The virtual conference ‘Futures-21,’ organized by VIA University College, Aarhus, Denmark, took place April 22-23, 2021. The conference can be seen as a ‘prequel’ or ‘version zero’ for what in 2023 turned into the FECUN conference series.

The overall theme of Futures-21 was ‘Education for and as Sustainable Development in the Anthropocene.’ The conference explored how the ideas behind “futures of education – learning to become” is essential both for “the transformations of human minds and societies” in general, in relation to the idea of the Anthropocene, and for the development of Education for/as Sustainable Development as presented in the UN Agenda for Sustainable Development 2030, especially regarding the theme of equality and diversity.

The conference examined these issues, both in general and, more specifically, concerning Polytechnic and Vocational Education at Higher Educational Institutions.