The World Expression Forum (WEXFO) witnessed an unprecedented turnout, with over 1800 participants engaged in the various events which took place in Lillehammer 26-29 May.
“It’s been a rollercoaster of great ideas, inspiration, and exchange with a lot of people. We have had participants from the age group of 14 to almost 80 years old,” says an enthusiastic WEXFO director Kristenn Einarsson.
Speakers and participants from several dozen different countries gathered at the Scandic Lillehammer Hotel to network and share insights and experiences on topics such as the status of freedom of expression in 2024, artificial intelligence, propaganda as a weapon in war and conflict, burning of religious symbols, and trust in political elections and voting systems.
In parallel, WEXFO organized a freedom of expression festival for school students, which together gathered over 1000 young people aged 14-19.
“We are going to sum up everything that we learned during the next couple of weeks. Then we will start the planning for next year,” Einarsson asserts.
One of the many high-profile figures at this year’s WEXFO was the editor-in-chief of Charlie Hebdo, Gérard Biard, who was pleased to join the events in Lillehammer: “WEXFO is a great platform for communication through generations. It’s a way to learn a human value that I think is a little bit lost, and that is empathy,” he says.
WEXFO 2025 will take place in Lillehammer on June 2 and 3.
