Davos - 2012

I have the opportunity again to be a spouse tag-along at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.  A fascinating environment that is full of stories – on the stage and off.  Everything takes place in the Swiss town of Davos which transforms itself to host the WEF, note the charming razor wire and snow-laden pines along the walkway to registration.  

 The heart of the event is Congress Center, where the general sessions are held in a large hall and break-outs are scheduled throughout smaller meeting spaces there and in hotels and schools throughout Davos.

The opening speaker, Chancellor Angela Merkel, tried to be as reassuring as her practical sensibilities would allow, and seemed to be speaking primarily to the markets…

She outlined the need to move the EU from a theoretical market into a functioning single market.  And groused a little about how the world is measuring EU success by the yardstick of how much individual member countries are willing to assume liability.  She stated that Germany wants to stand up for the Euro, but does not want to promise something they cannot live up to.  Her laugh line was ‘we (the EU) want to be more than an interesting place to take a vacation.’

Archbishop Desmond Tutu called for social and economic equity, not equality, clarifying the difference.  He smiled broadly saying ‘Science says we are all Africans, and it says more - we are actually all family’.  Humans are created for interdependence.  If we are hollow morally, our world is going to collapse.