About this Event
Across the summer of 2026 debate has raged in the UK, Europe and beyond over the ability of liberal Western democracies to deal with the long-term consequences of instability and war in Ukraine, the Gulf and across the world. The behaviour and intent of the world’s leading economic and military power, the US, is arguably at its least predictable since the end of WWII and is woven into these questions. Exacerbated by environmental disasters triggered by a changing climate there are fears that governments are losing the battle to respond effectively as they stare a ‘polycrisis’ in the face.
But how do societies practically respond in the right way to these challenges and crucially how do governments prepare for what comes next? Questions around defence spending, industrial production and posture continue to confound European Governments whilst decades-old military alliances seem precarious and unreliable. Even the physical location of ‘the battlefield’ seems up for debate in a new era that matches age old techniques of hard military power, disinformation, espionage and subversion with the modern technologies of cyberspace, AI and drone warfare.
Showcasing our own use of some of that technology to interact with our audience we look forward to discussing all of this, and more, with a distinguished panel of experts from academia, government and the media.
We kindly invite you to a drinks reception following this event.
Event venue & nearby stays
Bateman Auditorium, Gonville & Caius College, Trinity Street, Cambridge, United Kingdom
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