Tomorrow’s Global Leaders will need to be versed in different realities

"I’m sure that tomorrow’s Global Leaders will be those who are versed in different realities and who are aware of the consequences their actions may have for the world as a whole." 

This is what Germany's President Christian Wulff asked us Young Global Leaders to keep in mind on our way to becoming tomorrow's leaders in his words of welcome to the YGL Berlin Meeting . In expressing what he considers essential for future leadership, he described exactly the intention we had in mind when organising the YGL Berlin Meeting: bringing together Young Global Leaders from all over the world and enabling an exchange with leading personalities from different areas of politics and commerce, thereby illuminating today's and tomorrow's issues from the most varied points of view in order to draw a comprehensive picture of the challenges ahead and ways of meeting them.

To that end, the list of speakers comprised three members of the federal government of Germany as well as key Chief Executive Officers from various economic sectors. Piecing together a comprehensive picture of the actual and future challenges for global politics was the goal of the first section, which included an exchange about security policy with the Federal Minister of Defense Dr Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, a very frank and open discussion with the Deputy Federal Chancellor and Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr Guido Westerwelle and a speech about health policy and the effects of the changing demographic structure of our societies by the Federal Minister of Health Dr Philipp Rösler.

Having discussed the "different realities" in politics, the next session aimed at complementing these insights through debating the future challenges for the global economy and their interdependence with global politics. For this purpose, Dr Frank Appel, Chief Executive Officer of Deutsche Post DHL, Dr Jürgen M. Geissinger, President and Chief Executive Officer of Schaeffler Group, Karl Gernandt, Executive Vice-Chairman of Kühne+Nagel International, Dr Jürgen Heraeus, President and Former Chief Executive Officer of Heraeus Holding, Professor Raimund Klinkner, Chief Executive Officer of Bundesvereinigung Logistik (BVL), Professor Klaus Mangold, Chairman of the Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations and Christian Rast, Chief Executive Officer of BrainNet Supply Management Group, reported from their areas of activity and the corresponding "realities". 

We very much hope that for the nearly 50 participants from several continents the exchanges with the speakers and the other Young Global Leaders were as inspiring as they were for us. We thank everybody for having come to Berlin and having contributed with their presence to the success of the YGL Berlin Meeting. A special honour was the presence of Professor Klaus Schwab during several sessions of the programme. Having him participate in our meeting showed us his appreciation for the work and commitment of the Young Global Leaders and made us again feel extremely honoured to belong to this group of truly outstanding personalities.

Looking forward to seeing you all again,

Silvana Koch-Mehrin, Vice-President, European Parliament, Brussels (YGL 2005)
Christopher Jahns, President and Chief Executive Officer, EBS University, Germany (YGL 2009)