Davos 2024: Rebuilding trust
Davos will be held in Switzerland from January 15th - 19th with the theme ‘Rebuilding trust’. The event organized by the World Economic Forum will bring together over 100 governments, major international organizations and around 1,000 companies, as well as civil society leaders, renowned experts, young agents of change, social entrepreneurs and the media. Davos 2024 is an opportunity to reflect on the key challenges facing the world, marked by the geopolitical tensions of recent years, but also by the trends that will define the future, such as the decarbonization of the economy and artificial intelligence.
2023 has been a year of geopolitical fractures, a pervasive cost of living crisis, fragile energy and food security, and of course, the worsening of the climate crisis. In this context, a question awaits the leaders who will attend the forum in Davos; following a ‘polycrisis’ period, are we in an age of permanent crises, or will 2024 be a time for resolution and recovery?
For over 50 years, the Davos Forum has served as a platform where business, government, academia, civil society and other stakeholders can come together to address and discuss critical global issues. This mission has never been more important than now.
Therefore, the organizers stress that the meeting aims to restore global cooperation and reinforce fundamental principles of transparency, consistency and accountability among leaders.
The program seeks to recover open, constructive dialog among heads of state, companies and civil society. With it, the forum intends to serve as a point of connection among them in an increasingly complex environment, and to be able to predict future trends using the latest advances in science, industry and society.
The meeting is organized around four areas:
1) Achieving security and cooperation in a fractured world
With this topic, Davos aims to find a solution that makes it possible to tackle the security crises, such as the current situation in the Middle East, effectively, while simultaneously laying the foundation to prevent greater fragmentation among regions of the world. To do so, it is essential to ensure cooperation among countries and public and private leaders.
2) Creating jobs and growth for a new era
The forum questions how governments, business and civil society can come together around a new economic framework that prevents a decade of low growth and puts people at the heart of decision. Here, the leaders meeting in Switzerland will try to build a more prosperous future at a time when traditional measures seem to be failing.
3) Artificial intelligence as a driving force for the economy and society?
How can we use AI to benefit everyone? This is one of the questions planned for the event, which will attempt to anticipate the effect of transformative technologies like artificial intelligence, including 5G and 6G, quantum computing and biotechnology on the economy, jobs and society in the coming years.
4) A long-term strategy for climate, nature and energy
Following the agreement recently reached at COP28, one of the challenges to be addressed by Davos is how we can achieve the objectives to decarbonize the economy by 2050 while providing affordable, secure and inclusive access to energy, food and water.
Davos will be held in Switzerland from January 15th - 19th with the theme ‘Rebuilding trust’.
The four-day meeting will include a wide spectrum of formats for interaction and learning, providing the leaders the necessary tools to tackle the current complexity and build the future. The meeting will feature speeches by heads of state and key governments, as well as several geoeconomic and geopolitical debate.
The agenda includes the participation of approximately 2,500 people such as heads of state and governments, company CEOs, civil society leaders, global media outlets, and youth leaders from Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Latin America and North America. Meanwhile, BBVA will be represented by Chair Carlos Torres Vila and CEO Onur Genç.
What is Davos?
Davos is the highest town in Europe
What is the Davos Forum?
The Forum is traditionally held in Davos, the highest town in Europe (1,560 meters). Surrounded by mountains, it houses the largest ski station in Switzerland. However, Davos is not famous for its snow but for hosting the World Economic Forum (WEF). This annual meeting is attended by political, business, cultural and media leaders who wish to take part in the international agenda.
Davos was established in 1971 in Geneva (Switzerland) as an "independent, impartial and not tied to special interests” non-profit organization. Its founder is Klaus M. Schwab, a professor at the University of Geneva, who initially invited 444 executives from European companies to a meeting on corporate governance in the convention center of Davos.
His idea was to introduce the American business management approach to European firms. He never imagined that that meeting would lead to the unparalleled international summit that it is today.
Thousands of ideas come out of the Davos Forum. Not all of them materialize, but some have come far: the North American Free Trade Agreement, signed between Canada, Mexico, and the United States, was first proposed at an informal meeting in Davos.
In 1971, University of Geneva Professor Klaus M. Schwab invited 444 executives to attend, more than four decades ago
A summit inspired by a sustainable manifesto
2020 saw the launch of a new 'Davos Manifesto' with the single objective of building a more sustainable, inclusive world.
The forum held four years ago was the most sustainable annual summit held to date. It received IS0 20121 certification for sustainable events and will be totally carbon neutral. This accomplishment was possible thanks to policies aimed at using locally-sourced food suppliers, introducing alternative sources of protein to reduce meat consumption, sourcing 100% renewable electricity, reducing or eliminating the use of materials that cannot be recycled or easily re-used, and increasing the availability of electric vehicles.
How can you follow the World Economic Forum in Davos?
Many of the sessions will be broadcast live on the website and the forum’s social network channels, as well as on its digital app TopLink, providing an opportunity for the forum’s community of digital members and the public to participate in the debate.
Those interested in receiving information on the forum, and content and publications on topics discussed at the forum can subscribe to https://www.weforum.org/join-us/individuals/
Furthermore, the conversations can be followed on Twitter at (@wef and @davos), under hashtag #WEF24, and on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Also follow at LinkedIn and Youtube
Davos can be followed in the social media