from the future.

Celia Hannon, Director of Explorations at Nesta, said: “We live in a time where our relationship with ‘the future’ feels increasingly fraught and fatalistic, but FutureFest is about creating a platform for alternative stories about the future. We invite you to join us this year to hear from thinkers, artists, designers, campaigners and technologists who are working to find radical solutions to some of our biggest challenges.”

Nesta hosts FutureFest for a gathering of 3,000+ people every 2 years, with previous headliners including NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, electronic music pioneer Brian Eno and fashion designer and activist Dame Vivienne Westwood . Tickets are now available from the FutureFest website. www.futurefest.org/tickets

Nesta is working with Alternative UK, Heritage Futures, DH ready and Ouishare as content partners.

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Imagery from FutureFest is available on request. For more information about the festival please contact Nesta’s media team: [email protected] / 0207 438 2543.

About FutureFest: Futurefest is a two -day festival of immersive experiences, compelling performances and radical speakers, all designed to excite and challenge our perceptions of the future. The event is the flagship festival of Nesta, a global innovation foundation. It is a non-profit initiative aimed at bringing future thinking to the public realm so that everyone can benefit. To find out more visit www.futurefest.org

About Nesta: Nesta is a global innovation foundation. We back new ideas to tackle the big challenges of our time, making use of our knowledge, networks, funding and skills. We work in partnership with others, including governments, businesses and charities. We are a UK charity that works all over the world, supported by a financial endowment. To find out more visit www.nesta.org.uk

Nesta is a registered charity in England and Wales 1144091 and Scotland SC042833.