When you imagine Canada’s future, what do you see?Want to be a part of the Forum?
1) Apply to be a delegate. The Forum will invite 150 possibility-minded delegates to come together in Hamilton this November to experiment with new ideas and approaches as we consider the possibilities for Canada in 2080. The delegate application process is now open. Please see below for more details.
2) Attend the opening keynote on November 1, 2023. In the coming weeks we will be announcing an exciting keynote speaker. The keynote event will be open to members of the McMaster community and the public. Please stay tuned for more information.
3) Virtually attend key presentations. Some key presentations from the Forum will be livestreamed and accessible to the public. We will announce details regarding how to virtually attend presentations in our newsletter leading up to the Forum.
In order to learn details about the Forum as they are announced, please sign up for our newsletter.
Delegate application process
We are looking for 150 delegates to explore, discuss and imagine deeply aspirational futures for Canada at Imagining 2080. The delegate application process is now open!
Who should apply
Delegates are possibility-minded individuals who are currently involved in work advancing a better future for Canada. This may include (and is not limited to) research projects, public policy initiatives, or community programs. We are looking for delegates who are open to experimenting with new ideas, approaches, and experiences, and are comfortable learning from others, and embracing a diversity of perspectives.
Imagining 2080 is committed to the principles of reconciliation, equity, diversity and inclusion. As hosts of this important conversation about Canada’s future, we are seeking delegates who represent a diversity of race, gender, age, ethnic and cultural backgrounds, political views, and regional perspectives.
By encouraging diverse participation, we hope to surface new ideas and to stretch our collective thinking to imagine a future that we want to build—a Canada that is equitable, sustainable, resilient, and prosperous.
How to apply
We ask that prospective delegates fill out the application form linked below to help us select a cohort who will benefit from participation and contribute unique and diverse insights to the discussion. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis, however, to ensure consideration please submit your application form by June 23, 2023.
Access the delegate application form here
There is no cost to submit a delegate application. If your application is successful and you are offered a delegate position, there is a $250 registration fee to attend the Forum. Delegates are expected to cover their travel and accommodation expenses.
If the registration fee or travel expenses are a barrier to your attendance, there is financial assistance available.
All applicants will receive an email letting them know the status of their application.
Please note that we do not provide feedback on individual applications. After being accepted as a Forum Delegate, the organizers will publish the delegate list on the Forum website.
Forum FAQs
If you have a question that is not answered here, feel free to contact us at fcp@mcmaster.ca.
In order to provide space for delegates to imagine and explore deeply aspirational futures of Canada, and avoid focusing on the inherent challenges that come with transitional periods, this Forum is focusing on a longer time horizon than many future exercises undertake.
A focus on 2080 will enable participants to dream about a new possible Canada, looking generations ahead, providing enough time to enact the deep and complex change needed to get there.
Not only does the time horizon of 2080 make this Forum a unique experience where participants will be challenged to think far into Canada’s future, this Forum is unique in its multi-disciplinary approach.
Through gathering folks from a large variety of professional, personal and geographic backgrounds we hope to create the space to spark conversations and collaborations that may not otherwise happen.
While there is a lot of excellent futures-focused work that is happening across the country, there has yet to be an event like this one that brings people from different areas of interest and expertise together to focus on long time horizon like 2080. To inspire aspirational thinking, the Forum will deliver unique programming including field trips to the future, new voices and visions for Canada, artifacts from the future and hands-on workshops defining new visions while outlining action plans to get there.
In order to have meaningful conversations about potential futures for Canada in 2080, a diversity of delegates is key. Having a diversity of race, gender, age, ethnic and cultural backgrounds, political views, professional backgrounds and regional perspectives present at the Forum will create an environment that will stretch our collective imaginations about Canada’s future.
To ensure the Forum is truly representative of a variety of perspectives from coast to coast to coast, we are selecting delegates through an application process.
Strategic foresight is about exploring different plausible futures that could arise, and the opportunities and challenges they could present.
To learn more about strategic foresight, you may want to visit the websites of the Institute for the Future or the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)—two leaders in this approach.
There will be an option to virtually attend some key presentations. Please sign up for our newsletter to receive details as they are released.
There is a $250 registration fee to attend the Forum as a delegate. If this fee is a barrier to a delegate’s attendance, there is financial support available.
To ensure consideration, we recommend submitting your delegate application by June 23, 2023. However, we will be considering applications on a rolling basis if space allows, so please feel free to submit an application after that date.
Yes, once selected delegates have confirmed their attendance, we will be publishing their names on our website in advance of the Forum. We will be in touch with everyone who applied to let them know whether their application was successful or not as well as if they have been added to the waitlist.
Future of Canada Project researchers and Future Fellows will receive automatic invitations to become delegates as part of their involvement with the Project and do not need to complete an application. You will receive direct communication from the FCP team with more information.
Yes, a light breakfast, snacks and lunch will be provided on Day 2 and 3.
We have released a high-level program elements. A more detailed agenda will be released soon.
Yes! We will be posting great accommodation options as well as a list of exciting things to explore if you are visiting from out of town. Please watch this page for more details.