Forum 2000

What you need to know about the Václav Havel-hosted conference

What is Forum 2000?

Effectively a high-powered talking shop, the Forum 2000 Foundation was founded in 1996 by then Czech President Václav Havel, Japanese philanthropist Yohei Sasakawa, and Nobel Peace Prize-winner Elie Wiesel.

The foundation considers the major issues facing humanity, looks at ways of preventing international conflict, and promotes democracy, civil society, human rights and tolerance.

As well as its high-profile annual conference, the foundation has four other projects: the Interfaith Dialogue, the Shared Concern Initiative, a series of topical Roundtables, and the Students' Forum 2000.

The annual conference, held in Prague, is a two-day gathering of world leaders and opinion-formers, tackling a different theme every year. Previous delegates include Bill Clinton and the Dalai Lama.

Who pays for all this?

Yohei Saskawa's Nippon Foundation is the main sponsor of Forum 2000.

When and where is this year's annual conference taking place?

This year's Forum 2000 annual conference takes place October 9th-10th, 2005.

The opening ceremony will be held at Pražská křižovatka on Sunday, October 9th, and the conference itself will take place at Palác Žofín on Monday, October 10th.

Who's coming to this year's annual conference?

Confirmed delegates include former United Nations Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali, former Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri, former Canadian Prime Minister Kim Campbell, former Portuguese President Mario Soares, former World Trade Organization Director-General Mike Moore, and former CIA Director James Woolsey.

And Havel himself, of course.

See the official Forum 2000 website for a full list of participants.

What's the theme of this year's annual conference?

The theme of the 2005 annual conference is "Our Global Co-Existence: Challenges and Hopes for the 21st Century" - a look at the "nature and meaning of the current conflicts preventing peaceful coexistence of the international community."

The conference will be divided into three panels: "Conflict or Co-Existence? Where do we go?"; "Concepts of Coexistence and Community"; and "Communicating between Communities: The Role of the Media in Conflict of Perceptions".

For more information, see the official Forum 2000 website

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