World Hope Forum

The World Hope Forum was launched on October 24 in 2020 during Dutch Design Week, during the depth of the pandemic caused by Covid-19 and founded by Lidewij Edelkoort and Philip Fimmano, in collaboration with Dezeen as media partner. The objective of this platform is to federate, to bring together the major players who have developed new industrial, economic, more virtuous processes, where the center is people. The World Hope Forum’s main goal is to create a holistic global platform for the exchange and expansion of knowledge, innovation. Lidewij Edelkoort, one of the world’s most respected cultural forecasters and Philip Fimmano, a design consultant, curator and writer – envision an Ecomomy of Hope as the essential way to move forward – an economy that puts people and the planet before profits.

“The World Hope Forum is a new gathering that will include climate change on its agenda as well as caring for all neglected people involved in production chains and services. Under the leadership of ambassadors chosen in participating countries, the World Hope Forum will bring together speakers and selected case studies, good practices, retail reinventions and innovative ideas that will sprout in the spring of revival. Different solutions and scenarios brought together in a global (virtual) forum once a year. Dynamic concepts and economic data will be analysed and exchanged, for all of us to learn from and to inspire our creative energies. The results will be subsequently published and open-source access will allow others to follow…” (Edelkoort, 2020).

The first World Hope Forum iwas organized in cooperation with Petra Janssen (Social Label) and the Dutch Design Festival: The WHF emerged as a response to global uncertainty, aiming to create a space for optimism, collaboration, and regenerative thinking in design and beyond. The platform brings together creatives, industry leaders, and change-makers to explore new models of production, material innovation, and social value. All past editions, from regional forums such as WHF Australia and WHF Colombia to thematic sessions like Your Brain on Art and Healing Trauma Through Craft, are recorded and freely available to watch on the WHF website and YouTube channel.