Leadership

What are Young Global Leaders, and how are they tackling the world's biggest challenges?

Wadia Ait Hamza, Head of the Forum of Young Global Leaders

Wadia Ait Hamza, Head of the Forum of Young Global Leaders Image: World Economic Forum/Pascal Bitz

Robin Pomeroy
Podcast Editor, World Economic Forum
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  • What are the Young Global Leaders? We hear from the Forum and from three of the 'people with the vision, courage, and influence to drive positive change in the world'.
  • The work of those three 'YGLs' include investment in Africa, AI in the Middle East and journalism around the world.
  • Subscribe to Radio Davos, the podcast that looks at how we can tackle the world's greatest challenges.

What's the connection between Jimmy Wales, Amal Clooney, Emmanuel Macron, Jacinda Ardern and will.i.am? Answer? They're all Young Global Leaders.

So what are 'YGLs' and how does being part of that group help people - with diverse backgrounds and world views - work for the greater public good?

On this episode of Radio Davos we talk to the person who leads the Forum of Young Global Leaders at the World Economic Forum, and to three alumni who each work in very different sectors and parts of the world.

Podcast transcript: What are Young Global Leaders, and how are they tackling the world's biggest challenges?

Robin Pomeroy: What's the connection between Jimmy Wales, Amal Clooney, Emmanuel Macron, Jacinda Ardern and will.i.am? Answer? They're all Young Global Leaders.

Wadia Ait Hamza, Head of the Forum of Young Global Leaders: The forum of Young Global Leaders. A dynamic community of exceptional people.

Robin Pomeroy: Welcome to Radio Davos, the podcast from the World Economic Forum that looks at the biggest challenges and how we might solve them. This week, we're taking a look at the Young Global Leaders. Speaking to the person here at the World Economic Forum who leads the YGL programme.

Wadia Ait Hamza: When we say exceptional people, we meet that they have the vision, they have the courage, they have the influence to drive positive change.

Robin Pomeroy: We'll hear from some of those Young Global Leaders from the world of business and investment in Africa.

Fatoumata Ba: What has drawn me to that community is to find people that are motivated everyday to wake up and to create a better society and to intrinsic positively and to be a driver of change.

Robin Pomeroy: To politics and tech policy in the Middle East.

Omar Sultan Al Olama: Being able to access a person that is a leader in this specific field willing to share with me an insight allows me to do my job better.

Robin Pomeroy: To a war reporter determined to keep important stories alive.

Lara Setrakian: I've been in wars that not many people are covering. And I've covered wars that not many people are covering. And you're applying what you know how to do as a journalist to making sure this thing, this incident doesn't completely fall off the human radar.

Robin Pomeroy: Subscribe to Radio Davos wherever you get your podcasts. Leave us a rating and a review and join us on the World Economic Forum Podcast Club on Facebook. I'm Robin Pomeroy at the World Economic Forum, and with this look at the Young Global Leaders.

Lara Setrakian: Being a young global leader changed my life.

Robin Pomeroy: This is Radio Davos.

Here on Radio Davos. Every week we look at the world's biggest challenges and how we might solve them. On this episode, we're taking a look at the World Economic Forum itself, or a part of it at least, a part called the Young Global Leaders. To tell us about that. I am joined by the person who runs that part of the World Economic Forum, Wadia Ait Hamza. Wadia, how are you?

Wadia Ait Hamza: I'm good. How are you?

Robin Pomeroy: Very well, thank you. Wadia, tell us what is, or what are Young Global Leaders.

Wadia Ait Hamza: So basically the forum of Young Global Leaders is an accelerator for dynamic community of exceptional people. And when we say exceptional people, we mean that they have the vision, they have the courage, they have the influence to drive positive change.

Today we are around 1,200 YGLs, that's how we call them, in more than 120 countries. And we have YGLs from the business sector, educators, activists, entrepreneurs, public figures, you name it, basically they are from all walks of lives, from all over the world. And these YGLs are making a difference in their organisations, but also in their communities.

So it's not only their day job, but they do and they step up to do more for the world. And as a collective, they are united by the belief that today's pressing problems present an opportunity to build a better future across all our boundaries. And this is aligned with the mission of the Forum, the World Economic Forum, to seek to drive public-private cooperation in the global public interest, achieving more together than we could ever do alone.

Robin Pomeroy: So give us some idea of the history then. This has existed for quite some time, right?

Wadia Ait Hamza: Yes. It's been existing since 2004. Exactly. When Professor [Klaus] Schwab, who's the founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, created the YGL community to help the world meet increasingly complex and interdependent problems.

His vision was to create a proactive, multi-stakeholder community of the world's next generation of leaders to inform, influence, decision making and mobilise transformation. Basically, who are the leaders that are in their 30s that are struggling to have a seat at the table? How can we bring them to together so that they can learn from each other? Peer learning is important, but also to have a safe space for them to share their pain points. So through the work of the YGL community, Klaus Schwab really envisioned, how can we facilitate earnest dialogue, friendship across cultures so that we bridge divides and foster fresh thinking and a dynamic way of collaboration to shape more positive, peaceful and prosperous society.

How can we facilitate earnest dialogue, friendship across cultures so that we bridge divides and foster fresh thinking and a dynamic way of collaboration to shape more positive, peaceful and prosperous society?

Wadia Ait Hamza, Head of the Forum of Young Global Leaders

Robin Pomeroy: So how does it work? Is it something like a yearly thing where there's a class of 2022, for example, where you've got a certain number of these Young Global Leaders from very diverse backgrounds to the geography, but also in terms of expertise, the fields they're in.

Wadia Ait Hamza: Exactly. So, as you said, every year we select a class of YGLs, of around 100 individuals, that are achieving a lot in their careers, with their communities and from different backgrounds and sectors and nationalities. And the idea is, how can we bring them together to create a safe space where they can learn, they can share their pain points and they can basically become better leaders. And by that, we are kind of transforming the leadership of sectors, of industries, of countries, to make sure that those are the leaders that we want, that respect all cultures, respect all individuals, that can step up when it's needed to do the work, but also that can, with a simple phone call, call on other YGL to solve a problem rather than be stuck in bureaucracy or in protocol.

Robin Pomeroy: And so these leaders, they're mostly people in their 30s, as that's the young part of the young global leaders.

Wadia Ait Hamza: We collect them before they turned 40.

Robin Pomeroy: Okay, that's a shame. I was just checking whether I should apply, but that counts me out. Have there been any alumni? Are there any alumni out there that people listening to this might have heard of?

Wadia Ait Hamza: Oh, there are, I'm sure, hundreds. I can give examples of President of France Emmanuel Merkel, Prime Minister of Belgium Alex De Croo, will.i.am, the musician and AI evangelist, Jack Ma, Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia, Filippo Grandi, the High Commissioner of U.N. Refugees and so on. We have thousands of incredible individuals that went through this journey of being a YGL, of coming together to work, to harness their relationships so that they can build a better world.

Robin Pomeroy: Now, a skeptic or a conspiracy theorists might say 'aha - here's the World Economic Forum training up the global elite. What would you say to that?

Wadia Ait Hamza: It's a big problem we have nowadays with misinformation. Leaders across the public and private sphere agree that the spread of misinformation and digital propaganda is an incredibly difficult challenge to all of us. Alongside many other high profile organizations we've seen baseless statements and conspiracy theories replace reason with fantasy. From our side, we encourage rationally grounded, fact-based debate on these issues. And anyone can check what we're doing. We don't hide anything. We have all information public. I think some of this misinformation is a serious challenge to all of us - to regulators, to everyone. It's a minefield for those who seek the facts. And it's a barrier to governments and organisations wanting to disseminate important information.

Robin Pomeroy: Well, let's and hear from three of them. Our colleague Greta Ruffino went out and interviewed three Young Global Leaders community. I'd like you to introduce each of them in turn please, Wadia. The first one is Fatoumata Ba. Could you tell us something about her?

Wadia Ait Hamza: Yes. So Fatoumata is a YGL from Class 2018, and she's doing an amazing job as a tech entrepreneur and VC investor. She is the founder and executive chair of Janngo Capital, where she helps build and grow and invest a pan-African tech for good. She champions, with proven business models and inclusive social impact, all this new industry that is coming to Africa. She is a very passionate about development through technology in Africa, in particular, when it comes to women entrepreneurship and empowerment, SMEs growth and formalisation, as well as tackling health and education issues through medtech and edtech. An amazing leader to follow and to listen to.

Fatoumata Ba, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Janngo, France and a Young Global Leader at the Forum.
Fatoumata Ba, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Janngo, France and a Young Global Leader at the Forum. Image: WEF

Fatoumata Ba: Fatoumata Ba. I'm Senegalese. I used to be a technology entrepreneur. I co-founded the first African unicorn [e-commerce platform Jumia], which is now public. And now I run an investment company called Janngo. I'm very excited to be leading it as one of the very few female-owned private investors in Africa.

Greta Ruffino: So what is Janngo?

Fatoumata Ba: Janngo means future or tomorrow in Africa [in the Fula language]. And the reason why I founded it is because, as we all know, we only create today 3 million jobs per year for our continent when we need to create, at least 30 million more jobs. That was one motivation.

The second motivation is that because our demography is increasing on the continent, it means that we need to find, in a very short span of time, innovative ways to provide access to healthcare, to education, to financial services, to as many Africans as possible.

And the third reason is that we have, as you know, tens of millions of SMEs on the continent and they are between 20-40% of the GDP. They create up to 90% of the jobs. But today they struggle to be able to be funded or to have access to markets or to have access to resources.

And today actually Africa is only attracting 2% of the global funding available, overall FDI, foreign direct investment. And it is the same for start-ups that need venture capital. And Africa has also attracted less than 2% of venture funding.

So I decided to use the power of my network and my track record to leverage technology and capital to be able to support entrepreneurs in Africa that are using technology for good - to solve a problem, whether it is creating jobs, helping people have better access to healthcare or education. And that has been a super exciting journey so far.

Greta Ruffino: What do you look for in companies to invest in?

In Africa, we have the obligation to find a meaningful way to connect technology with the real economy, to create jobs, to fight inclusion issues.

Fatoumata Ba, Founder & Executive Chair of Janngo Capital

Fatoumata Ba: To me, I only invest in startups that have a double bottom line or a triple bottom line. We are extremely mission driven. And basically we only invest in companies that are actually helping achieve SDGs [UN Sustainable Development Goals].

We always, for instance, look at what is the impact in terms of job creation for women, for young people, and also for green jobs, because we need to accelerate the climate transition, as we know, and to stem the climate [crisis].

Silicon Valley is very well known. I have a lot of admiration for the innovation that they drive. However, in that case, it's not bridging inequalites. It's actually creating sometimes more inequalities. Right? When you go to San Francisco, you see so many people, for instance, that cannot afford the housing without living in the streets. In Africa, we have the obligation to find a meaningful way to connect technology with the real economy, to create jobs, to fight inclusion issues.

And that is why it's really the core of what we do. And I'm extremely excited and proud because over the past four years we've invested or built 11 companies that are 56% female-led, and they are returning an excellent performance, financially, socially and environmentally. And it shows that it's possible and when there is a will there is really a way.

Greta Ruffino: Amongst these 11 start-ups that you've been supporting, is there anyone in particular this stands out?

Fatoumata Ba: Absolutely. So lots of them stand out, for instance, Africa Medical Supplies Platform. It's a platform that we actually backed during the pandemic. And the reason why is we've heard that the African Union and the Africa Centres for Disease Control was struggling to get access to essential medical supplies. At the time it was mainly test kits. Now it's evolved into other categories, such as vaccines.

So in less than six weeks, we put together a team and we put some funding. We partnered with key stakeholders in our ecosystem, and what we managed to do two years later is to have all 55 member states of the African Union be given access to medical supplies from test kits, originally, to now drugs, to medical devices such as ventilators and to now vaccines. And has been so successful that now 11 countries in the Caribbean have also applied and are successfully getting their medical deliveries through that platform. And I think it's another example of how, not only technology, but different stakeholders can be leveraged in a collaborative approach to solve very pressing challenges. And that is really why we are here to do what we do.

Greta Ruffino: What would you say were the main challenges that you have to overcome in securing partnerships?

I'm part of a generation that really needs and wants to be able to discuss from equal to equal and to be able to grow investments and partnerships.

Fatoumata Ba, Founder & Executive Chair of Janngo Capital

Fatoumata Ba: Well, I think there are many challenges. Some of them are really in relation with operating in an emerging market. I do a lot of interviews or conference. And you would be surprised to hear sometimes very leading and prestigious news editors asking me very basic questions about Africa. So there is an over-perception of the risk and an under-perception of the opportunity.

So the first thing is always to not neglect all the issues that we have - we do have some critical issues - but also to show the opportunities and also the investment opportunities, the partnership opportunities that are complementary to maybe the aid mentalities that used to prevail years ago.

And I'm part of a generation that really needs and wants to be able to discuss from equal to equal and to be able to grow investments and partnerships.

This is evolving positively, but it's not evolving fast enough. And the example I was giving earlier is that Africa is only attracting 2% of the global FDI and only attracting 2% of the global VC.

And that is why I thought about which model exists and how we can bring value to startups because then money wasn't enough. So I decided to have a really hands-on approach with my team. And basically what we do is we actually invest human capital alongside the financial capital to help execute on the ground and help de-risk the execution, whether it is planning for the market fit, whether it's executing healthy growth, whether it is executing market expansion, or whether it is being able to maximise its impacts socially or environmentally.

And it has been a very great ride. It has been yielding great results because usually overall two startups out of three globally, whether in developed or emerging markets, usually die before they turn three years old. And then when we look at the model that we chose, the success rate is 46%. But now when you look at our own performance, for instance, our first fund, we actually have 100% success rate. And it's really coming with understanding the landscape and being able to be extremely hands-on on a day to day basis with our portfolio of entrepreneurs.

Greta Ruffino: You're also a Young Global Leader, has that helped your mission?

Fatoumata Ba: I think what has drawn me to that community is to find people that are really purposeful and that are motivated every day to wake up and to create a better society and to influence it positively and to be a driver of change.

And I think collectively, if we put together our work, we can even achieve more, and that's really the ethos of YGLs as well. So yes, I think transformative, inspiring and impactful are the three key words that will define my YGL journey so far.

Robin Pomeroy: Fatoumata Ba from Senegal, co-founder of the African e-commerce platform Jumia and head of investment firm Janngo. Wadia, that was our first Young Global Leader. Wadia, who's the next one we're going to hear?

Wadia Ait Hamza: Our next one is Omar bin Sultan Al Olama. He's a YGL who joined us earlier this year as part of the class of 2022. And he was appointed as Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work of the United Arab Emirates in 2020. He joined the government in 2017 as Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, where he was responsible for enhancing government performance by investing the latest technologies and tools of artificial intelligence and applying them in various sectors. And as you might see from the title, he's one of the early ministers around the world to be in charge of a tech that is not even yet out there as we hope to - artificial intelligence. Let's listen to Omar.

Omar Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications of the United Arab Emirates and a Young Global Leader, speaking in the Responsible AI for Societal Gains session at the World Economic Forum.
Omar Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications of the UAE and a Young Global Leader, speaking in the Responsible AI for Societal Gains session at the World Economic Forum. Image: World Economic Forum/ Valeriano

Omar Sultan Al Olama: My name is Omar Sultan Al Olama. I'm the Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications of the UAE.

Greta Ruffino: You were appointed in 2020 during a challenging time as the world faced the COVID-19 pandemic.

Omar Sultan Al Olama: I think COVID brought with it a plethora of challenges that governments had to overcome. Some included trying to provide efficient healthcare for people who needed that healthcare while at the same time ensuring that society as a whole is safe and also that the economy is able to recover post the pandemic. That led to many challenges, whether it's in retail or in other sectors as well.

Some of the challenges that we needed to overcome in the UAE is leveraging technology to ensure that people are able to balance between lives and livelihoods. So with the effective deployment of that, we have seen that the UAE has rated amongst the highest when it comes to safety for people during COVID. And also it had the best results with regards to the openness of the economy and being able to operate as a global hub in the worst pandemic that we've seen over the last 100 years.

Another thing as well was looking at simulations of how do you effectively deploy vaccines, how do you effectively create programmes, because, you know, once you put the restrictions, it's very hard for you to roll them back and roll them back up again. But using the right simulation tools, we were able to ensure that we did not need to have certain programmes pushed up in terms of restrictions unless there was a need to. And if we were going to tone down the restrictions, we do it knowing effectively that we would not have to go up in terms of the restriction levels that we had before. And that led to a very short lockdown period. It led to the UAE having the highest number of tourists of any country in the world during the pandemic and also led to a booming economy.

Greta Ruffino: How did you come up with these solutions?

Omar Sultan Al Olama: Some solutions were really based on understanding what's happening globally. So we looked at different models of different governments and I looked also at what exists in the UAE. So what is the infrastructure that exists? We looked at how the population, demographics and dynamics are different to other countries. There is no one size fits all, but understanding what is working or isn't working, and also understanding your society is very important.

Greta Ruffino: Let's talk about remote working. We're seeing the rise of it during the pandemic. Is it here to stay?

Omar Sultan Al Olama: I think the future is going to be flexible work. It's not necessarily going to be purely remote or necessarily going to be purely physical.

People, I think, every single person on Earth has different requirements. We have different emergencies, we have different needs. And I think as well, if we look at burnout and other issues that are to the common problems that are facing workplaces and talent, there needs to be a way for us to have the flexibility to be able to operate in the best cases possible at the same time to provide for those around us. So if I need to work from home because my family needs me to work from home, or if I want to work from a different country for a short period of time, I think that the new trend is that we will be able to have this flexibility.

However, it isn't true for all jobs, and going into this new role and looking at this new portfolio that was assigned to me, I thought that it can be purely remote regardless of what the role of the person is. And today I know that this isn't possible.

The other thing is people are social creatures. The more we interact with each other, the more we talk, the more we get engaged with each other, the more we are able to actually provide valuable inputs to enhance creativity and to enhance as well the ultimate output of that engagement. So in my opinion, I think flexible work is the new trend. Understanding how you're able to give people the flexibility to unleash their best is important.

Greta Ruffino: How do you see companies reacting to flexible work?

Omar Sultan Al Olama: I think each organisation is going to implement it in its own way. However, talent is going to determine what stays and what doesn't.

Every organisation that wants to become relevant in the coming decades, or even the coming year needs to be an incubator of talent. And to do so, this talent is going to say what they accept and what they don't accept. If talent wants to stay at home, which I doubt is the answer, it's not work from home or remote work. But if talent wants that, organisations will be forced to provide it. If talent wants flexibility, organisations will provide that as well.

So I think ultimately it is the role of talent to decide. Governments need to put the regulations to ensure that when people need it, it is an option. We cannot force companies to work with a pure remote kind of model, but there are certain cases where people should have the flexibility.

Greta Ruffino: You're the Minister of Artificial Intelligence. Why does a government need one of those?

How can we effectively deploy AI to benefit from the opportunities while at the same time putting the safeguards to ensure that we are not disrupted by it and we are not harmed by it?

Omar Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications at Government of the United Arab Emirates

Omar Sultan Al Olama: If we look at the evolution of governments over the last few centuries, we realise that every single time a new technology was invented, that had the opportunity to disrupt human life as we know it and disrupt the work of governments, there was a ministerial portfolio created for it.

So before the advent of electricity, there wasn't really a Minister of Energy that governed the production and distribution of the use of wood fires. With telecommunications, there was a ministerial portfolio that was created, with electricity as well, Minister of Energy. And we see that across different verticals.

AI, as we hear from both technology leaders and government leaders, is a technology that has so much disruption potential, whether it's positive or negative. And we hear that from CEOs of companies and presidents of countries. The question that our leadership asked in the UAE was how can we effectively deploy AI to benefit from the opportunities while at the same time putting the safeguards to ensure that we are not disrupted by it and we are not harmed by it?

Sometimes, if the view is very short term, then you get short-term benefits, but you get long-term challenges. And the other thing is, if you only look at AI within a silo, so 'how do I deploy AI in my entity to get the most output from it?' you might harm people in other verticals or in other aspects of society without really effectively knowing that.

So we wanted to have a balanced approach where there is one orchestrator in the UAE that ensures that everyone is orchestrating the deployment of AI effectively, and at the same time that we can be the most agile, the most innovative, the most disruption-ready government in the world.

And we see that today with regard to how government services are quite advanced in the UAE. We also see that when we look at how the UAE is able to adapt in terms of agility to disruptions, whether it's a global pandemic or it's an economic crisis, the UAE is always able to pivot, move, benefit and move on.

Greta Ruffino: You're also a Young Global Leader. Has being part of the community helped your work and beyond?

Omar Sultan Al Olama: I might be very good at one specific sector, but maybe do not have the views in another sector. But being able to access a person that is a leader in a specific field and then being willing to share with me any insights or, you know, just wanting to help me out because they want to be a good peer rather than looking for a consultancy contract or looking for something in return, allows me to do my job better because, you know, it's the unknown that gets us, the things that we are ignorant to. But having this strong unit is one that allows you to even make sense of the unknowns that are around.

Robin Pomeroy: Omar bin Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications at the United Arab Emirates.

Wadia, who's our third Young Global Leader?

Wadia Ait Hamza: Our third YGL is Lara Setrakian. She's an Armenian-American journalist, digital strategist and entrepreneur. She's the co-founder of News Deeply, a new media company working to advance coverage of complex global issues. And Lara spent more than five years as a foreign correspondent covering the Middle East for television, radio and digital platforms, for ABC News, Bloomberg, International Herald Tribune and Monocle magazine. She since has focused on the fusion of news and technology.

Lara Setrakian, one of Forum's Young Global Leaders, speaks at Partnering for Digital Intelligence at The World Economic Forum holds the Sustainable Development Impact Summit 2018 in New York, NY USA
Lara Setrakian, one of Forum's Young Global Leaders, speaks at Partnering for Digital Intelligence at The World Economic Forum holds the Sustainable Development Impact Summit 2018 in New York, NY USA Image: WEF, Ben Hider

Lara Setrakian: My name is Lara Strachan. I'm a journalist and impact investor. I am the impact partner with Fresco Capital. I also write for Fast Company magazine and a number of other publications, and I'm best known as the co-founder and CEO of News Deeply

Greta Ruffino: For many years you worked as a Middle East correspondent covering major events. What would you say was the most challenging moment and how did you deal with it?

Lara Setrakian: I do think the most challenging story I've ever covered was the Egypt revolution and the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak, former president of Egypt. And the reason that was more challenging than others is its incredible uncertainty.

If you go to a war zone, you know what you're dealing with. You generally know the rules of engagement, where the risk levels are, how the population is formed, sort of psychographically. But that was the highest degree of uncertainty I had ever covered. And you just didn't know. Sometimes having a camera made you a target. At one point, authorities were going door to door trying to find journalists in the hotel where I was staying.

If you're in my profession, you get very comfortable with risk and uncertainty, but you still have to manage it.

Greta Ruffino: Looking at the stories that you've covered, is there anyone in particular that stayed with you?

If a war happens and nobody notices it, what is the consequence? What is the empathetic response? And it's terribly sad when there is none.

Lara Setrakian, Journalist and Entrepreneur

Lara Setrakian: I feel very close to Syria. As a journalist, my job is simply to pay attention. But it's remarkable: when no one's paying attention to your war, it feels horrible. And so the act of a journalist paying attention to your war is an act of grace. It feels like grace. I've experienced that now. I've been in wars that not many people are covering, and I've covered wars that not many people are covering. And the gratitude, the grace, it doesn't mean that you're compromised or you're over the emotional or overly invested. It just means you're paying attention and you're applying what you know how to do as a journalist to making sure this thing, this incident, doesn't completely fall off the human radar. If a war happens and nobody notices it, what is the consequence? What is the empathetic response? And it's terribly sad when there is none.

Greta Ruffino: You are not just a journalist, but also the CEO and executive editor of News Deeply. Can you tell me a little bit about it?

Lara Setrakian: News Deeply started in 2012 with an observation: that whole countries, whole conflicts do disappear from human attention. And I didn't take that as anyone's fault. It was structural. As news editors, as correspondents, we're actually mandated to jump from one thing to the next. But then if something doesn't rise to the level of our attention in that general buffet that we're offering on our channels or in our newspapers, it will never get seen.

And so sometime something like a war, you'll hear about it once in a while, usually when there's the next biggest catastrophe. Now, 100 people died. Now 1,000 people died. Next time, if 100 people die, you won't hear about it. So it always has to be an escalating catastrophe. But in between, you never really hear what's going on. So you don't understand the dynamics of what gets it to that next catastrophe.

And as a human species, you're not able to even wrap your head around the deeper dynamics, which, frankly, are somehow, I wouldn't call them more comforting, but they're easier to grasp. And if you have a more full sense of what's going on in a country or context, it's empowering. It's not as frightening. You don't just get fatigued by numbers and a sense of doom and catastrophe. You understand more nuance.

And News Deeply has been an experiment with a new format. Single subject focus isn't just because it's nice. It's because it was a solution to how we pay attention to things. And for those who want to and need to understand day to day what's going on on an issue. It's necessary.

Greta Ruffino: I like to ask you about your Young Global Leaders journey. Has been part of that community help to.

Lara Setrakian: Being a Young Global Leader changed my life. It is an immense support. It was a huge boost to my capacity, to my confidence, my ability to take risks, my ability to believe in the risks that I am taking. I am so blessed. I feel so blessed to have been a Young Global Leader and to now be an active member of the YGL alumni.

And I've seen it not just in my own life. I have seen it in the lives of so many Young Global Leaders and now also Global Shapers. The World Economic Forum has empowered so many of us to do better work, at a grander scale, with more joy for those of us who are in civil society, for those of us who are journalists, entrepreneurs. It gave us an unprecedented opportunity in our own lives to connect with people who become mentors, friends, supporters, knowledge, to have a feeling of the truly global view of what we're trying to achieve in our own countries.

Robin Pomeroy: Laura Setrakian, our third and final Young Global Leader. Wadia, where can listeners to this podcast find out more about the YGLs?

Wadia Ait Hamza: They can find out more who are the Young Global Leaders on our website and of course, in our social media channels they can see some of the activities that we offer to Young Global Leaders. And of course, they can reach out if they have someone in mind that is a great leader so that they can nominate them to join this amazing community of leaders.

Robin Pomeroy: Wadia Ait Hamza, speaking to me about the Young Global Leaders. There are links for more information in the show notes and the transcript blog that accompanies this episode.

Please subscribe to Radio Davos wherever you get your podcasts with a rating and a review. And join the conversation about this podcast about any of our other podcasts. Don't forget, we also have Meet the Leader, we have the Book Club podcast, we have Agenda Dialogues. Check all those out wherever you get your podcasts. We can discuss all of those on the World Economic Forum Podcast Club on Facebook.

This episode of Radio Davos was written and presented by me. Robin Pomeroy with reporting by Greta Ruffino, editing by Jere Johansson. and studio production by Gareth Nolan. We'll be back next week. But for now, thanks to you for listening and goodbye.

Useful links

The Forum of Young Global Leaders https://www.younggloballeaders.org/

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This is what businesses need to be focusing on in 2024, according to top leaders

Victoria Masterson

April 16, 2024

3:12

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