Annual Foresight Retreat: Public Strategy in Transition

Governments today navigate an increasingly challenging landscape, marked by regional conflicts, shifting climate events, and human mobility from without and heightened public skepticism from within. Citizens expect more than ever from their public institutions: fast, modern, and accessible services across multiple channels, from online platforms to in-person interactions. However, trust remains a crucial but fragile element, and public sector leaders must find ways to build and maintain it while delivering on high expectations.

The 2025 Annual Foresight Retreat of the Public Sector Strategy Network will focus on “Public Strategy in Transition,” exploring how governments can navigate emerging challenges, drive transformative policies, and thrive in a world of rapid change. From climate change and technological disruptions to demographic shifts and the evolving nature of public expectations, the future demands a new model of public sector leadership. With the recognition that “every government job is now a climate job,” participants will explore how governments can integrate climate action across all sectors and ministries, embedding sustainability into the core of public service.

In addition, the retreat will examine how digital public infrastructure can drive inclusivity, equity, and trust in public services. As governments modernize their systems and processes, they must balance innovation with budget constraints, employee retention challenges, compliance pressures, and the need for equity. AI and emerging technologies offer promising solutions, yet they also present risks that public leaders must carefully navigate.

As population dynamics shift, with an increased focus on the representation of marginalized groups, leaders must also consider how these changes will shape the future of governance. Global trends manifest uniquely at local levels, and the retreat will provide an opportunity to examine case studies that highlight both shared and localized governance challenges. Institutions must explore the characteristics and adopt new roles to effectively address tomorrow’s challenges.
This invitation-only retreat provides senior public sector leaders with a confidential space to engage in forward-thinking discussions, share experiences, and develop actionable strategies that can be implemented in their respective contexts.

Date

May 21 - May 23, 2025

Session no.

S899-01

Location

Schloss Leopoldskron, Salzburg, Austria

Contact

Charles Ehrlich

Director, Peace and Justice

Kateryna Anselmi

Program Manager, Peace and Justice

Content overview

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Goals

The 2025 retreat has four primary goals:

Facilitate peer-to-peer learning: Enable public leaders to exchange best practices, lessons from system failures, and recovery strategies in an atmosphere of trust and open exchange.
Reimagine public services: Support government leaders in rethinking the design, delivery, and funding of core services to better meet the needs of citizens, with a focus on inclusivity, accessibility, and equity.
Advance innovation and resilience: Foster intrapreneurship within the public sector by exploring how governments can build agility and resilience through technology, skilled workforce development, and cross-sector partnerships.
Build cross-sector collaboration: Optimize innovation across government sectors to address pressing global challenges like climate action, artificial intelligence, and the green transition, while maintaining financial sustainability.

Format

The retreat adopts a highly interactive unconference format, combining plenary sessions with small group discussions to encourage candid, peer-to-peer engagement. This format is designed to foster dynamic, participant-driven conversations, with ample opportunity for deep dives into specific topics.

The fully-residential retreat will take place at historic Schloss Leopoldskron, Salzburg, Austria, providing an inspiring setting for focused discussions. The Chatham House Rule will ensure an open and confidential environment, fostering trust and open exchange among participants.

Participant Profile

The retreat will convene a carefully curated group of no more than 30 participants, prioritizing representation from small and mid-sized countries recognized for their leadership in public sector innovation.

Participants will include:

Senior Government Leaders: Current ministers, cabinet secretaries, and high-level officials leading transformational change in their public sectors.
Disruptors and Experts: Visionary individuals from sectors such as technology, finance, communications, behavioral science, foresight and civil society, who are at the cutting edge of public sector innovation.
Sub-National Leaders: Provincial and city-level government leaders from larger countries who have successfully implemented innovative governance approaches.
Young Leaders: Emerging talents in the public sector participating in a shadowing initiative to cultivate the next generation of public innovators through mentorship and collaboration.

This diverse participant pool will ensure a holistic approach to addressing global governance challenges, fostering rich dialogue and new perspectives on how to reimagine public sector leadership.