19 new countries have joined the III International Symposium "Inventing the Future" at the National Centre RUSSIA this year

Nineteen new countries have joined the III International Symposium "Inventing the Future", which is being held on 12–13 November at the National Centre RUSSIA. This brings the total to 109 countries and more than 8,000 participants.

The new countries include Albania, Gabon, Cape Verde, Congo-Brazzaville, Congo-Kinshasa, Libya, Madagascar, Nepal, Niger, Panama, Peru, South Korea, the Republic of South Ossetia, Romania, Sao Tome and Principe, Sudan, Togo, Chad and South Sudan.

International delegates will take part in the programme of the III International Symposium "Inventing the Future", which includes three thematic tracks — "Human and Values", "Progress" and "Culture and the Arts" — as well as special formats and a youth programme.

Participants include statespeople, scientists, futurists, developers of new technologies, entrepreneurs, representatives of the creative industries and many others. Young people are also playing an active part in this year's Symposium. School pupils, university students and young professionals will help shape the future in their own right alongside experts and put forward their ideas for discussion.

"The 'Inventing the Future' Symposium is very important because you can meet people from different fields here and hear them discuss a range of issues and challenges. I've been to many scientific events, but I find a symposium like this, where people with different perspectives come together, very productive and useful. It's also very well organised. It's very important to involve students and young people, too. It's a great honour to be here and to speak with the audience." — Eulogio Soto, marine biologist, Professor and Researcher at the Faculty of Marine Sciences and Natural Resources at the University of Valparaiso, and Director of the Centre for Coastal Ocean Observation and Analysis (COSTAR).

The installation "Visionaries on One Map" will bring together all the visionaries from different countries taking part in the III International Symposium "Inventing the Future". Anyone who wants to share their views on the future and ideas for positive change can find their country on the map and attach a photo of themselves.

The International Symposium "Inventing the Future" was organised on the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, under the auspices of the Decade of Science and Technology, with support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation.