We are pleased to announce that the next edition of the Freedom Games will be held on October 24-26, 2025 at EXPO Lodz, and the accompanying theme will be “A Time of Uncertainty”!
Reality is unsettling.
Authoritarian powers are more and more aggressively challenging the democratic, peaceful order, while radical populists are consistently dismantling the Western alliance and destroying the liberal values of societies from within. The war in Ukraine, the conflict in the Middle East, the recent pandemic, inflation and economic crises, climate change, migration pressure, and the growing potential for using artificial intelligence for disinformation threaten the foundations of the world as we know it.
How can we cope with uncertainty?
We must act. The measure of maturity is the ability to confront challenges, even when they seem insurmountable. Yet, we must avoid the naive belief that activism and effort alone can solve all problems. The world is far more chaotic than we think; challenges come unexpectedly; interests and values clash.
We must name, understand, and tame our anxieties. While we cannot predict every threat, we can and in fact should build systemic resilience that will allow us to face disasters more effectively if they come.
We must strengthen the alliance of liberal democracies, which should be politically, economically, and militarily robust enough to deter authoritarian aggressors. It is crucial to arm ourselves, look for alternative sources of energy, and forge agreements.
We must relentlessly guard individual freedoms, the rule of law, and economic liberties. When security threats arise requiring a redefinition of already existing policies, we must be especially alert to ensure that the values of liberal democracy and the frameworks that ensure stable economic growth are not lost or trampled.
We must strengthen mental resilience, raise awareness, and promote civic responsibility. A society plagued by uncertainty is a society vulnerable to manipulation, panic, poor economic decisions, and fake news.
We must cool political disputes. One of the intellectual and political elites’ weaknesses today is their tendency to swing between euphoria when they defeat nationalist populist parties in elections and despair when they lose. For democracy, such apocalyptic choices are fatal – when the stakes rise, losing is not an option, and disputes, fueled by political emotion and the power of algorithms, easily take a turn that threatens the survival of the political community.
We must seek alternative narratives that evoke communal emotions and redefine what continues to unite us. Without this, it will be difficult to face challenges that require a collective effort.
We must foster and advance culture and science as they are timeless sources of wisdom, goodness, and beauty – a remedy for uncertainty.
Today, more than ever, we need ideological initiatives, intellectual reflection, and substantive dialogue. We must reject simplistic solutions and recognize that the world is and will remain complex. Only then can we confront the unsettling reality.
This effort is what we are going to make – now for the 12th time – at the Freedom Games in Lodz, Poland, and we invite you to participate and collaborate!
Freedom Games, October 24-26, 2025, Lodz, Poland
During the three days of this year’s edition, we were joined by nearly 3,000 participants, who had the opportunity to take part in more than 130 events: panel discussions, author meetings, roundtable debates, as well as concerts or an improv performance.
Check out the video report from the three most intense and inspiring days of the year!
The Freedom Games are a meeting of people curious about the world and hungry for new ideas – an interdisciplinary festival whose most important goal is to create a creative space for conversation. The slogan of this year’s edition was City. Europe. Future. The event program included nearly 130 events: panel discussions, round table speeches and debates, several meetings with authors, concerts, as well as the Living Library, an improvised performance, and an urban game.
Altogether, 949 speakers appeared on the stage, including former Prime Minister of Belgium Guy Verhofstadt, Speaker of the Polish Senate, Małgorzata Kidawa-Błońska; Polish Minister of Culture and National Heritage Hanna Wróblewska, Polish Minister of Equality Katarzyna Kotula, Polish Minister of Finance Andrzej Domański, Polish Minister of Justice Adam Bodnar, Polish Minister of the European Union Adam Szłapka, and Polish Minister of Interior and Administration Tomasz Siemoniak, along with numerous MPs, MEPs, presidents and city mayors and mayoresses; business people, creators of culture: Andrzej, Sapkowski, Dorota Masłowska, Agnieszka Holland, Ewa Puszczyńska, Maria Peszek, SIKSA, Artur Rojek, Karol Paciorek, Jakub Rużyłło, Agnieszka Grochowska, and Jan Holoubek; representatives of science and academia: Carlos Moreno, Yascha Mounk, Edward Reynolds, Wojciech Sadurski; leaders of influential non-governmental organizations, human rights activists: Danuta Wałęsa, Nazanin Boniadi, Janina Ochojska; commentators, podcasters: Adam Michnik, Dariusz Rosiak, Łukasz Pawłowski, Karolina Lewicka, Maciej Głogowski, Piotr Stelmach; athletes: Marcin Gortat and Tomasz Łapiński, and many others.
The festival was organized by the Liberté! Foundation. – an interdisciplinary cultural and social organization and think tank operating in Lodz, Poland.
You cannot join us in person during the Freedom Games? No problem! Follow all the most important events in real time thanks to online broadcasts in the Freedom Games application on the Meeting Application platform. Register and enjoy access to inspiring debates, panel discussions, and lectures wherever you are!
Go to https://event.meetingapplication.com/igrzyska-wolnosci/ and register (if you want to watch on your computer) or download the Meeting Application to your phone and search for the Freedom Games. Go to the agenda, find the event you are interested in, and then click “JOIN” (on a computer) or the TV icon (on a phone). And you are all set!
NOTE: To view the agenda module, you must register on the website or in the application.
The Organizer provides broadcasts from the following session rooms: Machine Hall, Odeon Hall, Sky Room, Planetarium, NCKF Spot, and Basement Ring. Events taking place on the OFF Stage and Basement Hall will not be available.
Run for the Freedom Games: across town, across Europe, for the future!
Nazanin Boniadi, Andrzej Sapkowski, Danuta Walesa, Guy Verhofstadt, Katarzyna Kasia, Adam Bodnar, Dorota Maslowska, Yasha Mounk and nearly 500 speakers; 3 concerts!
October 18-20, 2024 – we see you at EC1 in Lodz!
The official Freedom Games application on the Meeting Application platform is now available!
What do you gain from access to the app?
Download the application now. How to do it?
🌐Apple: https://apps.apple.com/pl/app/meeting-application/id1458878667?l=pl
🌐Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.meetingapplication.app
We are pleased to announce that the next edition of the event will be held on October 18-20, 2024, in Lodz, Poland, and the accompanying slogan will be “City. Europe. Future”!
Most Poles – like most Europeans and most of the world’s population – live in cities.
The city is the center of events. A space for social interactions and a forum for exchanging ideas; a platform for democratic processes, dialogue, and cultural diversity. It was in cities that the ideas of liberalism, capitalism, civil rights, and tolerance were born, to later become enshrined in state systems.
The city is an incubator of social change. It is the leader of cohesion, the provider of social services, and the actual implementer of immigration policy.
The city is the driving force of the economy: a stimulator of development, creativity, and innovation; it is also a wealth generator – 85 percent of global GDP is generated in cities.
The city means independence and freedom of choice; the opportunity to be who you want to be. It provides a perspective of personal development, access to education, culture, and entertainment.
The city is a place where the greatest challenges of today are revealed. It is responsible for 75 percent of global consumption of natural resources, 60-80 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. It is unemployment, poverty, social segregation, and exclusion.
The city is an obligation. A social, an economic, an environmental, and a climate-related one – it is the key to solving global problems and improving the well-being of the next generations of citizens.
The city is the future.
In 2024, Poles will vote in local government elections and elections to the European Parliament. The way in which cities, Poland, and Europe will respond to the most important problems of the modern world will depend on the conscious votes of citizens and the policies pursued by their elected representatives. After a long eight years, we can be part of the solution again. For ourselves. For Poland. For Europe.
Europe is something more than a continent. It is a community of values and the most successful economic development projects based on the idea of a common market within the European Union.
Europe is a space of freedom and security, and in this context – urgent challenges related to the ongoing Russian war in Ukraine: the need to intensify actions to maintain partnership relations with the United States and the United Kingdom and develop our own defense doctrine and energy independence.
Europe means gender equality, protection of human rights, and respect for diversity. It is also a growing need to strengthen these values, which are fundamental to democracy in the face of growing populism and global migration.
Europe is in urgent need of institutional reform that will allow it to maintain the community without deepening the phenomenon of the two-speed European Union while strengthening the agency and dynamics of action, which are a condition for future enlargement.
Europe means a development based on constant economic growth, price stability, and a highly competitive market economy. Today, it is also necessary to reconcile these goals with ethical challenges regarding emerging technologies and artificial intelligence, as well as the needs of environmental protection. While pursuing these goals, Europe cannot lose its global perspective.
Europe means a commitment to a green transformation: creating infrastructure and an environment that will allow for a smooth transition to low- and zero-emission without harming national economies and the needs of citizens.
Europe – strong and united – is a condition for peace, economic development, and the well-being of its citizens.
Europe is the future.
City. Europe. Future. Let us meet on October 18-20, 2024, in Lodz, Poland, at the Freedom Games!
Let’s relive it and return to the highlights of the 2023 Freedom Games!
2830 participants, 486 speakers and 120 sessions on 7 stages! Check out the video report from the three most intense and inspiring days of the year! Thank you all for participating. And in the meantime – we start counting down the days until the next edition! See you there!
Realization: Motion Pikczer
Strategic partners of Freedom Games 2023 are the City of Lodz and the Łódzkie Centrum Wydarzeń.
The tenth edition of Freedom Games, a unique interdisciplinary forum held annually in Lodz, was the largest and most prestigious of all those held so far. For two and a half days, Lodz became a true capital of democratic values.
This year’s edition was attended by 2,830 participants. The seven stages located in the center of EC1 have hosted 486 speakers and presenters, including a whole bunch of notable personalities such as Jonathan Littell, Toomas Hendrik Ilves, Anne Applebaum, Michael Ignatieff, Rebecca Makkai, Oksana Zabużko, Anda Rottenberg, Agnieszka Holland, Mikołaj Grynberg, Maciej Stuhr, Deirdre McCloskey, Paulina Siegień, Stefan Chwin, Renata Lis, Ewa Ewart, Grzegorz Piątek, Mark Galeotti and the others.
The event consisted of one hundred and twenty sessions: literary meetings, lectures, panel discussions, roundtables, which allowed speakers and the audience to exchange views and debate on topics such as democracy, climate crisis, future of media, equality, responsible business, economy, the future of Europe and the European Union, security challenges, changes in the energy sector, new technologies, culture or women’s rights. During the tenth anniversary edition of the Freedom Games, a new generation of experts, NGOs, business, politicians, and citizens presented a proposal for change, a way to tame uncertainty, and a prospect for the future both locally and globally, while proving that the “turning point” is closer than we think.
It was an exceptional edition, therefore we would like to thank everyone without whom the forum could not happen. A standing ovation belongs to the entire technical team of Last Minute Events, which is responsible for the production of the event under the leadership of the irreplaceable Agnieszka Durmaj. During each day of the forum there are dozens of people working on the backstage – sound engineers, cameramen, online streaming people and many, many others – without whom all this would not have been possible.
We would like to thank to our fantastic photography team: Agnieszka Cytacka photography, Zuza Balcerzak ᴾᴴᴼᵀᴼ and HOLLYBABA.
We are also grateful to the translators and interpreters, to Marek Lewoc, who took care of the graphic design of the event, and to our good spirits, i.e. volunteers – you really are wonderful!
Finally, we also would like to thank our partners:
Strategic Partners:
Miasto Łódź, Łódzkie Centrum Wydarzeń
Co-organizers:
European Liberal Forum, European Climate Foundation
Partners:
Atlas Network, Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom, Ikea, Open Society Foundations, Orange, Rising Tide Foundation, Google
Supporting Partners:
Allegro, Amazon, Fundacja Wolności Gospodarczej, InCredibles
Ad Partners:
Octant, Wedel
Publishing Partner:
Wydawnictwo AGORA, Wydawnictwo Poznańskie, Wydawnictwo Czarne, Wydawnictwo Literackie, Wydawnictwo RM
Content Partners:
4 liberty.eu, Centrum Dialogu im. Marka Edelmana w Łodzi, European Council on Foreign Relations, Festiwal Łódź Czterech Kultur, Forum Obywatelskiego Rozwoju, Forum Odpowiedzialnego Biznesu, Fundacja Batorego, Fundacja Miasto Literatury, HEAL Polska, InLodz21, INESS, Inspiring Girls, Institute for Politics and Society, Instytut Finansów Publicznych, Instytut Praw Dziecka im. Janusza Korczaka, KOD Region Łódzki, Kongres Obywatelskich Ruchów Demokratycznych – Tour de Konstytucja, Krytyka Polityczna, Lithuanian Free Market Institute, Łódzki Szlak Kobiet, Movimento Liberal Social, Music Declares Emergency, Ogólnopolska Federacja Organizacji Pozarządowych, Open for Business, Panoptykon, Polityka Insight, Polski Alarm Smogowy, Projekt: Polska, Protest z wykrzyknikiem, Republikon Institute, Roślinniejemy, Stowarzyszenie Adwokackie “Defensor Iuris”, Strajk Kobiet, SOS dla edukacji, Szkoła Liderów, The Paddy Ashdown Forum, THINKTANK, Fundacja UNAWEZA, Visio Institut, Warszawskie Obserwatorium Kultury, Wolna Szkoła, Wolne Sądy, Wybory bez picu
Media Partners:
Angora, Książki. Magazyn do czytania, Newsweek, OKO.press, Onet, TOK FM, Gazeta Wyborcza, Wysokie Obcasy, TOYA TV, TVN24
Round Table Partners:
Jabłoński Koźmiński i Wspólnicy, Instytut Cycerona, Polska Cyfrowa, Zalando
Networking Partners:
Green Caffe Nero
Idea Partners:
Akcja Demokracja, Ad Personam, Biblioteka Miejska w Łodzi, CASE – Centrum Analiz Społeczno-Ekonomicznych, Chcemy całego życia, Ciekaweliczby.pl, Climate Strategies Poland, Europejska Akademia Dyplomacji, Coopernicus, Do dzieła, Dziewczyny do polityki, European Law Students’ Association Łódź, Fabryka Równości, Frank Bold, Fundacja Edukacji i Aktywizacji Społecznej, Fundacja EFC, Fundacja Ocalenie, Fundacja Pole Dialogu, Fundacja Rodzić po Ludzku, Fundacja Szkoła z Klasą, Fundacja Wolności i Przedsiębiorczości, Gazeta Kongresy, Green REV Institute, InVitro to ludzie #TakDlaInVitro, INPRIS, Instytut Cyfrowego Obywatelstwa, Kampania Prawdy, Lasy i Obywatele, Łódzkie Centrum Wielokulturowe, Instytut Cyfrowego Obywatelstwa, Młodzi o Polityce, myPolitics, OFF School, Otwarte Klatki, Outriders, Teatr Nowy in. Kazimierza Dejmka w Łodzi, Pacjent Europa, Polskie Towarzystwo Mediów Medycznych, Rady Kobiet, Ranking Szkół Przyjaznych LGBTQ+, Replika, Res Publica, Sekcja Polityki Polskiej, Stowarzyszenie Kongres Kobiet, Stowarzyszenie Umarłych Statutów, Stowarzyszenie Żydowskie Czulent, Tkalnia, Viva! Akcja dla zwierząt – Łódź
