All about the World Economic Forum

The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an independent international organisation committed to improving the state of the world by engaging leaders in partnerships to shape global, regional and industry agendas. Global business and political leaders have converged once again here for the prestigious World Economic Forum meeting to discuss a range of issues, especially climate change. With 17 sessions on climate change, this year's annual meeting will be one of the "greenest" ever at Davos. Dominic Waughray, Head of Environmental Initiatives at the Forum, says “We are getting huge demand from our members to place climate change and issues of environmental security at the very heart of the programme of the World Economic Forum. The companies represented at the Annual Meeting have a combined turnover of about USD 10 trillion – nearly a quarter of global GDP – so catalysing their deeper engagement in this issue can only be a good thing for all of us.”German Chancellor Angela Merkel is to give the opening address at the five-day meet that will see more than 2,400 participants comprising corporate honchos, government leaders and even religious heads from across the world.What is the Annual Meeting?
The annual meeting is the World Economic Forum's flagship for a larger set of activities that include regional meetings and initiatives. The central goal of the meeting is to find solutions to global challenges. The annual meeting then called the Davos Symposium, began in 1971 and takes place in Davos, Switzerland each year in January. Over 2000 people take part in an intensive five-day programme of workshops and interview-style panel discussions that focus on crucial global, regional and industry issues. People from all over the world attend the event, including business leaders, members of civil society organisations and the media, academics, scientists and policy-makers.