On Wednesday 8 and Thursday 9 July, the 16th WISERD Annual Conference took place at Cardiff University’s Bute Building, welcoming over 170 delegates. The agenda comprised over 60 paper presentations, seven flashtalks, three plenary sessions, several panels, workshops and symposia, and an exclusive film showing, all under the theme of ‘In Pursuit of Sustainable Futures’.
Following the success of our new researcher sessions at last year’s conference, this year’s agenda once again featured sessions specifically for early career researchers, which was jointly sponsored by the ESRC Welsh Graduate School for the Social Sciences and the Learned Society of Wales, reflecting the commitment of WISERD and its partners to supporting the development of social science research in Wales.
New researcher sessions this year also included the return of the WISERD PhD Poster Exhibition, which was on display throughout the event, offering early career researchers the opportunity to discuss their research with delegates in an informal, one-to-one setting, and gain constructive feedback on how to take their work forwards.
This year’s event took place a decade since the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 came into legislation. Widely regarded as world-leading, this legislation places a legal duty on public bodies to improve the long-term well-being of both current and future generations.
With an early address from Derek Walker, Future Generations Commissioner for Wales and a keynote panel, comprising Joe Rossiter from the Institute of Welsh Affairs, Caer Smyth from Cardiff University, and Anwen Elias and Rhys Jones from Aberystwyth University, there were plenty of opportunities throughout the event to discuss and critically reflect on the Act.
Continuing against the backdrop of the Act, parallel sessions over two days explored everything from political participation, climate action, and creative outputs, to AI, social exclusion, and rural Wales. A dedicated Welsh language stream featured discussions around culture, education and 10 key priorities to be shared with the new Welsh Government.
Final keynote speaker, Professor Rebecca Coleman from the University of Bristol provided a fascinating perspective on ‘The future politics of everyday life’, which suggested the possibility of both imagining and working together to shape alternative, fairer and more sustainable futures for the next generation, including for those who may have previously been marginalised from traditional policy and innovation networks.
Special thanks go to our exhibitors who kindly supported us with the event and shared their time speaking with delegates: ADR Wales, the ESRC Welsh Graduate School for the Social Sciences, the Learned Society of Wales, Rural Health and Care Wales and SAIL Databank.
Our sincere thanks also go to Flatboy (Seren Thomas), Cardiff-based artist, illustrator and social researcher who allowed us to display their artwork throughout the event. Map of Dreams was commissioned by the Future Generations Commission and created in response to the findings and recommendations of the Future Generations Report 2025.
WISERD Director, Professor Adam Hedgecoe, said: “We were delighted to welcome so many colleagues, both from WISERD and the wider community, to Cardiff University this year. From the outstanding keynotes to the new researcher sessions, via dozens of exciting papers, the conference explored the context, impact and progress of the Future Generations Act, setting the scene for the next ten years of social science in Wales.”
The WISERD Annual Conference takes place at a different one of our five partner universities each year (Aberystwyth, Bangor, Cardiff, South Wales and Swansea). It brings together researchers at all stages of their careers, with policymakers and practitioners from many different sectors across the UK and beyond. The event highlights the range of important interdisciplinary work being done in the social sciences and provides opportunities for us to work better together to effect change and achieve a fairer society.
Image credit: Darren Britton, WNS News Ltd