Festival of the Future AMA — what is it all about?

The Festival of the Future is now less than 2 months away! We recently recorded a podcast about the event with the organisers, you can listen to the full conversation here:

You can also get booked into the event by clicking here: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/futurefest22-874819

What is the Festival of the Future?

It’s a week of fun and inspiration, showing that there’s so much more digital innovation happening in Dorset than anyone could possibly imagine. The event will run from about 10:00 — lunchtime on 10–14 October, in Dorchester, Ferndown, Winfrith, Bridport and Weymouth. You can read more about the individual days by clicking here.

Who is the festival aimed at?

This year there is a big focus on the communities where we are based, so we’d love to see lots of people from the local areas. Really it’s for anyone across Dorset who’s interested in what the future might look like. That is pretty much everybody, isn’t it?”

We’d also love to have people attend from outside Dorset, people who want to see some of the amazing stuff that’s going on here.

How did the event come about?

We wanted to give the message that digital is relevant to everybody, it can affect all our lives and creates great opportunities, and we wanted to reach new audiences. Our goal was to put a spotlight on to Dorset so that people can be inspired by what’s happening here.

People can be a bit scared of tech, so we wanted to create something that would make it light, fun, and engaging. Rather than expect people to come to us, we wanted to go out into communities and talk to people there.

What have been some of the best bits?

The first year was brilliant, we managed to plan it all in 6 weeks and pull off something amazing. We had 60 sessions and a whole variety of speakers coving really different topics from digital leadership through to safeguarding, there was just something for absolutely everybody and we’ve built on it since then.

There were some great stories last year that we unearthed, we were up at Shaftesbury School and found that they were working with a school in Ghana and introducing them to some technology which was new in England but really new in Ghana. Every year we discover new stories, that’s also a really great part of it.

I think when we first started doing it there was just this moment where we thought “OK, this is different. This is not the sort of thing that councils normally do. It just feels unique and creative — that was a great moment.

So, what’s happening this year?

We are in five new and completely different locations, Dorchester, Ferndown, Winfrith, Bridport and Weymouth. We are really focusing on those locations and talking about what is happening locally in or around the towns.

We have a demonstrator, looking and what being a smart place could really look like. We are going to be talking about Dorset Coding Day, an event that will bring over 1200 children together online to be inspired about coding.

We are also hoping to have robots in Dorchester, and we will be talking about how the workplace is changing on the Winfrith Day. There is so much going on that we could turn it into its own blog (and we probably will). It’s going to be great!”

How can people get involved?

If you have a story that you think we should be telling, then do get in touch with us at digitaldorset@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk. There are also lots of opportunities to get involved in filming, sound design, presenting, joining discussion panels, and supporting on the day. Or just come along and get involved in the fun that way!

Why is the event so important?

We want to show that Dorset is a great place for talented young people to stay. And in terms of our Council ambition to make Dorset a great place to live, work and visit, we feel digital is a huge part of that.

Why isn’t there a greater emphasis on Council Activity?

Well, it is a balance really. We have lots of council activity knitted in there, but that is not really what we want the event to be about. There are many other exciting things going on in Dorset and we want to raise awareness of those as well.

Have you considered the environmental impact of the event?

By making the event hybrid we hope that will reduce the need for long car journeys, but we would also like to encourage car sharing. We will be talking a lot about climate change throughout the event, particularly during day 1, so do engage with that if that’s something that interests you.

Do we need to bring a tent?

No… although depending on the weather, you might need wellies! You certainly don’t need to wear a suit, we’d love to encourage bright coloured outfits to really add to the festival vibe!

When is the ‘future’?

Well, we spend a lot of time looking back, but it’s really fun to look forward. We are not saying that we know what is going to happen, but we’re just exploring the possibilities of what our increasingly digital futures could look like.

We just want to start conversations and get everyone thinking about it. We might look at things which will never really happen, but that is the fun of it!