Future Worlds Center was founded in 1991 as Cyprus Neuroscience and Technology Institute. In the late 1990s, it expanded its operations pioneering in a number of humanitarian, multicultural and peace related projects,. At the end of 2005, with a new Constitution, it evolved into a larger organization with a pure international orientation integrating all humanitarian, peace, and multicultural activities under one umbrella.
The organization has developed the curriculum for CYBER KIDS, a chain of computer learning centers, that started in Cyprus and expanded in 7 countries in the early 90s. CYBER KIDS was a mass-scale experiment to achieve massive social change in a whole country. Future Worlds Center also implements many EC-funded projects that conduct research and inform societies about the safer use of the Internet; Cyberethics, Cyprus’ Safer Internet Center, which includes a Hotline and a Helpline.
Promoting regional peace
Future Worlds Center pioneers in envisioning, designing and implementing projects that promote the culture of peace and reconciliation in Cyprus, the region and the globe. The Technology for peace, initiative in 1997, founded by Yiannis Laouris and Harry Anastasiou members of the Cyprus Conflict Resolution Trainers Group aimed to capitalize on the proliferation of the Internet as a means to break the communication barriers between the northern and the southern parts of divided Cyprus. Other notable peace projects include the Youth promoting Peace, Civil Society Dialogue, the Act Beyond Borders, Everybody's song, and many projects funded by HasNa Inc..
Active promoter of the MDGs
Future Worlds Center is leading a number of pan-European efforts, which aim to promote the Millennium Development Goals within Europe and in Sub-Saharan countries. It was a founding member of the Cyprus Islandwide Development NGO Platform and the Cyprus Community Media Centre. The Accessing Development Education project has collected teaching materials or guidance books on topics like Development Education, Global citizenship, Human Rights, Millennium Development Goals and many others from across Europe into one central depository. The Teach MDGs project focuses on increasing awareness and public support for the Millennium Development Goals by actively engaging teacher training institutes, teachers and pupils in developing local oriented teaching resources promoting the MDGs with a particular focus on Sub-Saharan Africa and integrate these into the educational systems of countries across Europe.
The 2011 Euro-Med Award for the Dialogue between Cultures Honorable Mention -ranked 2nd- for Future Worlds Center and Aleco Christakis, Yiannis Laouris, Harry Anastasiou, Kerstin Wittig and Romina Laouri.