Last week I attended the Global Scientific Conference on Human Flourishing. It was an interdisciplinary conference by the Templeton Foundation, an organisation set up by Sir John Templeton.
It was immensely inspiring and encouraging to hear some of the best minds in the world discuss and debate their research and perspectives on what it means to flourish as a human at this time.
Over 22 countries have participated in the research and many of these formed part of the conference, including Finland, Germany, UK, US, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, Rwanda, Netherlands, Italy, Chile and India.
The latest scientific understanding and measurement of why people flourish and how they can be supported to flourish was showcased with global surveys and indexes of flourishing as part of the mix as well as new research studies in social psychology, neurobiology and other fields.
We saw the likes of Tyler Vanderweele (Professor at Harvard), Diane Gashuma (Rwandan ambassador for the Nordics), Thupten Jinpa Langri (President of the Compassion Institute), Dr PIlvi Torsti (former State Secretary, Ministery of Education ,Finland), Philip Ball (Science Writer) and Jon Clifton (CEO of Gallup) and so many more leading academics around the world.
Topic categories included cultivating emotional states, designing technology for human flourishing, health and food, ageing, climate change and the interchange and appreciation of art and science as well as the influence of economics, culture, and philosophy.
The sense of global collaboration was so heartening. I felt a deep sense of hope and promise for the future of humanity, for our capacity to come together, so many countries, so many different disciplines, to understand and build our thriving as humans.
Program Advisory Council
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