[9:15 am – 10:15 am]

Plenary Session 1
[10:15 am – 11:45 am]

Connectivity is key for bringing people together, identifying common interests and ways to overcome joint challenges, Connectivity and interactivity shape a global economy and hold the world together. Yet, power struggles and strategic competition coupled with starkly different points of view fuel tensions and threaten to throw the world apart. What are the paths forward that can enable bonding institutions and digital infrastructure in support of peace, security and resilience in the face of recurrent conflicts, cyberthreats, natural and climate disasters?

What global and regional collaboration mechanisms, what local fabric, and what policy regimes can help accelerate the benefits of the digital economy for everyone and address societal challenges?

• Stuart N. Brotman, Professor School of Journalism & Media University of Tennessee, USA: Net Vitality Research
• Mário Campolargo, Invited Professor at University of Aveiro; Former Secretary of State for Digitalisation and Administrative Modernisation of the Portuguese Government, Portugal: The Rise of Homo Digitalis: Forging the Conscious Self Speech and Presentation
• Latif Ladid, Founder & President, IPv6 Forum, Luxembourg: IPv6-based New Internet
• Jean-Yves Le Gall, Honorary Ambassador International Astronautical Federation, France: Digital Space Infrastructure

[9:30 am – 10:00 am]

Plenary Session 3
[10:00 am – 11:30 am]

Transformation of energy systems and handling increasingly destabilised water cycles are the top of the agenda for many societies around the world. But countries are in distinctly different positions, some overwhelmed by challenges, others benefitting. While multiple new solutions are at hand, some goals are conflicting, and competition is fierce. In many cases, the roll-out of new solutions is out of sync with infrastructure development. Climate and other sustainability policies appear at odds with industrial policies. At the same time, the interdependency of energy is set to intensify, with significant implications for both.

• Franz Bergmeier, Development of green energy & hydrogen ecosystems, Germany: Green energy eco systems
• José María Bolufer, ESG Customer & Sustainable Innovation, Telefónica, Spain: Energy & Water Management in the Telecom Sector
• José Miguel Lameiras, Assistant Professor, BIOPOLIS/CIBIO, University of Portugal, Portugal: Designing With Nature
• Jose Serrano Leal, Technical Director CREA Madrid Nuevo Norte, Spain: Sustainable Urbanism in Madrid – Madrid Nuevo Norte as a Reference
• Griffin Peddicord, Global Finance, UK: xange.com

Plenary Session 4
[12:00 pm – 1:30 pm]

Quantum technologies are no longer a distant promise – they are rapidly becoming a transformative force across industries and society.  They can reduce AI data center energy use and accelerate materials and drug discovery. At the same time, they will revolutionise security by rendering current cryptographic systems vulnerable, while enabling truly secure quantum communications and advancing post-quantum cryptography.

Their disruptive economic and geopolitical potential is driving accelerated investment from both the private and public sectors worldwide. This session will bridge the gap between scientific progress and societal understanding, offering decision-makers and the public a clear view of where we stand today and how to prepare for a “Quantum-Ready” future.

All Quantum Session Presentations

Parallel Session 3A
[2:45 pm – 4:15 pm]

Health is a global condition for the wellbeing of people. While disease management and the average life span have improved dramatically, new issues are evolving. Lifestyle unhealthy and chronic problems keep rising, as do mental disorders. With the natural world coming under pressure and uncontrolled advances in bioscience, the risk of pandemics spreading appears to be on the increase. Digital health, in its different forms, offers a range of new applications and means of improved health management and reaching out to cure many issues at much lower cost. It can help to reduce health disparities and significantly promote healthcare delivery by enhancing access and outreach.

• Mariane Cimino, Co-Founder Cimbiose, France: The Impact of AI in Healthcare – Transforming Challenges into Opportunities
• Katherine D. Blizinsky, Neuroscientist & Science Policy Professional, USA: All of Us Research Programme
• Shaila Calvo Almeida, Head of eHealth & Biotech, Gradiant, Spain: AI for sustainable healthcare systems
• Marcel Cardinali, Head of Sustainable Urbanism Research at TH OWL & Strategy Development at City of Detmold, Germany: Investing in Urban Planning for Sustainable Health Effects
• Astrid de Meijer, Co-founder of Beyond the Dots, The Netherlands: beyond the dots

Parallel Session 3B
[2:45 pm – 4:15 pm]

Culture shapes our values, defines our sense of identity, and supports social bonding. Cultures differ and they can clash, or they can evolve peacefully. The arrival of digitalisation had an enormous impact on how we engage with the world. Privacy, data protection, and security are deeply interconnected with rights, freedom, and responsibility. At the same time, a changing media landscape is becoming subject to disinformation, fragmentation, and the creation of ‘bubbles’, giving rise to populism and polarizing political discourse. We need to rethink our relationships with each other and our cultural heritage in ways that foster resilient, secure, and sustainable societies, aiming to heal rather than derail our digital society.

Nature-based Solutions have arisen as a tool for humans to reconnect with nature, to regenerate cities, and find new paths to channel nature’s diverse benefits to society more broadly. Yet, conservation of nature is under tremendous pressure. Are the two complementary and mutually reinforcing, or will one be at the expense of the other? Newly instituted carbon sinks are rewarded by carbon credits while the standing carbon sinks are not, and biodiversity credits are still in their cradle. Nature and culture linkages play out differently in different kinds of context. Geographies are changing — how can we ensure these changes are for the better? How are the outcomes decided?

• Marco Acri, Professor, University of Nova Gorica, Slovenia: Experiences in the built environment of Nova Gorica and its university
• Naomie Kayitesi, Programme Officer, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Switzerland: Nature-based Solutions: Aligning Nature, Culture, and Equity in a Changing World
• Hugo Kerschot, Project Manager BIPED, Belgium: Building climate neutral cities
• Eric Legale, Managing Director of Issy Media, France: Issy-les-Moulineaux: A Cognitive City where Culture, Nature and AI coexist
• Daniel van Lerberghe, CEO, Innogage, Brussels, Belgium: #Artcast4D: Culture as an emotionally engaging “immersive experience”

Parallel Session 4A
[4:30 pm – 6:00 pm]

In today’s economy, the most valuable assets are often the ones we can’t touch: knowledge, creativity, data, and ideas. These intangible digital assets are what truly differentiate thriving organisations from those struggling to keep up. Four pillars stand out:

• Talent Management: People are the heart of digital value creation.
• Technology Education: The pace of change demands continuous learning.
• Innovation: Innovation is a culture. It is the process of turning ideas into intellectual capital.
• Intellectual Property Rights (IPR): Protecting what we create is as important as creating it.

As we move further into a knowledge-based economy, managing and nurturing these intangible assets becomes not just a strategy but a necessity.

• Natalia Alvarez, Head of Innovation & Venturing, DeepTech Alliance, Spain: Intangible Assets
• Matilde Mas, 100 de Cotec; International Projects Director – IVIE, Spain: Economics of Intangible Assets

Parallel Session 4B
[4:30 pm – 6:00 pm]

Protecting data, digital assets, and digital infrastructure is a key priority for both national policies and private actors. Moreover, there is a significant shift towards advanced governance for responsible AI. New legislative, regulatory and other AI governance models are emerging at international, regional, national, and industry levels. This session aims to explore the interplay between cybersecurity and its ultimate goal: ensuring a fair and sustainable future for all. The technological dimension is only part of the overall picture, closely intertwined with the protection of fundamental rights in several complex ways: balancing the massive use of data (for AI development, among other applications) with personal data protection, ensuring the regulation-compliant and responsible use of AI in crime detection and prevention, safeguarding both the protection of marginalised groups and freedom of expression, and maintaining the continuity of essential services – such as water supply, power grids, and communication systems – in an increasingly conflictual world.

• Carlos Cilleruelo Rodríguez, CEO Byron Labs, Spain: AI in Digital Investigations
• Raquel Jimenez Alcala, Head of Cybersecurity Analytics, Gradiant, Spain: Trust, Transparency and Resilience: The Human Side of AI in Cybersecurity
• Sarah Zhao, Partner at Rimon Law, USA/China: Global Governance of AI – A Comparative Policy Analysis: U.S. (California), European Union, and China

Plenary 5
[6:00 pm – 6:30 pm]

– Wrap Up Session –

The outcome of the Global Forum Shaping the Future will serve as the foundation for the Madrid Call to Action 2025, which will be published following the event.