Launched in 2016, the Night of Ideas has become a worldwide project staged in 190 cities and 104 different countries. In London and Edinburgh, the French Institute convenes debates and performances to challenge our understanding of the world.

The theme of this year’s edition, Taking Action, invites us to reflect on the ability of governments, civil society and individuals to respond effectively to the world’s geopolitical disorder. It also questions the growing polarisation within our societies and the frailty of social contracts in democratic heartlands. By crossing perspectives and bringing together leading figures from both sides of the Channel, we hope that visions for a brighter – if not less fractious – future will emerge tonight.

We thank our donors, among them the Friends and Patrons of the Institute, and all the speakers, with particular thanks to those who travelled from the continent, be it Paris, Brussels or Kyiv.