The WEF’s Young Global Leaders Summer Executive Program
Summary
In 2006, The George Family Foundation committed to support the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders Summer Executive Session offered at the Kennedy School of Government’s Center for Public Leadership, at Harvard University. The Foundation has committed to $750,000 in support to the $3.6 million three-year start-up budget for the program, offering young leaders, 40 years old and under, the opportunity to immerse in a 2-week program, addressing the global challenges awaiting them as leaders in their respective countries.
As of 2008, the first YGL xecutive Executive Sessions curriculum was held with 34 participants, representing 27 different countries.
The George Family Foundation commits to support the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders Summer Executive Session offered at the Kennedy School of Government’s Center for Public Leadership, at Harvard University. The Foundation has committed to $750,000 in support to the $3.6 million three-year start-up budget for the program, offering young leaders, 40 years old and under, the opportunity to immerse in a 2-week program, addressing the global challenges awaiting them as leaders in their respective countries.
Approach
The George Family Foundation has committed to $750,000 in support to the $3.6 million three-year start-up budget for an Executive Session for Young Global Leader participants at the Center for Public Leadership at the Kennedy School of Government. This summer session will train young leaders to understand the forces sweeping the world and how they must grow to continue to be world leaders. The program also allows the Young Global Leaders a much greater opportunity to form personal connections and bonds that will encourage opportunities for the leaders to working together, across multiple sectors, to solve international issues and problems in the future.
The George Family Foundation is also committed to providing all Young Global Leaders the opportunity to participate in the summer Executive Sessions at the Kennedy School of Government. The World Economic Forum has budgeted financial support to those unable to cover the required travel and housing costs.
Milestones Reached:
– The Center for Public Leadership doubled the impact of the co-curricular programming from 2006 to 2008, reaching over 3,000 students in this academic year. Support from the George Family Foundation enabled CPL to offer 12 study groups, workshops and mentoring sessions.
– CPL also hosted three Forum events featuring prominent guest speakers, one of which was directly supported by the George Family Foundation, and promoted its offerings to the Harvard community through a Leadership Shopping Event and Spring Leadership Course and Co-curricular Fair, both supported by the George Foundation.
– Based on participant feedback, CPL’s co-curricular programs helped students enhance their personal and interpersonal leadership skills.
– A second Executive Session was held on April 2, 2008 through April 11, 2008.
Background
The George Family Foundation sought to expand their current Fellowship program at Harvard University to focus on leadership development for students interested in careers in two of three fields of nonprofit, for profit and government. George Leadership Fellows are expected to move into leadership positions to make a positive impact and lasting change throughout the world through non-governmental organizations, corporate business and international policy. The Foundation’s new support of the Kennedy School of Government’s Center for Public Leadership expands the Fellowship reach to two schools within Harvard in conjunction with co-curricular programming offered to the Harvard community at large.
The Kennedy School of Government’s Center for Public Leadership was established in 2000 with a generous grant from the Wexner Foundation. Led by director David R. Gergen-professor of public service at the Kennedy School, adviser to four U.S. presidents, and editor-at-large at U.S.News & World Report-and executive director Betsy Myers-a senior official in the Clinton Administration (she was the first director of the White House Office for Women’s Initiatives and Outreach and also the director of the Office of Women’s Business Ownership). CPL serves people in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors through cutting-edge research, teaching, and leadership development efforts.
What sets CPL apart is its desire not only to improve the way that leadership is studied and taught, but also to help people develop their own leadership capacities. Two recent examples highlight this commitment to leadership development. First, a CPL task force has published a paper that describes seven essential competencies for leadership development. Second, is the creation of a wider array of co-curricular opportunities for leadership development. CPL’s global perspective permeates all of the curricula.
CPL will develop, promote and implement the co-curricular programming utilizing the diverse teaching faculty and speakers at Harvard and other Boston/Cambridge universities and Colleges.
CPL will also convene and support the team of George Leadership Fellows as they complete concurrent degrees with the Kennedy School of Government and the Harvard Business School. These demonstrated leaders receive targeted leadership training and co-curricular programming throughout their fellowship year-building their own skills along with a community of future international leaders.
The World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders program was created in 2004 as a unique, diverse, global community of rising leaders from around the world. Each year, the World Economic Forum nominates 250 exceptional leaders, aged 40 or younger, as Young Global Leaders. Candidates typically have 5-15 years of outstanding professional work experience in the private, public or civic sector, have given clear indication that the are likely to play a substantial leadership role throughout their career and have a demonstrated commitment to serve the global society.
These demonstrated leaders are invited to become active members of the Young Global Leaders community. The term of membership is limited to three years. The Young Global Leaders meet at their Annual Summit in the summer and various regional community events. The World Economic Forum extends special invitations to the members of the community to attend one annual meeting in Davos during their term of membership and one regional meeting of the Forum annually. Their activities are focused upon the kind of world they would like to build over the next twenty years. The Young Global Leaders community continues to convene, after their three-year membership term, around pressing world issues and problems in order to work together to find and lead international solutions.
The Young Global Leaders Summer Executive Sessions will be designed and hosted by the Kennedy School of Government. Faculty for the program comes from the senior faculty at the Kennedy School and from other Harvard schools and national and international universities and leaders from the private, public and nonprofit sectors. Approximately 120-140 Young Global Leaders are expected to participate in the summer of 2007, the first year of the Executive Summer Sessions.
The George Family Foundation is interested in expanding national efforts toward international peacekeeping by supporting the Nonviolent Peaceforce’s expansion to include other locations in addition to the ongoing work in Sri Lanka. The Foundation has supported the programmatic work of the Nonviolent Peaceforce since 2003. This new support moves beyond programmatic support to bring the organization’s demonstrated success to other countries in need. The Foundation’s focused commitment is inspired from Trustee Bill George’s involvement with the 2006 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting.
On his deathbed, Mahatma Gandhi spoke of his dream for a global chanti sena or peace army. A loose association of such peacekeepers has existed for almost 20 years. More recently they have been present and highly visible in Palestinian refugee camps and in Guatemala and Indonesia. They include Peaceworkers, Witnesses for Peace, Balkan Peace Teams and Peace Brigades International. These groups have now been organized under the aegis of the Nonviolent Peaceforce, which is an interfaith group with offices in St. Paul, London, Ottawa, San Francisco, Brussels, New Delhi and Ecuador. It is driven by groups of many faiths and religious backgrounds and has a strong spiritual component. The Nonviolent Peaceforce ‘peace army’ is composed of trained civilians from around the world. In partnerships with local groups, Peaceforce members apply research-based nonviolent strategies to protect human rights, deter violence and help create space for local peacemakers to carry out their work
Formed at the 1999 Hague Appeal for Peace, the Nonviolent Peaceforce reflects a growing global movement to create a new, research-based and cost-effective, international tool to transform violent conflicts. In mid-2003, the Peaceforce launched a three-year pilot project in Sri Lanka at the invitation of, and in partnership with, local groups. There are currently 25 trained international civilians serving as unarmed peacekeepers in four field locations. The ‘peace army’ works to provide a protective presence in vulnerable villages across Sri Lanka, to accompany individuals and groups from all sides of the conflict when they are at-risk in peacekeeping activities, and to monitor and report human rights abuses and any increases in instability or conflict. The project has been successful as local stakeholders and partners in the peace process requesting that the Peaceforce expand its presence in Sri Lanka in 2005.
The Nonviolent Peaceforce is a truly international organization from the top down. They have regional offices around the world and a 15-member International Governing Council with representatives from every continent. Executive Director Mel Duncan is based in the St. Paul international office. The Nonviolent Peaceforce is an organization and NGO with international standing and is endorsed by hundreds of NGOs and leaders, including the Dalai Lama and seven other Nobel Laureates.
Progress Update
July 2008
The first YGL Executive Sessions curriculum was held with 34 participants, representing 27 different countries. The curriculum was a collaborative effort among the World Economic Forum, David Gergen, Iris Bohnet, Joseph S. Nye, Jr. and Kennedy School faculty chairs. Topics covered included Leadership, International Security, Energy & Environment, Poverty & Development, International Economics & Trade, Health & Demographics.
Young Global Leaders also met with KSG students for a mentoring session. The faculty for the program came from such universities such as the Kennedy School, Harvard and leaders from the private, public and nonprofit sectors.
The first class of 18 George Leadership Fellows graduated this year. Throughout the academic year the Fellows came together once a month for additional training in leadership skills, guidance in developing and managing a multi-sector career, and dialogue with leaders and leadership experts. The Fellows also came together for the CPL Fellows Retreat in September 2007.
The second group of 15 George Leadership Fellows was selected in April 2008. Planning is underway for the year’s program and will include a Leadership Discussion Group within the co-curricular programming for the Fellows with weekly peer-facilitated discussion groups based on Bill George’s True North Workbook.
March – August, 2007
– Granted Special Consultative Status by the United Nations. Special Consultative Status is defined by the UN Charter as a status granted to ‘organizations that have a special competence in…fields of activity covered by the [UN Economic and Social] Council.’ This status allows NP to designate official representatives to UN Headquarters in New York and to the UN offices in Geneva and Vienna.
– Held detailed meetings with top-level arms of the Government of Philippines and the two revolutionary groups. In collaboration with Nonviolent Peaceforce Brussels, the Cotabato Office submitted a funding proposal to the Delegation of the European Commission in Manila and is developing a communications strategy, involving the Communications’ Officer and the Project Director.
– Coordinating an International Conference on Building the Global Capacity to be held on September 24-26, 2007 in Nairobi, Kenya.
January – March 2007
– Finished recruitment for the first class of George Leadership Fellows with final decisions to be made in the Spring of 2007.
– Convened three community leadership seminars and events.
– The YGL Executive Sessions curriculum is being designed by the WEF, David Gergen, Iris Bohnet, Joseph S. Nye, Jr. and the faculty area chairs. Slated topics include Leadership, International Security, Energy & Environment, Poverty & Development, International Economics & Trade, and Health & Demographics.
– The faculty for the program comes from the senior faculty at the Kennedy School, from other Harvard schools, national and international universities, and leaders from the private, public and nonprofit sectors.
– Executive sessions will last 10 days (November 28 – December 7, 2007 and April 2 – 11, 2008). Approximately 70 Young Global Leaders are expected to participate in the fall of 2007, the initial workshop of the Executive Session.
– A brochure for the program has been completed and was mailed in June.
December 2006
– Funds have been transferred in full to support core training for field team members in May 2007 in Quito, Ecuador conducted by the Nonviolent Peaceforce. Applicants will be considered for teams in Colombia, Sri Lanka, Uganda and the Philippines, as well as for a reserve force (i.e. available for future team work).
– The Center for Public Leadership has reached 482 students through 12 groups, workshops and mentoring sessions. Based on evaluation feedback, CPL’s co-curricular offerings enhanced students’ personal and interpersonal leadership skills.