Summer Davos 2009 Agenda

(weforum.org)
Updated: 2009-09-01 17:11

Reviving economic growth remains the priority for policy-makers and business leaders in 2009. This recovery will be directed by a new generation of leaders - the New Champions - and the World Economic Forum is bringing over 1300 of them together at the "Summer Davos" in Dalian, China. The Meeting will take a comprehensive approach to the issues most relevant to getting business back on a track of growth and identifying opportunities for development.

To this end, the World Economic Forum is bringing together 1,500 influential stakeholders for an extraordinary global summit - the Annual Meeting of the New Champions - on 10-12 September in Dalian, People’s Republic of China.

An intensive and interactive three-day programme will provide a systemic and global overview of major economic, regional and industry developments in the following programmatic tracks.

Opportunities in a Green Economy

Every major stimulus plan from among the G7 assumes that green investments addressing global environmental challenges will create new technologies, businesses and jobs to improve national competitiveness over the long run - but what are the most critical investments to be made and what will they deliver in the near term?

Driving Economic Growth through Science and Technology

Much of the economic growth over the last two decades, particularly among industrialized economies, was attributed to the creativity and innovation of the financial industry, but most of those gains have now proved ephemeral. Yet, creativity and innovation are needed more than ever, particularly in the fields of science and technology. How can government and business work with the science and technology community to jump-start economic growth?

Addressing Societal Needs through Innovation

Society expects that the extraordinary amount of public funds deployed to address the economic crisis will not result in the neglect of important social and development programmes. Instead, expectations are that fiscal stimulus will be directed towards addressing societal concerns related to healthcare, water scarcity, ageing and food/energy security in such a way that creates economic growth. What are the opportunities for business and government? What are the risks if expectations are not met?

New Business Models in a Deleveraging World

If economic recovery is based on avoiding the creation of new “bubbles”, reducing macroeconomic imbalances and promoting sustainable consumption, what will emerge to stimulate and sustain future growth? How will businesses operate in a new financial era? How will tax policies, educational priorities and incentive models change to create a new competitive environment?

Rethinking Asia's Development Model

The global financial crisis of 1997-1998 taught the region a number of hard economic lessons, among them the importance of foreign currency reserves. However, the accumulation of nearly three trillion US dollars in reserves a decade later did little to protect Asia’s economies from the collapse in consumer demand in the United States and Europe. With decoupling proven a myth, how will the current crisis transform Asia’s export-driven model of growth and those industries that have relied on it for so long?

The Annual Meeting of New Champions will provide the strategic insights, ideas, initiatives and solutions to confront the global, economic and, above all, business challenges in 2009. The above programme tracks will be adapted continuously to reflect the latest developments over the next six months. The Forum foresees that the Annual Meeting of the New Champions 2009 will once more bring together in Dalian the world’s most influential and relevant decision-makers.