2026 Edition
Agenda
29-30 OCT 2026
NOVA SBE, CARCAVELOS CAMPUS, CASCAIS | PORTUGAL
The event will be held in English.
POLITICS
GLOBAL PEACE
EDUCATION
HEALTH & PREPAREDNESS
AI & TECH
Two days. One shared question: how can we reignite democracy in a world being reshaped by profound change?
Through five critical pillars – Politics, Global Peace, Education, Health & Preparedness and AI & Tech – the Estoril Conferences 2026 explore the foundational conditions for stronger democracies: trusted institutions, human capability, responsible innovation, resilient communities and international cooperation.
Organization
Day 1 – Thursday, 29 October
09:00-09:05
OPENING FILM
10TH EDITION & CONFERENCE INTRODUCTION FILM
REIGNITE DEMOCRACY — WHERE EVERYONE IS A PART OF | 4 min
09:05–09:30
WELCOME REMARKS
Pedro Oliveira
Dean, Nova SBE Portugal
Pedro Póvoa
Dean, NOVA Medical School Portugal
Nuno Piteira Lopes
Mayor of the Municipality of Cascais Portugal
Paulo Rangel
Minister of State and Foreign Affairs Portugal
THE WORLD WE HAVE ENTERED
09:30–10:20
Keynote Address & Curated Conversation
THE FORCES RESHAPING OUR WORLD
What happens when the economic assumptions that shaped the last generation no longer hold?
A landmark opening session examining the forces reshaping the global economy, from the changing nature of globalization and trade to technological transformation, economic power and strategic competition, and what they mean for prosperity, opportunity and the choices facing societies in the years ahead.
Speakers*
10:20–11:10
Curated Conversation
WHEN THE WORLD ORDER CHANGES
What does leadership require when the assumptions that shaped the world, and the choices built upon them, are changing?
A wide-ranging conversation about leadership in a world transformed by war, strategic competition and shifting alliances; about Britain’s and Europe’s place in that changing order; and about what experience teaches us when consequential political choices meet circumstances that no longer look as they once did.
Speakers*
11:10–11:30
Inspirational Talk
THE COURAGE TO BE FREE
What does it take to defend freedom when freedom itself carries a price?
A deeply personal reflection on freedom, human rights and the courage required to defend them when conviction carries profound personal consequences.
Shirin Ebadi
Nobel Prize Laureate; Human rights lawyer, writer and former judge
11:30–12:00
Panel Conversation
DEMOCRACY THROUGH HUMAN EYES
What does democracy mean to those who have had to defend it?
A conversation rooted in lived experience, bringing together stories of freedom, captivity, civic courage and resistance to explore what democracy means when its principles become intensely personal.
Olivier Vandecasteele
Founder and Director, Protect Humanitarians
Jesús Armas
Venezuelan Activist
In conversation with*
12:00–12:25
Inspirational Talk
THE MERITOCRACY PARADOX
When do systems designed to reward merit unintentionally reproduce inequality?
A reflection on merit, opportunity, fairness and what evidence reveals about how apparently meritocratic systems can reproduce disadvantage even when their intention is to reward talent.
Emilio J. Castilla
NTU Professor of Management at the MIT Sloan School of Management
12:25–12:55
Panel Debate
CEO FORUM: AI, BUSINESS AND DEMOCRACY
How should business lead when AI is reshaping work, opportunity and society?
A conversation with business leaders about the choices companies are making as AI transforms work, markets and decision-making and how those choices can strengthen human capability, expand opportunity and shape the relationship between business and society.
Maria João Carioca
Co-CEO & CFO, GALP
Nuno Sebastião
Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO, Feedzai
Paulo Macedo
CEO, Caixa Geral de Depósitos
Moderated by
Rita Rodrigues
Journalist and pivot
12:55–13:00
ARTISTIC MOMENT
13:00–14:00
Lunch Break
PEOPLE, CHOICE AND CAPABILITY
14:00–14:20
Inspirational Talk
WHEN THE FUTURE CHANGES OVERNIGHT
What remains possible when the future you imagined suddenly disappears?
A personal story of displacement, courage and rebuilding, and of the extraordinary human capacity to find possibility, purpose and agency when circumstances overturn the future we thought we knew.
Yusra Mardini
Olympic swimmer and Syrian refugee; Goodwill Ambassador for UN Refugee Agency
14:20–14:30
Personal Reflection
THE HUMAN CAPACITY TO IMAGINE
What becomes possible when we allow ourselves to imagine a different future?
A personal reflection on imagination as a distinctly human capacity to see beyond the world as it is, give form to what does not yet exist and open new possibilities for ourselves and others.
Joaquim de Almeida
International Actor
14:30–14:50
Talk
WHO SHAPES THE FUTURE
Who gets to decide where the future is built?
A conversation about the power of investment to shape economies and societies: determining where capital flows, which ideas scale and where opportunity, innovation and development take root.
Nan Li Collins
Director, Division on Investment and Enterprise; Head of the World Investment Forum International Organizations and Civil Society
14:50–15:15
Fireside Chat
THE ARCHITECTURE OF TRUST
What creates trust in institutions and what sustains it?
A conversation exploring the relationship between institutions, information, journalism and public trust, and the conditions required for democratic societies to maintain a shared understanding of reality.
Jenny Romano
Co-Founder and CEO, The Newsroom
Moderated by
Andrew Jack
Global Education Editor, Financial Times
15:15–15:45
Panel Debate
THE POWER OF CHOICE
How does financial capability expand people’s freedom to shape their own lives?
A conversation about financial literacy, access and empowerment and why the ability to make informed financial choices matters for individual opportunity and societal resilience.
Annamaria Lusardi
Stanford Institute for Economy P. Research; Director of the Financial Decision-Making
Maria Luís Albuquerque
European Commissioner
Moderated by
Miguel Ferreira
Vice-Dean of Faculty & Research, Nova SBE
15:45–16:05
Inspirational Talk
POWERING THE FUTURE
What will it take to build the energy system the future will depend on?
A reflection on the scale of the energy transformation ahead and how societies can meet rapidly growing demand while building systems that are cleaner, secure, reliable and economically sustainable.
Miguel Stilwell d'Andrade
CEO, EDP
16:05–16:15
ARTISTIC MOMENT
16:15–16:35
Inspirational Talk
PREPARING FOR WHAT COMES NEXT
How can we prepare for a future we cannot fully predict?
A forward-looking reflection on the forces of change already emerging and how leaders and organizations can develop the capacity to anticipate, adapt and act.
Matt Watters
Partner, McKinsey & Company
16:35–17:05
Panel Debate
EDUCATING FOR AN UNWRITTEN FUTURE
How should universities prepare us for a future we cannot predict?
A conversation about the future of higher education and the role universities must play in developing knowledge, judgment, adaptability and human capability for a world being reshaped by artificial intelligence and profound societal change.
Andrew Karolyi
Dean, Cornell SC Johnson College of Business
Francesco Billari
Dean, Università Bocconi
Matthew Prince
Co-Founder and CEO, Cloudflare
Moderated by
Andrew Jack
Global Education Editor, Financial Times
HEALTH, RESILIENCE AND HUMAN AGENCY
17:05–17:30
Fireside Chat
BUILDING CAPABILITY: SCIENCE AND INNOVATION
How can science and innovation expand the capabilities of people and societies?
A reflection on the role of knowledge, scientific ambition and innovation in preparing people and countries to thrive in a rapidly changing world.
Helena Canhão
Secretary of State for Science and Innovation
In conversation with*
17:30–17:55
Fireside Chat
KNOWLEDGE THAT SAVES LIVES
How do we know what evidence we can trust?
A conversation about trust in evidence: how reliable knowledge is produced, assessed and communicated, how we distinguish robust evidence from misleading or uncertain claims and why the ability to know what, and whom to trust, matters for better decisions, better care and ultimately better health.
Karla Soares-Weiser
CEO of Cochrane
Moderated by*
17:55–18:10
Curated Conversation
FROM KNOWLEDGE TO ACTION
What does it take to turn what we know into change at scale?
A conversation about the difficult step from knowing what needs to be done to making it happen: mobilizing institutions, partnerships and resources to turn knowledge into action across countries and health systems.
Anselm Schneider
Program Director, Hospital Partnerships Program, GIZ
In conversation with*
18:10–19:10
Inspirational Talk
USER-DRIVEN HEALTH INNOVATION
What happens when people experiencing a problem become the innovators solving it?
Some of the most powerful innovations in health begin with lived experience.
This session brings together entrepreneurs and changemakers who turned personal encounters with health challenges into new ideas, technologies and solutions. From reimagining physical rehabilitation and creating technology to support people with dementia, to making healthcare more accessible and designing with people living with Parkinson’s, their stories reveal what becomes possible when experience, science, entrepreneurship and human ingenuity come together.
Inspirational Talk
WHEN EXPERIENCE BECOMES INNOVATION
An entrepreneurial journey from first-hand experience of a health challenge to building a technology-driven solution designed to transform the way care is delivered.
Virgílio Bento
Founder & CEO, Sword Health
Panel Conversation
FROM PROBLEM TO POSSIBILITY
A conversation about how personal experience can become a source of innovation and what it takes to turn insight into solutions capable of improving people’s lives at scale
Virgílio Bento
Founder & CEO, Sword Health
Kenneth Shinozuka
Founder & CEO, SafeWander
Moderated by
Ana Rodrigues
Professor of Epidemiology and Ageing, NOVA Medical School
Personal Experience Talks
WHEN THE SYSTEM BECOMES PERSONAL
A personal reflection on what becomes visible when you experience healthcare from the inside and how those insights can become a catalyst for greater accessibility and inclusion.
Tiago Fortuna
Co-founder & CEO, Access Lab
Personal Experience Talks
DESIGNING FROM LIVED EXPERIENCE
A deeply personal perspective on living with Parkinson’s and on the power of designing health innovation with people, rather than simply for them.
Emma Lawton
Co-founder, More Human
19:10–19:20
ARTISTIC MOMENT
19:20
END OF DAY 1
Day 2 – Friday, 30 OCTOBER
09:00–09:05
WELCOME BACK
09:05–09:25
Address
INSTITUTIONS FIT FOR THE FUTURE
Are our institutions evolving fast enough for the world they are being asked to serve?
A reflection on how institutions can evolve to remain capable, responsive and trusted in a rapidly changing world, and how simplification, artificial intelligence and better design can strengthen public institutions and their ability to serve people and society.
Gonçalo Saraiva Matias
Minister in the Cabinet of the Prime Minister and of State Reform, Portugal
RESPONSIBLE INNOVATION
09:25–09:45
Inspirational Talk | 20 min
AI ON HUMAN TERMS
How can we shape AI to expand human agency rather than diminish it?
A forward-looking proposition for technology designed around people: how AI can strengthen participation, collaboration and collective intelligence while preserving the human agency on which democratic societies depend.
Audrey Tang
Cyber Ambassador of Taiwan, Former Digital Minister of Taiwan
09:45–10:15
Panel Discussion | 30 min
AI, POWER AND HUMAN CHOICE
Who shapes human choice when AI increasingly shapes the environments in which choices are made?
A debate on the power embedded in AI and digital platforms: who designs the systems, whose interests they reflect and how societies can preserve meaningful human choice while enabling innovation.
Audrey Tang
Cyber Ambassador of Taiwan, Former Digital Minister of Taiwan
Carmelo Cennamo
Professor & Co-Director of the Entrepreneurship Concentration Studies of the MBA Program at Copenhagen Business School
Moderated by*
GLOBAL PEACE AND INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
10:15–10:35
Inspirational Talk
WHEN EVERYTHING IS AT STAKE
What does leadership demand when circumstances become extreme and the consequences are human?
A first-hand reflection on leadership under extraordinary pressure: where uncertainty is real, decisions carry human consequences and responsibility, judgment and humanity are tested at their limits.
Erwin Dhont
Special Advisor for Health Security and Defense at FIPRA. Former Director General for Health & Well-being of the Belgian Defense Forces
10:35–11:00
Fireside Chat
TRUST WHEN TRUST SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE
How do you build enough trust to act when lives are at stake?
A conversation about what years spent negotiating and working across conflict lines can teach us about trust, dialogue and human connection when fear, hostility and profound disagreement make cooperation seem impossible.
Christoph von Toggenburg
CEO of World Vision Switzerland
In conversation with*
11:00–11:20
Inspirational Talk
RETHINKING HUMAN PROGRESS
What should human progress mean in a world being fundamentally reshaped?
Drawing on the Human Development Report, a reflection on how we understand and measure progress, and how expanding people’s choices, capabilities and opportunities can help societies navigate profound technological, social and planetary change.
Pedro Conceição
Director of the Human Development Report Office at United Nations Development Program
11:20–11:40
Inspirational Talk
PREPARING FOR TOMORROW
How can we see change early enough to act before it becomes disruption?
A forward-looking reflection on the signals already emerging in our societies and natural systems, and how futures thinking can help us recognize change, challenge assumptions and prepare for what may come next.
Fábio Scarano
Chairholder of the UNESCO Chair on Futures Literacy at the Museum of Tomorrow; Professor of Ecology at the Federal Univ. of Rio de Janeiro
11:40–12:00
Inspirational Talk
THE COST OF WAITING
What happens when societies see change coming but fail to act in time?
A reflection on the cost of delay and on what health and preparedness can teach us about the capacity of institutions and societies to anticipate, decide and act before emerging threats become crises.
Ricardo Baptista Leite
CEO of HealthAI, The Global Agency for Responsible AI in Health and Founder and President of the UNITE
12:00–12:30
Fireside Chat
CITIES THAT STRENGTHEN DEMOCRACY
Can democratic renewal begin closer to people’s everyday lives?
A conversation about cities as spaces for participation, experimentation and trust, and their potential to strengthen democratic life from the ground up.
Helfried Carl
Founder & CEO, European Capital of Democracy
Moderated by
José M. Tavares
Professor of Economics, Nova School of Business & Economics
12:30–13:00
Panel Discussion
THE LONGEVITY AND WELLBEING SHIFT
How will longer, healthier lives reshape the way we live, work and contribute?
A conversation about longevity as one of the defining shifts of our time, reshaping work, learning, health, careers and relationships and challenging institutions designed for very different patterns of human life.
Rohit Verma
Professor of Management Science, Darla Moore School of Business
DJ DiDonna
Senior Lecturer of Business Administration at Harvard Business School
Moderated by
Pedro Pita Barros
Professor of Economics, Nova School of Business & Economics
13:00–14:00
Lunch Break
DEMOCRACY IN PRACTICE
14:00–14:30
Introduction
Fireside Chat
COURAGE UNDER PRESSURE
What does it take to continue when defending what you believe in carries an extraordinary personal cost?
A deeply personal conversation about courage, resilience and responsibility when public purpose and personal experience become inseparable, and about finding the strength to continue, to act and to look towards the future under extraordinary pressure.
Yulia Navalnaya
Political Activist and Economist
Introduced by
Nikita Melnikov
Assistant Researcher, Economics, Nova SBE
In conversation with
Rebecca Abecassis
Editor, Author and Producer of European News Programs with RTP Portugal
14:30–14:40
Personal Reflection
THE RESPONSIBILITY TO SERVE
What does democratic leadership demand from those who choose to serve?
A personal reflection on the experience of public service and the choices, tensions and responsibilities that come with political leadership in a democracy.
José Luís Carneiro
Secretary-General of the Socialist Party of Portugal
14:40–15:10
Panel Debate
CAN WE DISAGREE BETTER?
Can political disagreement strengthen democracy rather than deepen division?
A conversation among young leaders from politics and beyond, bringing different perspectives to a shared question: how can we disagree with conviction, listen across differences and seek common ground?
Young leaders from politics and beyond*
Moderated by
Luís Cabral
Paganelli-Bull Professor of Economics and International Business at NYU Stern School of Business; Academic Director at Nova SBE Public Policy Institute
15:10–15:25
Curated Student Conversation
THE DEMOCRACY WE WANT TO INHERIT
What kind of democracy does the next generation want to inherit and help shape?
A conversation with the generation that will inherit the institutions and choices being shaped today: what earns their trust, what makes participation meaningful, what they expect democracy to become and what responsibility they are prepared to take for its future.
Students from Nova SBE, NOVA Medical School*
Moderated by
Ana Paula Reis
Estoril Conferences Executive Director
EUROPE, THE WORLD AND WHAT COMES NEXT
15:25–15:55
Panel Discussion
A WORLD WITHOUT CERTAINTIES
How should Europe navigate a world without certainties?
A conversation about how Europe can navigate a more fragmented and uncertain world, as economic power, strategic interests and global interdependence increasingly reshape the available choices.
Speakers*
15:55–16:10
Address
EUROPE UNDER PRESSURE
What does Europe discover about itself when its institutions, security and values are tested?
A perspective on what profound pressure reveals about Europe’s capacity to act, adapt and remain anchored in its democratic commitments and what that experience may tell us about the Europe that now needs to be built.
Speakers*
16:10–16:45
Curated Conversation | 35 min
EUROPE'S MOMENT OF CHOICE
What choices must Europe make now to shape the future it wants?
A conversation about Europe’s capacity to turn its economic scale, knowledge and democratic values into greater competitiveness, resilience and freedom to act, at a moment when postponing difficult choices carries increasing consequences.
Enrico Letta
Former Prime Minister of Italy; Dean of the IE University and President of the Jacques Delors Institute
Manuel Heitor
Professor and Former Minister for Science, Technology and Higher Education
In conversation with
Rebecca Abecassis
Editor, Author and Producer of European News Programs with RTP Portugal
16:45–17:05
Inspirational Talk
THE FUTURE IS A CHOICE
The future is shaped by the choices we make.
A closing reflection on human agency, courage and our responsibility to shape a future in which democracy, dignity and opportunity can flourish.
Speaker*
17:05–17:20
CLOSING ADDRESS
Miguel Pinto Luz
Minister of Infrastructure and Housing, Portugal
