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Day 1 Davos 2025: What to know

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The World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos started with the Crystal Awards. Image: Meg Jones

Gayle Markovitz
Head, Written and Audio Content, World Economic Forum
This article is part of: World Economic Forum Annual Meeting
  • The World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting takes place in Davos from 20-24 January 2025.
  • Here's a snapshot of everything you need to know about Day 1 of Davos 2025.

Welcome to Day 1 of the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos 2025!

Here's a rundown of what to expect, the key sessions to watch, essential reading and live coverage of the highlights.

Today, three exceptional Cultural Leaders will be recognized at the Crystal Awards ceremony for their work to challenge conventional thinking, spark change and help us envision a more inclusive world. Look out for the opening concert and take a sneak peek at the specially commissioned art at Davos 25.

We've also covered some early perspectives from media leaders on what lies ahead on US Inauguration Day.

Sessions to watch from Day 1

The full programme starts tomorrow. All times are GMT+1.

Donald Trump will be inaugurated as president at 11:30 ET (17:30 CET). Join journalists Mina Al-Oraibi, Patrick Foulis and Sam Jacobs to explore how the new administration will operate.

Have you read?

The conversation addressed current world conflicts, prospects for America's global strength and the gap between rhetoric around growth versus policy. "The US remains the most important superpower", said Mina Al-Oraibi, as she highlighted the big questions around foreign policy. Patrick Foulis emphasized the strength of Trump's domestic mandate and the likelihood of a strong sense of confidence on domestic policy.

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We honoured three exceptional cultural leaders: UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and global advocate for children's rights David Beckham; fashion designer, philanthropist and champion of women’s rights Diane von Furstenberg; and architect, social activist and 2024 Pritzker Prize laureate Riken Yamamoto.

Diane von Furstenberg said "we should not underestimate our individual power to do good”, while Riken Yamamoto shared thoughts on how architecture enriches a sense of memory and community. David Beckham reflected on his work with UNICEF, “I’ve always believed in the potential of children, that when children are given time, opportunity and encouragement, they will reach their full potential.”

David Beckham, Co-Owner, Inter Miami; Partner, Authentic Brands Group, United Kingdom; Diane von Furstenberg, Founder and Co-Chairwoman, Diane Von Furstenberg Studio, USA; Hilde Schwab, Chairperson and Co-Founder, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship; Riken Yamamoto, Founder and Architect, Riken Yamamoto & Field Shop, Japan; speaking in Crystal Awards 2025 session at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2025 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, 20/1/2025, 18:00 – 18:30 at Congress Centre - Congress Hall. Award Ceremony. Copyright: World Economic Forum / Jason Alden
David Beckham receiving the Crystal Award at Davos 2025 Image: World Economic Forum

The Opening Concert will be a spectacular and emotionally engaging moment where we relate in an innovative way the best of classical music, electronic compositions and AI-generated visual experiences to an extraordinary event under the theme of preserving the glaciers.

About 15% of the global population live with disabilities and face significant challenges in education and employment. Join leaders and experts including Katy Talikowska, Chief Executive Officer, The Valuable 500 and David Edwards, General Secretary of Education International, as they discuss how we can effectively remove barriers and support equal access and opportunities for all.

What you need to know so far

Whether you're joining us for your first Davos or you follow us every year, here's a quick reading and watch list to get you up to speed for the week.

Articles

What is Davos? 7 things to know about the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting

Articles

Davos 2025: What to expect and who's coming?

  • We held our pre-meeting media briefing last week. Listen to it below.

Within this more unsettled climate, the only way to address urgent challenges and unlock new opportunities is through innovative, cooperative approaches.

Børge Brende, President and CEO of the World Economic Forum
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  • In the run-up to Davos, we have launched four of our flagship reports:

On 7 January, we published the second edition of our Global Cooperation Barometer 2025. It finds that overall cooperation levels have stalled but there are pockets of cooperation remaining. Read more in this blog.

On 8 January, we published The Future of Jobs Report 2025. It explores how shifting global trends and new technologies are projected to generate 170 million new jobs by 2030 while displacing 92 million others – highlighting an urgent need to upskill workers worldwide.

Last week, we published our Global Cybersecurity Outlook Report 2025. It finds the growing complexity of cyberspace is exacerbating cyber inequity, widening the gap between large and small organizations, deepening the divide between developed and emerging economies, and expanding sectoral disparities.

We also published the Global Risks Report 2025. It finds a heightened pessimistic outlook for the world to 2027, with the majority of Chief Risk Officers surveyed (52%) anticipating an unsettled global outlook over the short term (next two years), a similar proportion to last year. Another 31% expect turbulence and 5% a stormy outlook.

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Launches on Day 1 of Davos 2025

Open But Secure: Europe's Path to Strategic Interdependence

In 2024, the World Economic Forum, in collaboration with the European Council on Foreign Relations, convened the High-Level Group on European Strategic Interdependence, bringing together over 40 leaders from government, business and academia. Their deliberations in Madrid, Warsaw and Berlin focused on how Europe can navigate the world as it is. This insight report reflects the group’s discussions and presents ways for Europe to achieve strategic interdependence and adapt to an increasingly multipolar world.

Read the full report here.

In-depth: Updates on the Davos themes

Catch-up on the key quotes from sessions across all five themes of the Annual Meeting here.

Podcasts from the mountain

We're podcasting all week from Davos:

The podcasts to listen to during Davos 2025

More on Forum Stories

In the past few weeks, we've published a number of articles and reports on the biggest issues up for discussion this year at Davos. Here's a snapshot, but you can see more on our Forum Stories page.

Related topics:
Forum InstitutionalArts and CultureGeo-Economics and Politics
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Contents
Sessions to watch from Day 1What you need to know so farLaunches on Day 1 of Davos 2025In-depth: Updates on the Davos themesPodcasts from the mountainMore on Forum Stories

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