This year 2025 I have been for the first time in my life at the WEF – despite being born and bred in Switzerland. In fact I have been to Davos maybe half a dozen times at best in all my life.
More accurately, and the reason to be ‘on location’ during such an insane period of time: I supported a long-standing friend to run an event that was part of the official ‘non-official’ programme during the WEF.
Even more accurately: I was among the many souls and bodies making GreenUp’s ‘ClimateHubDavos’ happen.
The upside: seeing the event through completely different eyes than through those attending (any of the events), albeit not quite through the eyes of a local.
The downside: walking the high-line of paradox between, on the one hand a community of doers working on making global goals a reality and meet the needs of human being affected by negative impacts; and on the other hand the awareness that global bigwigs and super-rich are happily taking digs at our global society’s well-being, rather than working towards improving it.
The valid questions hence are
- What did I learn?
- What difference did I make and / or contribute?
- And: what difference did it make to me?
What did I learn?
The hurdles are the path
Intuitively we feel, that hurdles and challenges do not form part of the path and efforts forward. Something to ‘clear’ in order to eventually get to ‘the end game’ (in gamer speak). Nothing could be further from the truth. Hurdle ARE the path. Clearing them is what the whole effort is all about. There is no ‘end game’ as such, but just more hurdles to clear. Some easier, some harder. But hurdles are the path.
A clear painted / articulated vision of the (ideal) future is needed, and something we’ll put our energy towards.
The energy though goes to concrete projects. To link back to the above: the energy goes into clearing a specific hurdle. And then another one. And then another one. …on the path on this clearly painted vision on the horizon.
What is important: always be aware, in order not to get disappointed: the vision is an ideal state. The projects / hurdles / steps are but one small step into the direction. A direction towards a future we ourselves may most likely never get to see.
Support is invariably a two-way street. It cannot be otherwise.
All of us, working on and towards solutions of current and yet-to-become challenges, need each others supports. Giving it AND receiving it is what helps us replenish strengths and keep marching on. It is and must be a two-way street. Only in this way we manage to keep the community together, healthy and strong. Energy sinks – put differently: one-way-alleys of ego – need to be kept at a safe distance.
What difference did I make and / or contribute?
Only one thing:
Giving time towards the efforts of a friend. The #ClimateHubDavos is Nicole Keller’s idea and original vision. Without her, it likely would have never happened. As a friend, as a professional, and as one working on creating, finding and getting future fit solutions done, giving time and elbow grease to bring her vision to flourish is the best I could do.
And: what difference did it make to me?
Learning when it’s OK ‘not to be part of the club’
Big wigs are big wigs – even in the ‘world improver bubble’ of those that work in sustainability / climate change / regeneration. Some are truly important, others just think thy are.
You identify them by a simple thing: they do not want to get their hands dirty with the menial (let’s say: putting dishes aside) or they treat ‘catering personnel’ as second class people assuming they will not have a background to compete with theirs (in our case at the #climatehubdavos they would hav easily proven wrong – pretty much all the volunteers could have just as well been on the stage instead of weaseling around making it all happen …)
Learning to lead from the best
And lastly: seeing my friend Nicole Keller, lead the way. Both hands on and hands off – whatever was needed in a given moment – , never losing here calm, always clear on vision, mission and delivery.
Only very, very rarely have I seen anyone, so worthy of the title ‘leader’. In fact, it is Nicole is only the third person I genuinely look up to for her leadership style.
(The othere two would be: Joe McSwiney, ex-Cascade Design and ex-SOG Knives, and Ryan Gellert, Patagonia’s current CEO.
She may not need the security of those attending the core zone. May not have the title of those being chauffeured to location in black limousines. Nor earn the salary of those in the Golden Eye hotel.
And yet: by character and demeanour she is no doubt an example to imitate.
