An international eye on WEF in 2024 from NuseReal

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Empowering the future: how WEF's Global Shapers are advancing the youth agenda — 10 July 2024 (LINK)

— The Annual Summit of under-30 Global Shapers 2024 took place in Geneva, Switzerland, under the theme 'Dare to Innovate'. 500 young innovators, activists, and local changemakers took part from over 150 countries and territories. The programme has 370 volunteer-led projects.

Nearly 90% of youth surveyed in the Global Shapers Community consider climate change to be a top concern. Young changemakers in the Global Shapers Community have delivered more than 100 grassroots projects and solutions to reduce emissions, conserve nature and accelerate sustainability in the last 12 months. Young innovators from Morelia, Mexico were invited to showcase the satellite surveillance tool they created to track deforestation. Activists from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, were sccheduled to scale their work to enhance agricultural capacity through the construction of urban greenhouses and gardens. And changemakers from Malmö, Sweden, were asked to share their youth employment action plan to promote green jobs and local sustainability champions.
In the Global Shapers network, young changemakers are piloting new models for collective action to empower 1 million people with better education, skills and economic opportunities by 2030 to contribute to the Forum's Reskilling Revolution. advocates from London were invited to display their model to help young people from diverse backgrounds enter and thrive in the cybersecurity workforce. Global Shapers from Prague will illustrate new curricula on urban innovation, design and advocacy, and leaders from Phnom Phen were asked to share ways youth can better budget and save to overcome historical and cultural barriers, via their financial literacy hackathon, which has empowered 4,000 young people in Cambodia so far.
Expanding digital access and literacy: innovators from Dar es Salaam were invited to profile their model for expanding internet access and mobile learning centres across Tanzania, while Global Shapers in Amsterdam were scheduled to pilot a new navigation app to help people with reduced mobility identify accessible walking routes in their city. Activists from Karachi were asked to showcase the power of their replicable AI-powered chatbot to equip women with knowledge about their legal protections against harassment. Global Shapers from Nairobi were slated to showcase a 12-week programme to teach girls to code and create mobile apps to solve real-world problems. In three years, their programme has reached 170 girls in Kenya, expanding from 17 to 55 students per cohort.

WEF New Champions: China's Economic Outlook our report 27 June 2024 (LINK)

Video of session (LINK)

Klaus Schwab, 86, to step down as WEF chairman after 53 years ground.news: 33 media reports 22 May 2024 (LINK)

Schwab will become the non-executive chairman pending Swiss government approval, with the change expected before the 2025 annual meeting. The WEF's executive board, led by WEF President Bórge Brende, has been managing executive responsibilities in Schwab's absence.

WEF Special Meeting 2024 revitalizing growth, development and collaboration amid global fractures weforum 29 April 2024 (LINK)

Participants agreed that efforts to counter global fragmentation must include new ways to measure and kick-start economic growth.

The importance of intelligent economies where multiple intelligence systems such as AI, 5G and the Internet of Things work together rather than in isolation was presented as a potential solution to driving greater innovation and prosperity in both the region and beyond.

During the meeting, the Forum signed a collaboration agreement with the Space Agency of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to establish a new Centre for Space Futures in Riyadh, the first of its kind. The Forum also launched a Strategic Cybersecurity Talent Framework, which outlines four priority areas where organizations can build sustainable talent pipelines and strengthen their cyber resilience in the face of increasingly complex and numerous global cyberthreats. In parallel, a report was published with guiding principles to enhance cyber resilience in manufacturing.

Participants agreed that efforts to revive growth and economic cooperation cannot succeed without equivalent investment in jobs, people and equity. Participants also discussed how to accelerate economic gender parity and the integration of youth.

Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State, stressed that "revitalising, reimagining, and reinvigorating alliances and partnerships around the world" would be the only way out of this period of polycrisis.

WEF: Dozens of energy ministers gathered in Riyadh. Here's what they said u.today 28 April 2024 (LINK)

Davos 2024

Fox: Klaus Schwab's World Economic Forum in Davos exposed as place where 'cronyism can flourish' foxnews 21 January 2024 (LINK)

WEF summary of Davos 2024 wef / mailchimp 19 January 2024 (LINK)

The Forum's new Global Cooperation Barometer: A new white paper offered diverse ideas on what global cooperation can look like in a fragmenting world.
At this year's Western Balkans Diplomacy Dialogue, leaders from the region and the EU reiterated their commitment to a common European future underpinned by regional growth and stability.
The Humanitarian and Resilience Investing initiative announced over 50 commitments that will boost impact investment and could unlock over $15 billion, with new collaborations driving purpose-driven investment in frontier markets.
The World Economic Forum, House of Switzerland and Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs launched the Global Foresight Network to support a global community of practice across public and private sectors to serve as an incubator to advance future preparedness.
The Faith in Action report spotlighted examples of businesses partnering with faith-based groups to support vulnerable populations and address the world's interconnected crises.
Members of the Davos Baukultur Alliance pledged to support the Government of Ukraine by providing technical assistance and resources to the rebuilding process, including the construction of sustainable and high-quality homes for orphans from the conflict.
The Forum announced it will hold a special meeting, hosted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on "Global Cooperation, Growth and Energy for Development" on 28-29 April 2024 in Riyadh.

Michael J. de la Merced, Lauren Hirsch, NY Times: The Top Takeaways From Davos: Artificial intelligence was the unofficial theme at the annual gathering of world leaders nytimes ● 20 January 2024 (LINK)

Talk of artificial intelligence was everywhere. While the official theme may have been about "rebuilding trust," the unofficial one was almost undoubtedly "artificial intelligence will reshape everything."
E.S.G. may be on the back burner, but it's still on the stove.
Optimism prevailed, albeit cautiously.

Glory Kabaru, Cryptopolitan: the World Economic Forum's Reskilling Revolution initiative, launched in 2020: a global leap in education and job opportunities cryptopolitan 20 January 2024 (LINK)

Over 680 million people worldwide are benefiting from enhanced skills, education, and job opportunities. This achievement is a significant milestone towards the initiative's ambitious goal of empowering 1 billion individuals by 2030.

[The project] collaborates with over 350 companies and 20 Country Accelerators. It aims to provide individuals with the skills required for emerging industries, particularly focusing on green and digital jobs. This approach reflects the need to integrate environmental sustainability with technological advancements.

New commitments under this initiative include the US Department of Education's Raise the Bar program, IBM's Skillsbuild initiative, and the European Roundtable for Industry's R4E project. These programs collectively aim to reskill millions, focusing on underrepresented communities and promoting inclusive growth.

The initiative's global reach is evident with the Philippines, Viet Nam, and Qatar joining 20 other Country Accelerators. The Good Work Alliance, a coalition of 21 companies, aims to provide favorable working conditions for approximately 2.5 million workers. The Refugee Employment Alliance, co-chaired by UNHCR and Ingka Group, has made significant progress, hiring over 54,000 refugees in the last two years, with a commitment to hire 125,000 more by 2027.

Robert Reich: Jamie Dimon groveling before Trump from Davos exemplifies how fascism takes root commondreams 20 January 2024 (LINK)

Dimon: "Take a step back, be honest. He was kind of right about NATO, kind of right on immigration. He grew the economy quite well. Tax reform worked. He was right about some of China. He wasn't wrong about some of these critical issues." What?

Jai Hamid, Cryptopolitan: Key highlights from the 2024 World Economic Forum cryptopolitan 19 January 2024 (LINK)

"The 2024 World Economic Forum in Davos was not your typical gabfest. It was a whirlwind of futuristic musings, policy debates, and some real talk about the state of our planet. This year's forum stood out for its post-pandemic attendance boom and a stark shift in focus. The usual economic chit-chat and climate concerns were overshadowed by hefty discussions on geopolitics and technology."

Sabri Ben-Achour and Erika Soderstrom, marketplace: Key takeaways from the World Economic Forum marketplace.org 19 January 2024 (LINK)

Patrick Foulis, foreign editor at The Economist magazine, was in Davos and spoke with Marketplace's Sabri Ben-Achour about some of the key topics of discussion, including artificial intelligence and elections, as well as some of the overarching themes at this year's conference.

"Overhanging all of that," Foulis said, "is the sense of the world order changing the tensions between America and China, the rise of more powerful, middle-power-type countries around the world, and the sense that the old world in which America was the preeminent power is passing now into something more complicated."

WEF Davos 2024: 4 takeaways from the Annual Meeting WEF 19 January 2024 (LINK)

Leaders need to 'pull together'
'Projections are not destiny'
'Humans are going to have better tools'
'Urgency is our only saviour '

The World Economic Forum edges away from the left: The World Economic Forum is inching rightward and backing away from the progressive causes it once championed loudly. semafor 19 January 2024 (LINK)

The phrase "ESG" appeared twice in the 2022 program, once in 2023, and zero times this year. "Diversity" appeared five times in 2022, four times in 2023, and once this year.

At Davos, leaders talked big on rebuilding trust. Can the World Economic Forum make a difference? AP 19 January 2024 (LINK)

Davos 2024: 6 innovative ideas on reskilling, upskilling and building a future-ready workforce WEF 18 January 2024 (LINK)

At Davos, an art installation looks to bring people closer to nature with a little help from AI nbcnews 18 January 2024 (LINK)

What makes a good WEF panel qz.com 18 January 2024 (LINK)

Over 60 heads of state attended Davos 2024. What they had to say WEF 17 January 2024 (LINK)

WEF's top 3

Li Qiang, Premier of the People's Republic of China called for the rebuilding of trust between countries and touted China's economy, stressing its integral position in the global economy.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission: urged countries around the world to collaborate and rebuild trust amidst an array of global challenges ranging from the climate crisis to polarization within societies.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine decried the ongoing Russian aggression against Ukraine and called on countries around the world to support Ukraine's war efforts. "We need you in Ukraine to build, to reconstruct and to restore our lives," he said.

New WEF report measures quality of growth for new economic era: calls for a new approach to economic growth that balances efficiency with long-term sustainability and equity, examining speed and quality together WEF 17 January 2024 (LINK)

The Forum's Future of Growth initiative is a two-year endeavour aimed at charting a new narrative for economic growth and supporting policy-makers from around the world, together with economists and other experts, in identifying the best pathways in balance growth, innovation, inclusion, sustainability and resilience goals.High-income economies score high on innovation and inclusion, while lower-income economies on sustainability. At an individual level, none of the 107 economies covered by the report have attained a score higher than 80 on any of the framework's four dimensions.

Davos 2024: UN chief calls for global risk management of AI, warns of 'serious unintended consequences' cnbc 17 January 2024 (LINK)

Macron in favour of new EU joint debt, defence bonds euractiv 17 January 2024 (LINK)

→Argentina's Milei warns WEF to reject socialism, says 'Western world is in danger'→ foxnews 17 January 2024 (LINK)

An estimated $15bn will be required to rebuild just the homes in Gaza, the head of the Palestine Investment Fund, Mohammad Mustafa said at the World Economic Forum aljazeera 17 January 2024 (LINK)

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde launched a stinging attack on the economics profession, accusing analysts of having "blind faith" in their models, which often bear little connection to reality euractiv 17 January 2024 (LINK)

Their models largely discount the possibility of "exogenous shocks" such as pandemics, climate change-induced weather events, and sudden supply shortages all of which have severely impacted Europe's economy over the last few years.

At Davos, ESG begins a quiet rebranding: Despite what critics may claim, environmental, social, and governance priorities are far from dead. fastcompany 17 January 2024 (LINK)

Tech leaders in Davos share insights into Metaverse and AI plans euronews 17 January 2024 (LINK)

Is AI good or evil? WEF crowd treads with caution dw 17 January 2024 (LINK)

In Davos, Sam Altman softens tone on AGI two months after OpenAI drama venturebeat 17 January 2024 (LINK)

Davos World Economic Forum is a favorite focus of conspiracies: Anti-Davos rhetoric has also spread to mainstream politicians and Elon Musk bloomberg 17 January 2024 (LINK)

→New York Post: The elites' absurd Davos crusade: Destroy freedom to save humanity→ nypost.com 17 January 2024 (LINK)

Escort services sell out at Davos as finance leaders gather at World Economic Forum themessenger.com 17 January 2024 (LINK)

Need to Know: Davos 2024 The Zelenskyy edition qz 16 January 2024 (LINK)

China's economy hit target with 5.2% growth in 2023, Premier Li Qiang tells Davos forum ground.news: 67 media reports 16 January 2024 (LINK)

China posts 5.2% growth in 2023 worst in decades, as recovery stalls: an intractable real estate crisis, record youth unemployment and a global slowdown are gumming the gears of the Chinese growth engine AFP (LINK)

WEF Social Innovators of the Year 2024: recognizes "16 organizations joining a global community of 477 change leaders directly improving the lives of 891 million people" WEF 16 January 2024 (LINK)

Davos: Young entrepreneurs make their mark at WEF dw 15 January 2024 (LINK)

Gerald Abila developed Winnie, a virtual lawyer supported by artificial intelligence and responds to legal questions within 24 hours. In Davos, Abila will be honored as a "Social Innovator" by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship.

Danya Pastuszek is the Canada-based co-CEO of the Tamarack Institute, an organization with the goal to combat poverty something that often calls for local solutions. The Tamarack Institute trains and connects people who can learn from each other and develop solutions together. They often live in remote communities.

Shenzhen Power-Solution founder Xia Li has been recognized as a social entrepreneur by the Schwab Foundation. Hersolar lamps bring light to around seven million households in China, India and Africa.

World Economic Forum Economists' Outlook: 56% of senior economists expect the global economy to weaken in 2024 www.weforum.org 15 January 2024 (LINK)

Two-thirds said industrial policies will create new growth hotspots, but majority warns of rising fiscal strains and divergence between higher- and lower-income economies.

The richest 1% own 43% of global assets, and emit as much carbon as two-thirds of the planet's poorest, Oxfam study says www.context.news 15 January 2024 (LINK)

World's 5 richest doubled their fortunes since 2020, Oxfam report finds thedailybeast 15 January 2024 (LINK)

The Gates Foundation has approved its largest annual budget yet. And Bill Gates is in Davos at the 2024 WEF meeting to push for an acceleration in health innovations qz 15 January 2024 (LINK)

→"The left-wing Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation announced from the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland that it intends to spend [$8.6 bln] on left-wing causes in the year 2024";→ themichiganstar 15 January 2024 (LINK)

Is the World Economic Forum still relevant? aljazeera 14 January 2024 (LINK)

Geneva Solutions on Davos 2024 genevasolutions 14 January 2024 (LINK)

Davos 2024: AI fears creep into finance, business and law: AI is one of the core themes, and a topic on many of the panels and events at Davos washingtonpost 13 January 2024 (LINK)

As leaders fly to Davos, how do private jets fuel climate change? www.context.news 10 January 2024 (LINK)

During the week-long event in 2022, 1,040 private planes flew in and out of airports serving the Swiss mountain resort, according to a report commissioned by campaign group Greenpeace. Those flights caused four-times more planet-heating carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions than during an average week - equivalent to the emissions of 350,000 cars, it found.