Name: Festival of the Future „Debate & Confidence" Halle 2026
Start: 2026-06-12T00:00:00+00:00
End: 2026-06-13T00:00:00+00:00
Location: Volkspark Halle

Festival of the Future Halle

About Festival of the Future Halle

The Festival of the Future „Debate & Confidence" transforms Volkspark Halle into a stage for societal debates in June 2026. Two days of dialogue between politics, culture, and civil society with prominent guests like Sandra Maischberger and Jan Plewka, complemented by concerts, workshops, and a „Fuck-Up-Night". Free admission, no registration required — initiated by ZEIT Foundation Bucerius and Stiftung Bürger für Bürger.

Dates 12 Jun — 13 Jun 2026

Venue Halle (Saale) (15002)

Prices Free

Status Confirmed

Edition 2026

Festival of the Future Halle — edition 2026

The Festival of the Future „Debate & Confidence" 2026 takes place on Friday, June 12, and Saturday, June 13, starting at 3:00 PM each day in Volkspark Halle. Talks, concerts, workshops, Fuck-Up-Night. Featuring Sandra Maischberger, Jan Plewka, Robin Alexander, Dagmar Rosenfeld, and many others. Completely free.

Two festival days with different program focuses. Main stage with prominent guests, several smaller stages running in parallel for workshops, initiative talks, and concerts. Initiative mile featuring associations and engagement projects from Saxony-Anhalt and across Germany.

Highlights Festival of the Future Halle 2026

Completely free, no registration required
Prominent guests (Maischberger, Plewka, etc.)
Fuck-Up-Night as a format highlight
Initiative mile featuring engagement from Saxony-Anhalt
Concerts as a program focus

Programme Festival of the Future Halle 2026

Friday, June 12, 2026 — from 3:00 PM

3:00 PM — Festival opening on the main stage in Volkspark
4:00 PM — Talk round with Sandra Maischberger and representatives of civil society
6:00 PM — Robin Alexander & Dagmar Rosenfeld in live discussion on „Debate and Democracy"
8:00 PM — Concert Jan Plewka & Band (Selig singer solo)
9:30 PM — Fuck-Up-Night in the workshop tent

Saturday, June 13, 2026 — from 3:00 PM

3:00 PM — Program start Day 2
3:30 PM — Workshops on civil society, engagement, and political education
5:00 PM — Talk: „What holds Germany together?"
7:00 PM — Initiative mile with presentations
8:30 PM — Closing concert on the main stage
Festival winds down late in the evening

A detailed list of all guests and workshop topics will be published in April 2026 by the ZEIT Foundation Bucerius and the Stiftung Bürger für Bürger.

Prices Festival of the Future Halle 2026

Completely free admission. Food and drinks available at food trucks and stands.

Practical information

Practical information — Festival of the Future Halle

Getting There

Volkspark Halle: Halle Hbf 10 min by tram (lines 2, 5). By car via A14 (Halle/Trotha) — Volkspark is signposted.

Admission

Completely free. No registration required.

Program Start

Both days from 3:00 PM.

On Site

Food trucks, stage, workshop tents, initiative mile, children's area, restrooms.

Inclusion

Accessible access to the entire festival grounds.

A Stage for Civil Society

While political discourse in Germany is becoming increasingly polarized and resignation is taking hold in many social strata, the Festival of the Future „Debate & Confidence" deliberately aims to set a counter-trend: In June 2026, Halle (Saale) will become a stage for a strong civil society. In the expansive Volkspark Halle, representatives from politics, culture, and the engagement scene will engage in conversation with citizens over two days — not in the form of large frontal lectures, but in talk rounds, workshops, labs, Fuck-Up-Nights, and concerts.

ZEIT Foundation Meets Stiftung Bürger für Bürger

The organizers are the ZEIT Foundation Bucerius from Hamburg and the Stiftung Bürger für Bürger from Halle. The combination is no coincidence: Halle was deliberately chosen as an East German city where political conflicts are currently particularly acute. The festival is explicitly not conceived as a „Berlin talk show in the park", but as a dialogue at eye level with the civil society of Halle and Saxony-Anhalt.

Prominent Guests and Local Voices

Appearances and discussion contributions confirmed include Sandra Maischberger (moderator), Robin Alexander (Welt), Dagmar Rosenfeld (Welt), Jan Plewka (Selig, with band live), and others. Local initiatives, associations, and engaged citizens from Saxony-Anhalt will be present via an initiative mile — showcasing their work, networking, and engaging in dialogue with prominent guests. A „Fuck-Up-Night" is dedicated to failures and the courage to learn from them.

Halle, Volkspark, and Saxony-Anhalt

The Volkspark Halle is one of the oldest and largest parks in the city. As a venue, it offers the mix of green space, stage possibilities, and urban accessibility that an open festival needs. Halle, an independent city in the state of Saxony-Anhalt and the second-largest city in the state after Magdeburg, is a university city with an active student cultural scene and a distinct tradition of civil society engagement. The Festival of the Future builds on this tradition.