Yesterday, the Austrian Business Angel Day 2025 took place at Schloss Esterházy – a strong testament to Austria’s spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship. The event, organized by Wirtschaftsagentur Burgenland in cooperation with aws and AplusB, brought together around 150 investors as well as leading representatives from politics and business.

Announcement of a new fund with a fund-of-funds structure—referred to in political parlance as the “Red-White-Red fund-of-funds”—marks an important turning point for Austria’s start-up scene. Hurray! After years of discussion, this brings an instrument that has long been established in many other countries. The goal is to pool private capital with public funds to support start-ups and scale-ups through their growth phases. The decision is the result of intensive work by numerous stakeholders—led by invest.austria.

In a world increasingly marked by uncertainty, tensions, and competing objectives, one thing is clear: the future cannot be planned. It can only be shaped – through the conscious integration of contradictions into a larger, dynamic, and complex whole. This is where transformative power lies. The future unfolds where opposites are no longer seen as contradictions but are allowed to touch – or even embrace.

Have you ever heard of the linear future fallacy? Our brain loves to extrapolate the future directly from the past. It’s convenient – and surprisingly, it has worked time and again. But is it good? That’s the question, because truly creative, innovative, “out-of-the-box” thinking rarely emerges from it.
In our complex, disruptive VUCA world (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, Ambiguity), linear thinking is no longer enough. The straight-line megatrends that once explained change are too limited – in fact, they no longer exist.

Since the 2000s, the three dimensions of sustainability—ecology, social, and economy—have been in focus. However, the ecological perspective has dominated so far. The EU Action Plan on Financing Sustainable Growth reflects this by prioritizing climate goals. However, the social implications of climate change are becoming increasingly evident, and the social dimension, which places people and society at the heart of sustainability, needs to gain awareness.

"The Moment of Truth" – European Forum Alpbach: 79 Years After Its Founding, Peacekeeping Remains the Central Theme!

Bringing together participants from around the globe in the breathtaking Tyrolean Alps, the Forum offered its usual diverse array of topics. But in 2024, it also included spaces for reflection, moments of silence, and peace circles, fostering deep connections and an atmosphere of trust.

At the invitation of the MEGA Bildungsstiftung, a non-profit organization founded by the B&C Private Foundation and the Berndorf Private Foundation, I have the honor to participate in the Forum Alpbach. The goal of the foundation is to promote equal opportunities in education and to strengthen economic competence through life skills. I am excited about the experiences and insights that await me in the picturesque Alpbach Valley.