by Simon Zadek at the World Economic Forum
Road blocks, armoured personnel carriers, identity checks, razor edged fencing and lots and lots and lots of guns...all held by smiling, helpful and disturbingly positive Swiss military police and the like.
Welcome to Davos, temporary home to several thousand already, soon-to-be and wanna-be rich, famous and influential people, 5,000 or so guards (see above), another thousand or so people looking after The people And their guards, and so on...quite a party really.
And so we come to the first, welcoming event, a drinks and canapes (food will be subject of a different blog on www.davoscanapes.com). Klaus Schwab is, of course, the ubiquitous host. Professor Schwab, the inventor, the founder, the developer and the current head of the World Economic Forum. An extraordinary man, an undoubted leader of what has become an immensely succesful institutions, indeed, a world beater in many ways. His imagination, his networking abilities, his profound understanding of the nature of clustering, and his persistent, almost dogamtic will to make a difference. "Relax", he advises to newcomers, "feel your way into this community, marvel at the power of multi-stakholder processes, learn amazing things from others, experience the unexpected, the very essence of Davos. And", he concludes, " engage, become part of something that is happening, one of the initiatives".
I encounter Sally Osberg, President of the Skoll Foundation, one of the key philanthropic ventures, along with Ashoka, Avina and the Schwab Foundation, focused exclusively on advancing the power of social entrepreneurs to make a difference. I query her on leadership and accountbility."Social entrepreneurs are profoundly concerned with their own accountability", she explains, " this is what distinguishes them from the conventional approaches they are challenging". We banter a little on the topic, switching effortlessly into a discussion about the importance of teachers in shaping our lives.
I wonder back to the hotel, the first round, the warm up session complete. Wrapped in my mittens and jumpers and warm socks, i am boiling. Yup, the snows are missing at Davos, so far. Maybe tonight they are falling on the Gobi Desert instead.
