2011 is proving itself a year of the improbable becoming reality. From the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt to the earthquake in Japan and the hectic economic situation since this summer, the world we took for granted has been knocked off its axis, to land in unanticipated new configurations and arrangements.

The Women‘s Forum has chosen for its 7th edition to draw inspiration from these remarkable events, and to hold the 2011 Global Meeting on the theme of What if?: Challenge, imagination, commitment. The focus is on what the future could bring us, politically, economically, socially, and technologically, and what committed actors can do to tip the balance for a better world. Unique to the Women‘s Forum, women‘s voices and perspectives are featured along with their male counterparts in plenaries addressing scenario-driven major issues for people and the earth. The spirit of the plenary discussions – and the 7th edition overall – is to forecast how our world is changing, and what we can do to shape this change.