By Dafina Grapci-Penney
The second annual Longevity Forum will be taking place in less than two months (14 November 2019) and we are in full countdown mode here as we put the finishing touches to the day’s agenda. I am excited to say that the quality of the speakers truly reflects the convening power of the Forum across the worlds of government, business, finance, research, academia and NGOs – and thus the significance of the topic across multiple disciplines and audiences. After the success of last year’s Forum, which also saw a number of fringe events being organised during the Forum, we are also excited to formally host the Longevity Week which will take place 11-15 November 2019. The Longevity Week, an extension of the mission of the Forum, will bring together a diverse group of strategic partners of the Forum, supporters and participants whose goals are aligned with our mission – to achieve longer, healthier and more fulfilled lives for as many people as possible.
Longevity 2030, the theme of this year’s Forum and Longevity Week, will offer participants a platform to explore the ideas and innovations that will shape humanity over the next decade. We will explore the boundaries of science and technology; the economic impact of longevity – from how governments and individuals will organise their finances, to a new approach to lifelong learning and education; we will look at the policy agenda to ensure our healthcare and social care systems are fit for the future; lastly, we will explore how humans and machines will learn to coexist, discuss ideas for an optimal governance and ethical framework to ensure these gains can help humanity reach its full potential. As ever, the Forum will endeavour to explore these issues through an interdisciplinary and intergenerational lens.
With this not-so-distant future very much on our minds, this week sees The Longevity Forum co-Founder Andrew Scott and Laura Carstensen, Director of Stanford Centre on Longevity (and a keynote speaker at our first Forum), host a closed meeting of international experts to develop a global agenda around the concept of “A New Map of Life” that supports living long, healthy, productive and fulfilling lives. The aim of the agenda is to define the principles that make longevity distinct from ageing and set high level objectives that governments need to achieve in the next 10 years to support the longevity agenda. The meeting is hosted with the generous support of the Rockefeller Foundation (who will be hosting the meeting at their Bellagio Center in Lake Como, Italy) and the Prudential Assurance Company Singapore.
Please follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter and keep an eye on the website for updates and content from this and future events, receive updates on the Longevity Forum and the Longevity Week agenda, and join the conversation.
