World Economic Forum

===Annual meeting in Davos===
[[File:Ettinger Sport during WEF2018.jpg|thumb|A sports shop has turned into a temporary informal reception location "Caspian Week", WEF 2018.]]
The flagship event of the World Economic Forum is the invitation-only annual meeting held at the end of January in Davos, Switzerland, bringing together chief executive officers from its 1,000 member companies, as well as selected politicians, representatives from [[academia]], [[NGOs]], religious leaders, and the media in an [[Swiss Alps|alpine]] environment. The winter discussions ostensibly focus around key issues of global concern (such as the [[globalization]], capital markets, wealth management, international conflicts, environmental problems and their possible solutions).<ref name=pigman1 /><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7830834.stm "Q&A: World Economic Forum 2009"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160923021241/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7830834.stm |date=23 September 2016}} ''[[BBC News]]''. Retrieved 25 January 2011.</ref> The participants also take part in role playing events, such as the Investment Heat Map.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21197174 |title=Davos Man eyes investment opportunities |access-date=23 February 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160104193156/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21197174 |archive-date=4 January 2016 |work=BBC News |date=26 January 2013 |last=Madslien |first=Jorn}}</ref> Informal winter meetings may have led to as many ideas and solutions as the official sessions.<ref>Weber, Tim (26 January 2010). [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7201300.stm "A Beginners' Guide to Davos"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160923022240/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7201300.stm |date=23 September 2016}} ''[[BBC News]]''. Retrieved 25 January 2011.</ref>

At the 2018 annual meeting, more than 3,000 participants from nearly 110 countries participated in over 400 sessions. Participation included more than 340 public figures, including more than 70 heads of state and government and 45 heads of international organizations; 230 media representatives and almost 40 cultural leaders were represented.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.weforum.org/press/2018/01/forum-closes-with-call-to-action-globalize-compassion-and-leave-no-one-behind|title=Forum Closes with Call to Action: Globalize Compassion and Leave No One Behind|date=26 January 2018|access-date=16 October 2018|archive-date=16 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181016203258/https://www.weforum.org/press/2018/01/forum-closes-with-call-to-action-globalize-compassion-and-leave-no-one-behind|url-status=live}}</ref>

As many as 500 journalists from online, print, radio, and television take part, with access to all sessions in the official program, some of which are also [[webcast]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.weforum.org/en/events/ArchivedEvents/AnnualMeeting2008/ |title=Forum's homepage |publisher=Weforum.org |access-date=7 March 2010}}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}</ref> Not all the journalists are given access to all areas, however. This is reserved for white badge holders. "Davos runs an almost caste-like system of badges", according to BBC journalist Anthony Reuben. "A white badge means you're one of the delegates – you might be the chief executive of a company or the leader of a country (although that would also get you a little holographic sticker to add to your badge), or a senior journalist. An orange badge means you're just a run-of-the-mill working journalist."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21197175 |title=My first Davos – what I learned |access-date=8 June 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160104193156/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21197175 |archive-date=4 January 2016 |work=BBC News |date=27 January 2013 |last=Reuben |first=Anthony}} My first Davos – what I learned</ref> All [[Plenary session|plenary]] debates from the annual meeting also are available on YouTube<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/user/WorldEconomicForum |title=Kanaal van WorldEconomicForum |publisher=YouTube |date=31 January 2010 |access-date=7 March 2010 |archive-date=25 February 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110225014719/http://www.youtube.com/user/WorldEconomicForum |url-status=live }}</ref> while photographs are available on [[Flickr]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/worldeconomicforum |title=World Economic Forum's Photostream |publisher=[[Flickr]] |access-date=7 March 2010 |archive-date=29 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100329072907/http://www.flickr.com/photos/worldeconomicforum/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.weforum.org/events/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2018/ |title=48th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting |publisher=World Economic Forum |access-date=22 January 2018 |archive-date=23 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180123010157/https://www.weforum.org/events/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible" id="plenaries"
|+ class="nowrap" | Overview of past annual meetings
|-
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Dates
! scope="col" | Theme
|-
! scope="row" |1988
|
|The new state of the world economy
|-
! scope="row" |1989
|
|Key developments in the 90s: implications for global business
|-
! scope="row" |1990
|
|Competitive cooperation in a decade of turbulence
|-
! scope="row" |1991
|
|The new direction for global leadership
|-
! scope="row" |1992
|
|Global cooperation and megacompetition
|-
! scope="row" |1993
|
|Rallying all the forces for global recovery
|-
! scope="row" |1994
|
|Redefining the basic assumptions of the world economy
|-
! scope="row" |1995
|26–30 January
|Leadership for challenges beyond growth
|-
! scope="row" |1996
|1–6 February
|Sustaining globalization
|-
! scope="row" |1997
|30 January – 4 February
|Building the network society
|-
! scope="row" |1998
|29 January – 3 February
|Managing volatility and priorities for the 21st century
|- 
! scope="row" |1999
|28 January – 2 February
|Responsible globality: managing the impact of globalization
|- 
! scope="row" |2000
|26 January – 2 February
|New beginnings: making a difference
|-
! scope="row" |2001
|25–30 January
|Sustaining growth and bridging the divides: a framework for our global future
|-
! scope="row" |2002
|31 January – 4 February
|Leadership in fragile times (held in New York instead of Davos)
|-
! scope="row" |2003
|21–25 January
|Building trust
|-
! scope="row" |2004
|21–25 January
|Partnering for security and prosperity
|-
! scope="row" |2005
|26–30 January
|Taking responsibility for tough choices
|-
! scope="row" |2006
|25–29 January
|The creative imperative<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/creativity-can-save-the-w_b_228951|title=Creativity Can Save the World|last=Howe|first=Dave|date=9 August 2009|website=HuffPost|language=en|access-date=17 June 2019|archive-date=17 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190617151540/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/creativity-can-save-the-w_b_228951|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
! scope="row" |2007
|24–28 January
|Shaping the global agenda, the shifting power equation
|-
! scope="row" |2008
|23–27 January
|The power of collaborative innovation
|-
! scope="row" |2009
|28 January – 1 February
|Shaping the post-crisis world
|-
! scope="row" |2010
|27–30 January
|Improve the state of the world: rethink, redesign, rebuild
|-
! scope="row" |2011
|26–30 January
|Shared norms for the new reality
|-
! scope="row" | 2012
| 25–29 January
| The great transformation: shaping new models
|-
! scope="row" | 2013
| 23–27 January
| Resilient dynamism<ref>founder [[Klaus Schwab]]'s declaration that "the need for global cooperation has never been greater".</ref>
|-
! scope="row" | 2014
| 22–25 January
| The reshaping of the world: consequences for society, politics and business
|-
! scope="row" | 2015
| 21–24 January
| New global context
|-
! scope="row" | 2016
| 20–23 January
| Mastering the fourth industrial revolution
|-
! scope="row" | 2017
| 17–20 January
| Responsive and responsible leadership
|-
! scope="row" |2018
| 23–26 January
| Creating a shared future in a fractured world
|-
! scope="row" |2019
| 22–25 January
| Globalization 4.0: shaping a global architecture in the age of the fourth industrial revolution
|-
! scope="row" | 2020
| 20–24 January
| Stakeholders for a cohesive and sustainable world{{citation needed|date=March 2022}}
|-
! scope="row" | 2021
| 17–20 August
| ''Crucial Year to Rebuild Trust,''<ref>{{Cite web |title= |url=https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/01/davos-agenda-trust-global-cooperation/}}</ref> ''canceled as a result of [[COVID-19 pandemic]]''
|-
! scope="row" | 2022
| 22–26 May
| History at a Turning Point: Government Policies and Business Strategies<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/05/davos-2022-whos-coming-and-everything-else-you-need-to-know|title=Davos 2022: Who's coming and everything else you need to know|website=weforum.org|date=18 May 2022|access-date=24 May 2022|archive-date=23 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220523223819/https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/05/davos-2022-whos-coming-and-everything-else-you-need-to-know/|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
! scope="row" | 2023
| 16–20 January
| Cooperation in a Fragmented World<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.weforum.org/events/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2023|title=World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2023|website=weforum.org|date=7 Jan 2023|access-date=8 January 2023|archive-date=8 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108052939/https://www.weforum.org/events/world-economic-forum-annual-meeting-2023|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
! Scope="row" | 2024
| 15–19 January 
| Rebuilding Trust<ref>{{Cite web |last=Falk |first=Thomas O. |title=Is the World Economic Forum still relevant? |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/14/is-the-world-economic-forum-still-relevant |access-date=2024-01-18 |website=Al Jazeera |language=en}}</ref>
|}

====Individual participants====
[[File:Juan Manuel Santos Calderón - World Economic Forum on Latin America 2010.jpg|thumb|right|[[Juan Manuel Santos]], [[president of Colombia]], at the 2010 World Economic Forum]]
Some 3,000 individual participants joined the 2020 annual meeting in Davos. Countries with the most attendees include the [[United States]] (674 participants), the [[United Kingdom]] (270), [[Switzerland]] (159), [[Germany]] (137) and [[India]] (133).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.statista.com/chart/7609/most-attendees-at-davos/ |title=World Economic Forum – Who's Going to Davos? |date=20 January 2020 |access-date=28 June 2020 |archive-date=28 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200628141546/https://www.statista.com/chart/7609/most-attendees-at-davos/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Among the attendees were heads of state or government, cabinet ministers, ambassadors, and heads or senior officials of international organizations, including: [[Sanna Marin]] ([[prime minister of Finland]]), [[Ursula von der Leyen]] ([[president of the European Commission]]), [[Christine Lagarde]] ([[ECB president]]), [[Greta Thunberg]] ([[climate activist]]), [[Ren Zhengfei]] ([[Huawei Technologies|Huawei Technologies founder]]), [[Kristalina Georgieva]] ([[International Monetary Fund|managing director of the IMF]]), [[Deepika Padukone]] ([[Bollywood|Bollywood actress]]), [[George Soros]] ([[Soros Fund Management|investor]]) and Joseph Biden ([[president of the United States]]).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/14/wef-2020-heres-who-is-going-to-davos-this-year.html |title=Here's who's going to Davos this year |website=[[CNBC]] |date=14 January 2020 |access-date=28 June 2020 |archive-date=28 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200628141545/https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/14/wef-2020-heres-who-is-going-to-davos-this-year.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Isaac Herzog in Davos, January 2024 (GPOABG231).jpeg|thumb|right|Israeli President [[Isaac Herzog]] at the 2024 World Economic Forum]]
An analysis by ''[[The Economist]]'' from 2014 found that the vast majority of participants are male and more than 50 years old. Careers in business account for most of the participants' backgrounds (1,595 conference attendees), with the remaining seats shared between government (364), NGOs (246) and press (234). Academia, which had been the basis of the first annual conference in 1971, had been marginalised to the smallest participant group (183 attendees).<ref name="Econ-Magic">{{cite news |url=https://www.economist.com/international/2014/01/23/whos-on-the-magic-mountain |title=The data of Davos – Who's on the Magic Mountain? |newspaper=The Economist |access-date=28 June 2020 |date=23 January 2014 |archive-date=20 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200520093511/https://www.economist.com/international/2014/01/23/whos-on-the-magic-mountain |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Corporate participants====
Next to individual participants, the World Economic Forum maintains a dense network of corporate partners that can apply for different partnership ranks within the forum.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.weforum.org/partners/|title=Partners|website=World Economic Forum|access-date=21 July 2021|archive-date=21 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721075341/https://www.weforum.org/partners|url-status=live}}</ref> For 2019, [[Bloomberg L.P.|Bloomberg]] has identified a total of 436 listed corporates that participated in the annual meeting while measuring a stock underperformance by the Davos participants of around −10% versus the S&P 500 during the same year. Drivers are among others an overrepresentation of financial companies and an underrepresentation of fast-growing health care and information technology businesses at the conference.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-01-23/davos-s-global-elite-are-laggards-in-stock-market-performance|title=Davos's Global Elite Are Laggards in Stock-Market Performance|first=Eddie|last=van der Walt|newspaper=Bloomberg.com|date=23 January 2020|access-date=7 June 2020|archive-date=6 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200506165535/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-01-23/davos-s-global-elite-are-laggards-in-stock-market-performance|url-status=live}}</ref> ''The Economist'' had found similar results in an earlier study, showing an underperformance of Davos participants against both the MSCI World Index and the S&P 500 between 2009 and 2014.<ref name="Econ-Magic" />