World Economic Forum on Youtube

From September 6-8 the World Economic Forum held its meeting of New Champions in Dalian, which is one of China’s newest champions… for investment.

A testament to the power of Web 2.0, and the power of the internet, the entire summit has been put on Youtube, at the World Economic Forum Youtube Channel.

With 22 videos, roughly 20 hours of showing, one would need a weekend of non-stop broadband and Starbucks to watch the entire summit worth of videos…. However, I do suggest spending some time watching those that you feel are most pertinent to your organization or your own interest.

Overall, the discussions themselves are very interesting, and if there is one theme that I see throughout is that the level of Chinese panelists was much higher than the foreign side (on average). As Rebecca McKinnon pointed out in her analysis of the Soft Power debate, Thomas Friedman was out of his element.. and his comfort zone…. and he was not the only one. As I have spoken on a few panels in my day, and as I organize various panels in Shanghai, I am always interested to see how many foreign panelists end up on a panel (WEF, AMCHAM, or other) that have little China experience or knowledge….

With that in mind, some of the most interesting I have seen so far are:

1) Global Trade: Avoiding the Backlash: Avoiding the Backlash against the New Investors. Recent government interventions to protect national champions and domestic industries from international investment highlight increasing popular resistance to economic liberalization. Economic nationalism and financial protectionism risk hindering the new champions from achieving their maximum potential and fully contributing to economic growth.

Questions asked:

Where is the balance between adequate regulation for environmental, food safety and national security concerns, and ensuring an open and competitive business environment?
What is the role of governments in creating a positive investment climate for the new champions?
How can governments, investors and companies work together to address the underlying concerns of the public?

Moderated by Michael J. Elliott, Editor, Time International

Panelists:

Neelie Kroes, Commissioner, Competition, European Commission, Brussels
Jean-Pierre Lehmann, Professor of International Political Economy, IMD (International Institute for Management Development), Switzerland
Kevan V. Watts, Vice-Chairman, Merrill Lynch & Co., Hong Kong SAR

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