This year, a festival of lectures will be organized for the first time as part of the Astana Economic Forum, Global Challenges Summit 2018. This will become an integrating lecture platform for leading experts of the world community and students. Kazakh youth will have an opportunity to learn about the most important breakthroughs and new challenges related to cutting edge technologies. The festival of lectures will be organized by leading universities of Astana during May 17-18.

BAUBEK SOMZHUREK, PROVOST, GUMILYOV EURASIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY:
- Within two days, well-known experts from all over the world will visit our university to give lectures on geopolitics and digital technologies as part of the forum. Such meetings give a unique opportunity to directly ask questions from leading experts in economics and get answers to the most important topics of our time.

Organizers are sure that meetings with the world’s leading businessmen and scientists will inspire young Kazakhs to find new ideas and will allow seeing the prospects of the future of the humankind. The main topics will be geopolitical challenges, digital technologies for the future economy, creative approaches in business and a new understanding of the world.

BODAN ZHETIBES, STUDENT:
- I am very happy that the Senior Director for Development Economics in the World Bank, Shanta Devarajan, will visit Astana. This is a unique opportunity and a chance for students majoring in Economics to learn something from specialists like him.

14 leading experts will lecture at the festival, including founder and editor in chief of China Economic Quarterly and author of How Asia Works, Joe Studwell, as well as co-founder of Shazam, Chris Barton.