Dr. Rafael Popper (PhD) is Founder and Director of the Centre for Foresight and Internationalisation (CFI) at the Łukasiewicz Research Network in Poland (CFI was 3rd Place Winner for 'Breakthrough Solution’ at the 2022 Economic Awards by Polskie Radio S.A.). Dr. Popper is also Founder and Director of Futures Diamond Ltd in the United Kingdom, Director of Executive Education in Foresight at the Manchester Institute of Innovation Research (MIOIR) of the University of Manchester in the UK, and Adjunct Professor in Futures Studies, Foresight and Innovation Management at the Finland Futures Research Centre of the University of Turku in Finland. Dr. Popper was also Principal Scientist in Business, Innovation and Foresight at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd (2016-2021). Dr. Popper has 20+ years of experience working as foresight and innovation policy consultant for several international organizations including the European Commission, Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), World Bank, and for several public and private organisations in Europe, Latin America, Africa, Asia, Australia and the Middle East.
Further information about his recent activities can be found in his Blog and LinkedIn pages:
Dr. Popper's research and scientific interests are wide-ranging both in terms of research fields and topics, as well as customers, sponsors and partners. Since he joined VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland in 2016 he has played the role of principal scientist/investigator or innovation/foresight expert in several projects. Some of these include:
- 1KT4Lukasiewicz: A single knowledge transfer strategy for institutes of the Łukasiewicz Research Network Poland;
- PREDIS: Pre-disposal Management of Radioactive Waste; SHARE – A Roadmap for Research in Decommissioning;
- Assessing the impact pathways of IA/RIA SC5 projects through the use of portfolio analysis (IMPACT-SC5);
- Technical expertise on best practices from other countries in the context of upcoming establishment of the new Polish Łukasiewicz Research Network;
- Dialog Project on Increasing the participation of the Łukasiewicz Research Network (LRN) institutes in EU financed R&D programs;
- Technology barometer 2019;
- Forest-based Bioeconomy Areas in Uruguay: Strategic openings by 2050 (FBA-Uruguay 2050);
- UAE Space Foresight Exercise;
- Ballarat Innovation Centre Strategic Road Map and Implementation Plan;
- STOP Diabetes – Knowledge based solutions; ELAN2 – Creation of a European and Latin American self-sustainable innovative cooperation Network (ELAN);
- RECREATE – Research network for forward looking activities and assessment of research and innovation prospects in the fields of climate, resource efficiency and raw materials.
During his research years at The University of Manchester (Note: Dr. Popper is still linked to and teaching in Manchester but all his research activities are conducted as VTT) he was also heavily involved in multidisciplinary research. Some of these projects include:
- CASI – Public Participation in Developing a Common Framework for Assessment and Management of Sustainable Innovation;
- VERA – Forward Visions on the European Research Area. Funded by the European Commission. Role: Principal Investigator;
- Horizon Scanning methodology, platform and pilot projects for the Centre for Workforce Intelligence (CfWI);
- EFP – European Foresight Platform;
- iKnow – Interconnecting Knowledge on Key Issues (Wild Cards and Weak Signals) Shaping and Shaking the Future of Science, Technology and Innovation Policy in Europe and the World;
- Collective Project - Emerging communities for collective innovation: ICT Operational tool and supporting methodologies for SME Associations;
- SANDERA Project - The Future Impact of Security and Defence Policies on the European Research Area;
- Analysis of public research institutes in Europe in selected S&T fields: historical evolution and future scenarios;
- Colombian Foresight Programme Evaluation;
- EFMN – European Foresight Monitoring Network;
- ETEPS-KISA - Knowledge‐Intensive Service Activities;
- BEFORE Project - Benchmarking and foresight for regions of Europe;
- FOREINTEGRA Project - Integrating Foresight in research infrastructure policy formulation;
- SCOPE 2015 Project – Scenarios for Research and Technology Development Cooperation with Europe;
- E-Skills Project - Thinking Ahead on E-Skills for the ICT Industry in Europe: Harnessing Our Strengths and Diversity for the World Stage;
- FISTERA Project - Foresight on Information Society Technologies in the European Research Area;
- EUFORIA Project - European Knowledge Society Foresight project.
Executive Education and Short Courses Teaching Experience:
- (2020-Ongoing) Director of Executive Education (9 hours) in Foresight Methods at The University of Manchester in partnership with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd.
- (2020-Ongoing) Director of Executive Education (9 hours) in Foresight in Action at The University of Manchester in partnership with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd.
- (2020 Summer) Gurest Professor and Director of Executive Education Course (15 hours) on Foresight in Science and Technology at the University of Santiago de Chile.
- (2018-Ongoing) Director of Executive Education (40 hours) in The ART of Foresight and Sustainable Futures at The University of Manchester in partnership with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd.
- (2017-Ongoing) Director of Online Course (24 hours) on Sustainable Innovation Assessment and Management: Widening Horizons on climate action, environment, resource efficiency and raw materials. Online course developed for the European Commission in the context of the CASI project.
- (2007-2017) Director of Executive Education (40 hours) in The ART of Foresight and Horizon Scanning at The University of Manchester.
- (2016) Director of 3 days training course on Foresight for the National Research Council on Italy (CNR).Create
- (2002-2006) Lecturer at the Executive Education (10 hours) on Foresight: a course for Sponsors, Organisers and Practitioners in The University of Manchester.
Dr. Popper's experience in undergraduate teaching has been mainly in the context of large events organised by faculties of engineering and social sciences in Latin America, where he gave introductory lectures on foresight principles and rationales (Guest Professor on Foresight at Universidad del Valle in Colombia (2005-2009). However, most of his teaching experience has been at postgraduate and executive education levels. At the University of Manchester, he has been lecturer and co-director of PhD elective courses on Scenarios for Research (2008, 2009, 2010), as well as lecturer and co-director of the Strategic Foresight for Organisations course in the MBA programme (2008). He has also been guest lecturer on Foresight at the Masters of the Turku School of Economics (2007), as part of a semester MSc Teaching collaboration with Finland Futures Research Centre (FFRC).
Three of my publications are in the Top 10 most cited foresight and futures studies related publications in the last 20 years (2000-2020), namely:
The following list includes a selection of invitations received to present external lectures and other contributions to professional conferences and other public events, where the primary audience is not academic, but policy-makers. These include events aimed at utilising research output (own and that of others), promoting responsible conduct of research for example by acting as a research integrity adviser, and developing responsible research and innovation activities.
- November 10th, 2020 – Moscow, Russia. Speaker at the 10th International Academic Conference ‘Foresight and STI Policy’. The virtual event was attended by some 100 people. At the “STI Policy: How it Will Change after COVID-19” session I made a presentation about “Universal Foresight: A research and innovation ecosystem to advance foresight practice“. The session was attending by over 100 people via Zoom and YouTube.
- September 2nd, 2020 – Santiago de Chile, Chile. Keynote at the International Seminar on ‘A look into the future of engineering in Chile and the world: Facing global changes’ organised by the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Santiago de Chile. The virtual event was attended by some 100 people.
- March 5th, 2020 – Al Ain, UAE. Discussant at the UAE University focus group on advancing space research agendas between VTT and the UAE Space Agency and the UAEU National Space Science and Technology Centre.
- February 3rd, 2020 – Abu Dhabi, UAE. Discussant at the UAE Space Agency focus group on the VTT-UAESA project on Towards a Roadmap for Future UAE Deep Space Missions and the Sustainable Settlement of Humans in Mars by 2117.
- January 28th, 2020 – Dubai, UAE. Discussant and Member of the VTT Team at the UAE Arab Health 2020 event focused on exploring collaborations in digital health, artificial intelligence and smart health systems.
- December 13th, 2019 – Espoo, Finland. Speaker and Facilitator of VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland workshop to go beyond VTT Lighthouse opportunity pathways and reach a deeper understanding on strategic research areas and future opportunities for VTT’s Good Life agenda. The session was attended by 40 VTT scientists.
- November 15th, 2019 – Abu Dhabi, UAE. Speaker and Facilitator at the final workshop of the VTT-UAESA project on Towards a Roadmap for Future UAE Deep Space Missions and the Sustainable Settlement of Humans in Mars by 2117.
- October 15th, 2019 – Warsaw, Poland. Speaker and Discussant at the final event of the European Commission’s Structural Reform Support Service project on Technical expertise on best practices from other countries in the context of upcoming establishment of the new Polish Łukasiewicz Research Network.
- November 28th, 2018 – Brussels, Belgium. Keynote at the European Parliament and Member of Expert Panel on Future Past: Quo Vadis Innovation – Policy? The expert panel was part of a Joint Institute of Innovation Policy (JIIP) symposium at the 10th European Innovation Summit on past developments, looked at the current situation and discussed the challenges to be faced in the next 10 years. Session attended by around 100 people.
- November 23rd, 2018 – Espoo, Finland. Speaker and Facilitator of VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland expert workshop to go beyond VTT Lighthouse opportunity pathways and reach a deeper understanding on strategic research pathways and future opportunities for VTT’s Industrial Renewal research and innovation agenda. The session was attended by 40 VTT scientists.
- November 20th, 2018 – Turin, Italy. Discussant and Contributor at the UnConference (Nov 20) and Conference (Nov 21-22) on ‘Skills for the Future: Managing transition’ organised by the European Training Foundation (ETF), the EU Agency in charge of developing training and education in the EU neighbouring countries. I co-authored a Working Paper on The Future of Work and Skills that helped to frame some of the messages in the speeches of ETF Director as well as ETF Head of Operations. The sessions were attended by 350+ people from 50+ countries.
- October 25th, 2018 – Montevideo, Uruguay. In the context of the ongoing VTT-led project on Strategic openings for key forest based bioeconomy areas (FBA) in Uruguay I was organiser, keynote and facilitator of an Action Roadmap workshop attended by around 40 carefully selected experts and stakeholders with the capacity and interest of shaping the future of the following five FBAs in Uruguay: FBA1 - Forest management; FBA2 - Mechanical wood processing; FBA3 - Fibre-based biomaterial processing; FBA4 - Biorefining for chemicals and energy products; FBA5 – Bioenergy. The sessions were attended by 350+ people from 50+ countries.
- October 23rd, 2018 – Santiago de Chile, Chile. In the context of the 70th Anniversary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC, aka CEPAL in Spanish), the Economic and Social Planning Institute of Latin America and the Caribbean (ILPES) organised an International Seminar on “Planning for Development with a Vision of the Future”. I was invited as keynote speaker on Global technological changes - Challenges of the future. The event hosted over 180 delegates from 15 countries.
- October 19th, 2018 – Buenos Aires, Argentina. As part of the Finnish University Partnership for International Development (UniPID) network activities, an International Seminar on Bioeconomy-led development: Opportunities through Nordic-Southern Cone countries cooperation was held and attended by over 100 delegates from Latin American and Nordic countries. In the event I was Speaker and Discussant on the future of the forest-based bioeconomy in Uruguay and the world.
- October 17th, 2018 – Santiago de Chile, Chile. Santiago de Chile, Chile. The Innovation Centre UC Anacleto Angelini of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile organised an international seminar aimed to position, promote, discuss and establish innovation capacities around some social and technological megatrends that will impact on quality of life by 2050, such as digital transformation, ageing society and sustainable cities, among others. The seminar gathered national and international specialists with multiple visions of the future but a common and strong believe that innovation is one of the best ways to transform societal challenges into opportunities for sustainable development. I was invited as Keynote speaker to talk about foresight as a systematic, participatory, prospective and policy-oriented process. Around 200 people attended the event, which also included participants via live streaming in Facebook and a much wider audience reached through mass media coverage from Radio Bio Bio and the National Television (TVN) of Chile.
- October 17th, 2018 – Medellin, Colombia. In the context of the 1st Congress on Bio-refineries and Renewable Energies supported by ICT (BRESICT) held in the city of Medellín on 17-20 September 2018, representatives from VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and the Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia (UCC) have strengthened their collaboration in a wide range of scientific and technological areas. I was Keynote and Facilitator at the co-creation Workshop on Sustainable Bioeconomy & Foresight Cooperation Opportunities are 8 flagship collaboration ideas between UCC, VTT and several organisations from Finland, United Kingdom, Norway, France, Spain, Poland, USA, Israel, China, Greece and Colombia. The event hosted over 100 delegates from 11 countries.
- October 4th, 2018 – Brussels, Belgium. In the context of the Horizon 2020 EL-CSID project, focused on the analysis of developments in science and cultural diplomacy and the role of Europe’s foreign policies, the Joint Institute of Innovation Policy (JIIP) organised a workshop in Brussels to explore the impact of competition driven innovation in collaboration-oriented science diplomacy. I was invited as Speaker and Discussant on the future of Innovation Diplomacy and the role of foreign & diplomatic services in handling complex innovation issues. The event was attended by some 20 experts and practitioners of science and innovation diplomacy.
- April 25th, 2018 – Turin, Italy. Keynote and Facilitator at the European Training Foundation (ETF) Expert Workshop on the Future of Work and Skills aimed to promote an open debate for a collective reflection among the experts on the impact of global developments on the future of work and skills in the developing and transition countries. The event hosted over 40 delegates from 15+ countries.
- April 17th, 2018 – Ballarat, Australia. Keynote and Facilitator at the Australia Expert Workshop aimed to create a shared vision and an action roadmap for the establishment of the Innovation Center in the Ballarat region. The event hosted over 30 stakeholders from industry, government, academia, and civil society.
- April 10th, 2018 – San Jose, Costa Rica. Keynote and Facilitator at the Latin America Expert Workshop on 'Innovation Management and Intelligent Leadership' aimed to co-create knowledge on strategic cooperation opportunities between Finland and Costa Rica. The event hosted over 50+ stakeholders from industry, government, academia, and civil society.
- February 26th, 2018 – Turin, Italy. The European Training Foundation (ETF) initiated a reflection on how the Torino Process (TRP) can be used to introduce and promote an evaluation dimension in the exercise. To that end, an expert roundtable was organised in Torino (Italy) to share knowledge and practices in the area of policy evaluation, and discuss their applicability in line with the specificities of the TRP and its partner countries. I was invited as Speaker and Discussant at the expert meeting aimed to provide an opportunity to get acquainted with selected aspects of the TRP. The event hosted some 20+ delegates from ETF member countries.
- January 18th, 2018 – Nürnberg, Germany. Keynote on the Future of Science at the 275th Anniversary Symposium of the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), see https://rafaelpopper.wordpress.com/2018/01/18/foresight-and-the-future-of-science Some 200+ people attended the event.
- July 13th, 2017 – Cali, Colombia. In the context of Universidad del Valle (UNIVALLE)’s efforts to further improve its research excellence (currently Top 3 in the country according to U-Sapiens ranking) an International Seminar on Foresight and Sustainable Innovation took place in Cali. The seminar was attended by some 30 senior researchers, academics and postgraduate students. I was invited as keynote and speaker to share VTT’s approach to foresight and innovation, and to further promote knowledge transfer on sustainable innovation assessment management.
- July 7th, 2017 – Lima, Perú. In the context of an intense knowledge transfer and networking agenda in Peru, the National Agrarian University La Molina organised a Seminar on the ART of Foresight and Sustainable Innovation. The seminar was attended by around 300 participants interested in European efforts to address the challenge of ‘climate action, environment, resource efficiency and raw materials’.
- July 7th, 2017 – Lima, Perú. A High-level Foresight and Innovation Seminar was organised by the National College of Engineers of Peru - Colegio de Ingenieros del Perú (CIP). The seminar consisted of two main blocks. In the first I provided a panoramic overview of VTT’s foresight research and innovation activities followed by three lectures on selected sustainable innovation topics. The second block allowed seminar participants to share experiences and brainstorm on future opportunities for joint projects between VTT, CIP and other stakeholders from the Peruvian science, technology and innovation system. The event hosted some 30+ high-level experts.
- July 6th, 2017 – Lima, Perú. July 6th, 2017 – An International Seminar on Technology Foresight, Entrepreneurship and Innovation for Sustainable Systemic Transformation was organised on July 6th by the National University Federico Villarreal (UNFV) in Lima, Peru. The event was structured around two main blocks: The first block of the seminar gathered over 500 participants at the UNFV’s main auditorium and due to its high demand the presentations were also web-streamed live in a Facebook channel viewed by 1.7K members of the UNFV community. The second block of the seminar was also web-streamed in the UNFV’s Facebook channels and viewed by 1K people. In addition, the video was also shared and viewed by 150+ people via YouTube.
- November 16th, 2016 - (Brussels, Belgium) Session Chair and Keynote Speaker at the CASI policy conference focused on best public participation and sustainable innovation practices and identified common European priorities on how to stimulate societal participation for sustainable innovation activities in European regions, scientific institutions, SMEs and other societal actors. We brought together a broad range of experts, stakeholders, policy-makers, entrepreneurs, regional authorities and Commission officials. The CASI conference was attended by over 100 experts interested in the intersection of public participation and sustainable innovation.
- September 22nd, 2016 - (St. Petersburg, Russia) Speaker at the St. Petersburg International Innovation Forum. I was asked to address the following topics: The role of Foresight technologies in strategic planning of a company; Types of Foresight technologies - which one to use?; Who can become the expert in Foresight technologies?; and What is the difference between the roadmap and the regular plan of a company? The conference was attended by over 100 experts.
- September 8th, 2016 - (Dublin, Ireland) Invited as keynote speaker on ‘From Horizon Scanning to Policy, Outcomes & Impacts’ at the international working group from six of the world’s small advanced economies (New Zealand, Singapore, Israel, Denmark, Finland and Ireland) met in Dublin. The meeting was hosted by the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) at Farmleigh and discussed the potential development of common metrics to help measure the impact of scientific research in similarly sized small countries. The conference was attended by over 40 experts.
- March 17th, 2016 - (Coventry, UK) Keynote and Facilitator at the CASI Policy Dialogue focused on Smart Cities policies with structured discussions on key barriers and opportunities to stimulate wider societal engagement in sustainable innovation. Through discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of current policies and praxis we identified areas of improvements or potential strategies that could be undertaken. The event was attended by over 30 experts.
- March 8th, 2016 - (Prague, Czech Republic) Keynote and Facilitator at the CASI Policy Dialogue aimed at facilitating dialogue with policy-makers and other relevant stakeholders (business, NGOs, interest groups and researchers) about ways to strengthen societal engagement in sustainable innovation; exploring strengths and weaknesses of current policies and praxis for societal engagement in sustainable innovation; discussing barriers to stimulate societal engagement in sustainable innovation; and developing recommendations for policy-makers to be handed over to national political committees and public authorities. The event was attended by over 30 experts.
- September 25th, 2015 - (Copenhagen, Denmark) In order to support the CASI national stakeholders’ workshops in 12 European countries, all sixteen of CASI country correspondents gathered in Copenhagen at the end of September in order to pre-pilot the CASI Framework (CASI-F) for the assessment and management of sustainable innovation. The event was attended by over 30 experts.
- December 8th, 2014 - (Brussels, Belgium) Speaker and Facilitator at the final conference of the VERA Forward Visions on the European Research Area project. The conference targeted policy makers at the European level concerned with Science, Technology and Innovation Policies (STIP) and at stakeholder groups having followed and participated in VERA activities before. It is open to experts and everybody interested in the subject. The event was attended by over 100 experts.
- November 24th, 2014 - (Cali, Colombia) Under the British Council Researcher Links scheme we are holding a workshop in Cali, Colombia on 26-28 November 2014.The workshop is coordinated by the University of Manchester and the Universidad del Valle. This is a closed event to bring together up to 40 Early Career Researchers (ECR) to explore possible UK-Colombia research and innovation cooperation opportunities in the following areas: the future of science and innovation policy; the future of agriculture and biodiversity; the future of climate change research; the future of social entrepreneurship; and the future of cities & urban planning. The event was attended by 40 early career researchers.
- October 24th, 2014 - (Manchester, UK) In the context of the VERA project – Forward Visions on the European Research Area – I organised a Symposium on Strategies for European Research & Innovation Futures in Manchester that served as a conclusion meeting to a participatory foresight process initiated earlier the year, whereby seven stakeholders’ groups (a selected representation of Society, Academy, Industry, Research funders, ERA instruments experts, Policy-makers and International RTDI actors) discussed on the future of the ERA by 2030 drawing on four exploratory scenarios. The event was attended by over 40 experts.
- June 27th, 2014 - (Brussels, Belgium) In the context of the VERA project – Forward Visions on the European Research Area – I organised a focus group (FG) with carefully selected International actors in coordination with ISI Fraunhofer in Germany and IPTS in Spain.
- May 16th, 2014 - (Barcelona, Spain) In the context of the VERA project – Forward Visions on the European Research Area – I organised a focus group (FG) with carefully selected Policymaking actors in coordination with IPTS in Spain.
- May 15th, 2014 - (Barcelona, Spain) In the context of the VERA project – Forward Visions on the European Research Area – I organised a focus group (FG) with carefully selected actors involved in European Research Area instruments (ERA-NETS, ERA Chairs, JPIs).
- April 28th, 2014 - (Berlin, Germany) In the context of the VERA project – Forward Visions on the European Research Area – I organised a focus group (FG) with carefully selected Research funding actors in coordination with ISI Fraunhofer in Germany.
- April 23rd, 2014 - (Helsinki, Finland) In the context of the VERA project – Forward Visions on the European Research Area – I organised a focus group (FG) with carefully selected Industry actors in coordination with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd.
- April 4th, 2014 - (Manchester, UK) In the context of the VERA project – Forward Visions on the European Research Area – I organised a focus group (FG) with carefully selected Research actors in coordination with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd.
- November 7th, 2013 - (Paris, France) In the context of the VERA project – Forward Visions on the European Research Area – I organised a focus group (FG) with VERA project partners to finalise and pilot the methodology of a series of strategic dialogues with seven stakeholders’ groups (a selected representation of Society, Academy, Industry, Research funders, ERA instruments experts, Policy-makers and International RTDI actors).
- November 3rd, 2013 - (Moscow, Russia) In the context of the Higher School of Economics (HSE) Annual Research Conference on Foresight and STI Policy, I was invited as Speaker on ‘Towards Foresight 3.0: Key Challenges and Opportunities.
- October 10th, 2013 - (London, UK) In the context of the Centre for Workforce Intelligence (CfWI)’s Annual Conference, we announced the launch of the Horizon Scanning Hub iPad App and the Hub Community developed by Futures Diamond Ltd in close collaboration with The University of Manchester. I was also invited to speak about the Horizon Scanning methodology we developed for the CfWI.
- May 10th, 2012 - (Berlin, UK) Keynote speaker in the session on Recommendations for a European innovation strategy at the International Conference on Innovations for the Ecological Turnaround. The event was attended by around 100 experts.
- April 16th, 2012 - (Bogota, Colombia) Member of a high-level UK science and innovation delegation visiting Bogota, Medellin and Cali to discuss cooperation opportunities. During the visit, we met representatives from Colciencias, the National Planning Department, the offices of the Mayor of Medellin and Cali, the Governor of Antioquia’s office, Tecnnova, RUTA N and a number of universities to identify areas for collaboration – including in the areas of nanotechnology, health, urban planning, transportation and the commercialisation of science.
- April 4th, 2012 – Moscow, Russia. Invited to speak about “Grand Challenges and S&T Foresight” at the section of «Science and Innovation» of the XIII International Academic Conference on “Economic and Social Development”. The presentation was part of Session One on “Science and Technology Foresight in Russia”. The session was attended by over 200 people.
- February 9th, 2012 - (Munich, Germany) Keynote presentation on Innovation Radar: How to track down future developments? at the “5th German Innovation Summit”. The event was attended by 350 representatives from the private, public and research sectors.
- October 2011 - (Brussels, Belgium) Chair and Keynote of the Final iKNOW Conference on “Interconnecting Knowledge about Issues Shaping and Shaking the Future of Science, technology and Innovation in Europe and the world”. This event aimed to present the most important findings of the iKNOW project.
- October 13th, 2011 – (Moscow, Russia) Presentation on New Instruments in Foresight Studies at the Research Workshop Foresight and Science, Technology and Innovation Policies: Best Practices (Higher School of Economics). The workshop was attended by some 100 stakeholders representing the research, business and public sectors in Russia.
- 2011 October 26 (Brussels, Belgium) – Workshop on Policy Options for Surprising and Emerging Futures in Europe. Workshop organised by the European Foresight Platform. I was speaker and facilitator in a session on “Wild Cards and Weak Signals Informing Science, Technology and Innovation Policy in Europe”.
- 27 February – 1 March 2011 - (Abu Dhabi, UAE) Invited by the British Council as Speaker at a Policy Dialogue on Developing national science and technology strategies. This event aimed at supporting the Gulf States further to develop their national S&T policies. I was invited to talk about “Foresight for the development of national S&T strategies in Oil-rich countries: Venezuela Case”
- 2011 September 7 (London, UK) – Workshop on Exploring Weak Signals of the Future. Workshop organised by the Foresight Action Network. I was speaker and facilitator in a session on “iKnow Project: Using Weak Signals to Inform Science, Technology and Innovation Policy in the United Kingdom”.
- November 2010 - (Brussels, Belgium) Speaker at the Final workshop of the Future Internet Project organized by the Oxford Internet Institute (Over 150 participants).
- October 2010 - (Parma, Italy) Speaker on Emerging Risks and Foresight Methodology at the 15th Scientific Colloquium – Emerging Risks organised by the European Food Safety Agency (some 100 participants). [See lectures section above]
- September 2010 - (London, UK) Chair on Utilisation of SSH research results for public policy design – The European versus the Latin American experience at the Final Policy Workshop of the EULAKS Project (Some 100 participants). [See lectures section above]
- July 2010 - (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) Speaker on Foresight Practices, Outputs and Players in Europe and Latin America at the Opening Workshop of the Malaysia National Foresight Programme (Around 150 participants).
- June 2010 - (Vienna, Austria) Speaker on Wild Cards and Weak Signals analysis for science, technology and innovation policymaking at the Kick-off Conference of the European Foresight Platform (Over 100 participants).
- June 2010 - (Vienna, Austria) Keynote on Korea-EU Cooperation on Science, Technology and Innovation: Scanning the Seventh Framework Programme for RTD at the International Policy Workshop of the KORANET project (Over 60 participants).
- May 2010 - (Cologne, Germany) Keynote on Wild Cards and Weak Signals in Transport and Health sectors at the 4thNational iKNOW workshop (Over 25 participants).
- March 2010 - (Prague, Czech Republic) Keynote on Wild Cards and Weak Signals in ICT, Nuclear and Security sectors at the 3rd National iKNOW workshop (Over 25 participants).
- March 2010 - (State of Mexico, Mexico) Keynote on Foresight Research in Europe and Latin America at the Euro-Latin S&T Knowledge Society Conference organised by the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences (FLACSO) (Over 25 participants).
- March 2010 - (Winterbourne Gunner, UK) Keynote on iKNOW: Horizon Scanning 2.0 approaches to wild cards and weak signals at the Horizon Scanning Symposium organised by the UK Defence Science & Technology Laboratory (Over 25 participants).
- February 2010 - (Manchester, UK) Keynote on Wild Cards and Weak Signals in SSH, Nanotechnology and Environment sectors at 2nd iKNOW workshop (25 participants).
- December 2009 - (Helsinki, Finland) Keynote on Wild Cards and Weak Signals in Energy, Agriculture and Security at the 1stNational iKNOW workshop (Over 15 participants).
- December 2009 - (Berlin, Germany) Keynote on Foresight Methodology for the Energy Sector at the EFONET Workshop on “Better integration of quantitative and qualitative methodologies on European level” organised by IZT - Institute for Futures Studies and Technology Assessment (Over 30 participants).
- November 2009 - (Poznan, Poland) Keynote on Mapping Foresight Practices in the World at the conference on "Foresight as an Instrument for Regional Development" organised by the Wielkopolska Regional Government. (Over 40 participants).
- October 2009 - (Moscow, Russia) Keynote on Wild cards and weak signals in Nanotechnology at the Second Nanotechnology International Forum organised by the Russian Corporation of Nanotechnologies (RUSNANO), which established to enable Government policy in the field of Nanotechnology (Over 200 participants).
- October 2009 - (Didcot, UK) Keynote on iKNOW project: interconnecting knowledge on wild cards and weak signals shaping/shaking the future of science, technology and innovation (Over 80 participants).
- October 2009 - (Brussels, Belgium) Speaker on the Role of Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) in Futures Research at the Final International Conference of the Future of SSH project organised by the European Commission and the Interdisciplinary Centre for Comparative Research in the Social Sciences (ICCR) (Around 70 participants).
- September 2009 - (Brussels, Belgium) Speaker on Wild Cards and Weak Signals at the Foresight Expert Meeting organised by the European Commission (25 participants).
- June 2009 - (Vienna, Austria) Keynote on Revealing the role of social sciences and humanities in foresight research at the EULAKS conference on Latin American and European Perspectives on the Social Science - Policymaking Nexus in the Evolving Knowledge Society. The event was organised by the European Commission and ZSI - Centre for Social Innovation (Over 80 participants).
- December 2008 - (Moscow, Russia) Keynote on Applications of Foresight Methodologies in the Nanotechnology Sector at the First Nanotechnology International Forum organised by the Russian Corporation of Nanotechnologies (RUSNANO), which established to enable Government policy in the field of Nanotechnology (Over 100 participants).
- October 2008 - (Mexico City, Mexico) Keynote on Foresight in Latin America, Europe and other world regions at the EULAKS Project Kick-off Meeting organised by the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences (FLACSO) (Over 80 participants).
- October 2008 - (Cali, Colombia) Keynote on Lessons from the Colombian Technology Foresight Programme Evaluation at the Seminar on Good Practices in Foresight organised by the Universidad del Valle (Over 70 participants).
- June 2008 - (Bogota, Colombia) Keynote on Evaluation of National Foresight Programmes: Rationales, Methodologies and Lessons at the Seminar on Colombian Technology Foresight Programme Achievements in Colciencias (100+ participants).
- April 2008 - (Tallinn, Estonia) Keynote on Managing Foresight and Delphi Processes at the Estonian National Foresight Programme Conference (Over 70 participants).
- March 2008 - (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) Invited by the British Council as Speaker on UK Foresight at the UK-Brazil S&T Cooperation event organised at the University of Rio de Janeiro (Over 100 participants).
- November 2007 - (Oslo, Norway) Keynote on Regional Foresight (100+ participants) at the Norwegian Conference on Regional Foresight.
- October 2007 - (Poznan, Poland) Keynote on Foresight Process Design at the first meeting on "Foresight for Regional Development" organised by the Wielkopolska Regional Government (20 participants).
- January 2006 - (Bucharest, Romania) Keynote on Foresight methods and practices for the ROST Project organised by the Romanian Ministry of Education (20 participants).
- May 2006 - (Madrid, Spain) Lecturer on Foresight Process Design to the foresight team of Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT) (7 participants).
- 2005 October - (Bogota, Colombia) Keynote on Evaluation of Foresight at the International Seminar on Foresight Practices organised by two Colombian institutions: UNIVALLE and COLCIENCIAS (60 participants).
- October 2004 - (Bogota, Colombia) Lecturer on Online Foresight Tools and Methods (Delphi, Cross-Impact, Scenarios) in the Capacity Building Activities organised by COLCIENCIAS for the Colombian Technology Foresight Programme.