Ravin Jesuthasan
For the last couple of years, the issues of climate change and the future of work have been front and center on the Davos agenda. So was 2020 just more of the same? Not quite. In the weeks leading up to Davos, the WEF outlined an ambitious agenda for addressing both issues, underpinned by a new Davos Manifesto on this, the 50th anniversary of the WEF. The Davos Manifesto of 2020 harkens back to the original Davos Manifesto in its call for a stakeholder-driven view of business. There were numerous private and public sessions to discuss the manifesto and its potential implications for the future of our world.
For climate, the WEF has outlined an ambitious goal of growing, restoring and conserving 1 trillion trees over the next 10 years.
For the future of work, the WEF took on an equally ambitious goal of providing better jobs, education and skills to 1 billions people by 2030.
Many have questioned these goals and the underlying initiatives. Why focus on these two above everything else? Why make such a visible, ambitious, potentially risky commitment? Having participated in numerous WEF meetings, I think I might have some insight....
Urgency - WEF founder Klaus Schwab’s Davos Manifesto is an urgent call to action for companies and governments alike to recognize the need for a fundamental change in how we think about economic growth and the needs of all stakeholders. These two goals are foundational to the manifesto. And, there is growing realization that we no longer have the luxury of time....
Focus - The goal of providing better jobs, education and skills to 1 billion neatly addresses many of the forces at play in the future of work. From the rapid proliferation of automation options that are changing skills premiums and shrinking the half-life of many skills to the varying demographic challenges faced by companies around the world to the growing recognition of the importance of diversity and inclusion, this goal is about ensuring the continued relevance of talent in a changing world of work. The same is true of the 1 trillion tree goal and its impact on climate change.
Real change - No other organization in the world has the power to mobilize a diverse group of stakeholders around a common cause like the WEF. While the WEF has traditionally organized stakeholders into projects to generate insights around various issues and to test solutions in both countries and industries, these two initiatives are very much outcome based as the WEF looks to flex its considerable muscles to bring about meaningful change for our planet.
Sustained impact - So why would the WEF leave itself open to scrutiny and criticism by having such big, hairy, audacious goals that are easily tracked and monitored? While part of the reason is the previous point about wanting to drive real change, in many ways these are things the WEF has been working on for many years. As Saadia Zahidi, Managing Director of the WEF referenced during the press conference announcing the Reskilling Revolution, the WEF and its partners already have commitments to provide opportunity for about 250 million of the 1 billion person goal and would thus hope to exceed this goal.
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So, while they might endure much scrutiny, Davos and the WEF continue to lead the way in affecting positive change and delivering on their mission of improving the state of the world; as they have for the last 50 years.
