Uppsala Ministry for the Future – inspiring us to meet future societal challenges

Together with the Department of Business Studies, UUniCORN has established a new forum and network that brings together researchers, authors, artists, and societal actors to explore solutions to global future challenges. The network is called Uppsala Ministry for the Future and is inspired by the Oxford Ministry for the Future.

The initiators of Uppsala Ministry for the Future are Fredrik Nilsson and Jason Crawford at the Department of Business Studies, and Mats Målqvist, Director of UUniCORN, at Uppsala University.

The idea for Uppsala Ministry for the Future emerged when Fredrik undertook a sabbatical term as an academic visitor at Saïd Business School (SBS), University of Oxford. There, he participated in one of the events regularly organized by the Oxford Ministry for the Future (OMF).

OMF was set up by Hertford College Fellow Anette Mikes and former College Principal Tom Fletcher with the blessing and participation of Kim Stanley Robinson, whose eponymous book gives OMF its name and mission: to be an interdisciplinary network and movement that amplifies the voices of humanities in the discussion of our grand challenges. The purpose is to create a multidisciplinary network of academics and practitioners who together engage in dialogue and seek to influence how society can address climate change and other societal challenges. The goal is to critically examine and analyze, at a societal level, the fundamental conditions required to achieve successful sustainability efforts. One such fundamental condition is the functioning of the economic system.

Authors and researchers in dialogue about possible futures

Anette Mikes hosted Fredrik during his sabbatical term in Oxford and she acted as faculty opponent at Jason's PhD defence. In January 2025 Anette became honorary doctor at Uppsala University. Building on this longstanding relationship, Fredrik, Jason and Mats have now been invited and visited OMF several times.

“What struck me was the new format they had created for discussing major societal issues. Here, authors are primarily used to engage together with researchers in conversations about possible and alternative futures. For me, this was an entirely new way of approaching the problems and challenges we are facing,” says Fredrik Nilsson.

“Literature and other artistic forms can create a sense of urgency that speaks to us on a more emotional level, compared to the analytical and rational methodological tools of science.”

“The attempts to find new forms of expression through literature and storytelling appealed to me. I also found it exciting that it was science fiction writers who served as the starting point for these ideas. After all, ‘science’ is part of the genre,” says Mats Målqvist.

Fredrik Nilsson describes how literature and other artistic forms can create a sense of urgency that speaks to us on a more emotional level compared to the analytical and rational methodological tools of science.

“Literature can help us move from words to action, but it can also influence what we consider important in our society and how we view and manage goal conflicts. In the meeting between literature and science, new insights and solutions can be identified,” Fredrik Nilsson explains.

Uppsala Ministry for the Future inspired by OMF

Fredrik Nilsson realized that a concept similar to OMF could work in Uppsala, and in conversations with Mats Målqvist it became clear that his vision for UUniCORN aligned well with what OMF sought to achieve. Together, they decided to draw inspiration from OMF while also giving the newly created network a distinct Uppsala character.

“My hope is that Uppsala Ministry for the Future will become a meeting place where important societal issues of the future, such as sustainability, are discussed, and where we dare to think freely and challenge ourselves. What I hope we can achieve is to help serve as a catalyst for new ideas and solutions. Conversation is a first step, but the hope and ambition are that Uppsala Ministry for the Future will lead to change—and of course, change for the better,” explains Fredrik Nilsson.

Uppsala Ministry for the Future is a collaboration between UUniCORN and the Department of Business Studies. Like OMF, it is intended to be both an interdisciplinary event and an opportunity to explore new forms of expression and methods in relation to literature and the arts, a development that Mats Målqvist welcomes.

“It feels incredibly exciting that we can make this happen within UUniCORN together with the Department of Business Studies. I hope that those who attend the event will leave with new perspectives and ideas. I also hope that the event will have ripple effects from a societal perspective, by opening up new ways of looking at the societal challenges we face. That the new perspectives we hope to offer will lead to greater humility and curiosity,” says Mats Målqvist.

Programme for the first Uppsala Ministry for the Future

On 9 April 2026, the forum will host its first event. The theme is “Narrating the Living Earth: Literature, Science, and Re-imagination of the Anthropocene.”

“We have a fantastic programme for our first event at the Humanities Theatre on 9 April. It is particularly exciting that Kim Stanley Robinson, who wrote the book The Ministry for the Future, has given our initiative his ‘blessing’ and that he will share his perspective on Uppsala Ministry for the Future via a link or in a short video in April. We are also very pleased that the faculty’s honorary doctor, Anette Mikes, will play an important role during the day and in the future. It will be something to remember—and this is only the beginning! The next event will take place in November,” Fredrik Nilsson concludes.