GFCC
Publications

The GFCC's 2024-2025 Annual Report provides a comprehensive overview of our work in uniting leaders across sectors to drive global competitiveness. We believe in the power of collaboration and knowledge-sharing to foster economic growth, sustainability, and inclusive prosperity. Explore our initiatives, member highlights, and vision for the future.

Global leaders gathered at Aston University to explore university-led innovation and socio-economic change.

Learn about the evolution of universities and the need for ranking systems that measure impact, by Prof. Aleks Subic

This part is part of a series that delves into the Priority Action Areas (PAAs) identified in the Call to Action "Achieving a Sustainable Future for All", offering a deeper understanding of the natural resources landscape and offering practical guidance for implementation. In this paper, we examine key trends, explore opportunities, provide actionable recommendations and highlight inspiring examples.

Explore key insights and actionable takeaways from global leaders on building a sustainable and inclusive future.

This report explores the pivotal initiatives and global engagements of the GFCC throughout 2023. From hosting the Global Innovation Summit at Gallup's London headquarters to driving sustainability conversations at COP 28 in Dubai, discover the GFCC's commitment to advancing innovation for a sustainable future.

Explore the future of clean energy with the GFCC’s latest report on the hydrogen economy. In March 2024, the GFCC hosted an exclusive Hydrogen Economy Expert Session, gathering insights on how nations are positioning themselves in this emerging market and sharing the latest advancements. Aligned with the GFCC's 2023 Call to Action, Innovate the Sustainable Future, this report highlights key takeaways from the session and offers valuable insights to drive sustainability through innovation. Discover how hydrogen can shape a cleaner, more sustainable energy future by reading the full report.

This event details the key findings and insights from the GFCC 2023 Annual Meeting and Global Innovation Summit, which focused on exploring diverse aspects of sustainability, innovation, and competitiveness strategies.

Access the 2024 GFCC Call-to-Action: Building a Sustainable Future for All launched during the GIS 2024.

In a decade of growing global interconnectivity and accelerated technological change, universities have a crucial role in shaping, designing, and implementing the innovation of the future for the benefit of all. Understanding the relevance of universities in this fast-changing landscape, the GFCC is pleased to present Universities in Action: Building Cross-sector Alliances and Making Impact on Society. The new report captures insights from the forum co-organized by the GFCC and its member, the Brazilian National Confederation of Industries (CNI), on September 29, 2023, in São Paulo, Brazil.

This guide details how Competitiveness Councils—independent, multi-sector bodies act to accelerate growth and prosperity. Learn about their origins, understand their key roles, and discover how these councils are established and funded to influence policy and ignite innovation.

Explore the discussions and findings from the GFCC meeting in Greece, focusing on building competitiveness from local to global levels, launching new competitiveness principles, and addressing key challenges like energy, climate, and economic transitions.

This Call to Action offers key recommendations to stakeholders in government, industry, academia, and civil society to innovate and advance sustainability. It begins by acknowledging that sustainable progress hinges on a careful balance of short and long-term goals, right at the intersection of environmental, social, and economic dimensions and underscores the urgency of taking immediate action while it also anticipates the benefits resulting from these actions.

The GFCC in collaboration with the Japan Science and Technology Agency, launched the "Driving Innovation in Times of Crisis" initiative to analyze how innovation and prosperity can be fostered during global crises like the COVID-19 pandemic, drawing lessons from past events to build future resilience.

This study by the GFCC and the Japan Science and Technology Agency that examines the innovations and responses that arose from the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in various sectors, including the airline industry, financial regulations, global national security coordination, and the creation of the Department of Homeland Security.

This white paper by the GFCC and Japan Science and Technology Agency, defines a crisis as "a recognized period of increased danger requiring action to limit severe and cascading consequences" and examines how innovation is essential for societies and organizations to navigate and thrive during times of adversity.

This report showcases the GFCC's efforts in 2022 to promote place-based innovation and economic development through strategic partnerships and events. Among other things, it highlights the 2022 Global Innovation Summit, the Industry-University Partnerships for Impact Forum, and the Driving Innovation in Times of Crisis initiative.

The report outlines Ukraine’s strategic efforts to strengthen its innovation and technology ecosystem amid ongoing challenges, highlighting policy initiatives, institutional reforms, and international collaborations aimed at driving competitiveness and sustainable development.

This Call to Action provides recommendations for national, regional, and local stakeholders to promote place-based innovation. We urge leaders at all levels to prioritize place-based innovation and take tangible actions to drive progress in their respective contexts.

This report highlights critical accomplishments, activities, partnerships, and events throughout 2021, including the Frame the Future initiative, the expert series on resilience, and key publications. GFCC’s work in 2021 focused on weaving innovation, sustainability, resilience, inclusiveness, and partnerships into competitiveness strategies.

The COVID-19 pandemic advanced at least ten years of digital transformation in the university sector. Lockdowns and safety measures required universities to react quickly and rethink their operations. Education moved online at an unprecedented scale bringing new challenges and opportunities for teachers and learners worldwide. In this new report, the GFCC captures the pandemic-related impacts on higher education and the innovative solutions universities put in place to respond to the crisis, exploring long-term implications on university models and identifying the game-changers shaping the future of the higher education sector.

This report shows a framework of ten key strategies developed by the Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils to foster innovation, sustainability, resilience, and inclusive economic growth globally, aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

This report summarizes discussions and findings from the virtual event, which gathered global leaders to share best practices and strategies for future competitiveness, focusing on innovation, sustainability, resilience, partnership, and inclusiveness amid global challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change.

Fostering partnerships between industry and higher education institutions is crucial to advancing economic growth and competitiveness. Our new report, Industry-University Partnerships for Impact, documents discussions about innovative models for collaboration across sectors held during a forum in March this year in São Paulo, Brazil. The event marked the resumption of GFCC in-person activities since the onset of COVID-19.

This article by Socrates Lazaridis, CEO of the Athex Exchange Group, details how the ATHEX Stock Exchange is working to achieve sustainable growth through partnerships, innovation, and an increased focus on ESG investments and financial literacy.

This report from the 2019 Global Innovation Summit emphasizes that transformation across public sectors, businesses, nations, cities, energy, industries, and talent is crucial for driving competitiveness, innovation, productivity, and prosperity in an increasingly digitalized and rapidly changing global landscape.

Universities are being driven to adapt and innovate in response to shifting demographics, financial pressures, evolving stakeholder expectations, and accelerated change from the COVID-19 pandemic, as outlined in a GFCC Discussion Paper by University of Auckland experts.

The 4th Industrial Revolution is driving a digital transformation in higher education, with data-driven technologies enabling new models of leadership and enterprise that require universities to adapt and build connected digital ecosystems.

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Jaime Alvarez, co-founder of 100 Thousand Million, explains that anticipation is a key component of decision-making for both humans and other organisms and is essential for building a resilient future by envisioning and working toward desired outcomes.

Global leaders from various sectors and countries discussed how to improve innovation practices to drive sustainability, resilience, and inclusiveness, emphasizing the need for clear leadership, cross-sector collaboration, and a relentless commitment to challenging existing systems.

Come and find out about this two-day virtual event that convened global leaders to discuss health technology solutions, strategies for addressing the COVID-19 socio-economic crisis, and methods to accelerate the future economy through innovation and international partnerships.

In a lively conversation, leaders from Brazil, Kenya, Greece, Malaysia, Sierra Leone and the United States addressed future
strategies and initiatives to drive resilient and inclusive societies in the years ahead

Universities, no longer isolated "ivory towers," have become central to global recovery and progress, leveraging science, partnerships, and community roles to drive inclusive, sustainable growth and resilience in the post-pandemic world.

The GFCC held a conversation with leaders from six countries who discussed the need for a systemic, multi-stakeholder approach to talent development to address skill gaps, driven by forces like technological advancements, demographic changes, and globalization.

The Future Skills report was launched to shed light on the megatrends affecting the global skills landscape and benchmarking innovative schools and programs operating in over 15 countries. The report unveils how structural transformations in an increasingly complex reality will unlock new demands for digital skills and STEM, blended with “soft skills,” such as critical thinking, creativity, problem-solving, resilience, adaptability, and teamwork.

The report gathers best practices, trends, and recommendations related to the ten strategic competitiveness areas covered in the GFCC Global Competitiveness Principles.
It also informs the trends shaping the future of innovation, sustainability, resilience, and inclusiveness and provides concrete and actionable steps for leaders to take action.

This paper is a thought piece by Charles O. Holliday Jr., the Chairman of the GFCC, which advocates for new approaches to innovation to solve global challenges and drive competitiveness in the post-pandemic economy.

This paper discusses the landscape, forces, and challenges of innovation while highlighting its importance for economic growth, solving global issues, and building resilience.

This report outlines the 2021 Global Competitiveness Principles from the GFCC, presenting a ten-point framework to drive innovation, resilience, sustainability, and inclusive growth in response to rapid global change and post-pandemic challenges.

Michael Fung, the Deputy Chief Executive of SkillsFuture, advocates for a new, non-linear education system that promotes lifelong learning to address major disruptive forces such as technological advancements and global pandemics, emphasizing an inclusive ecosystem approach to human capital development

The "Strategic Partnerships and Innovation" thought piece by Gianna Sagazio, discusses the importance of innovation, strategic partnerships, resilience, inclusiveness and sustainability for companies and countries, especially in overcoming crises like the COVID-19 pandemic.

In his article, Hiro Nishiguchi of the Japan Innovation Network argues that innovation, defined as the combination of novelty and value creation, is essential to solving global challenges and can be accelerated through the use of a common language like the Innovation Management System (IMS).

Universities, though vital to the knowledge economy, are undergoing major transformations driven by demographic shifts, technological advances, evolving societal roles, and changing education and job market demands, raising critical questions about the future of higher education.

"Leading through the Chasm and into the Future Economy" is a publication from the GFCC featuring insights from over 30 global leaders. The book gathers diverse perspectives on leadership and innovation from experts across various sectors to help navigate current crises and build a better, more collaborative future.

Technology has disrupted the global workforce, making talent development—particularly in digital, STEM, and soft skills—essential for countries and businesses to remain competitive and mitigate skills gaps, financial losses, and growing inequality.

This report covers both 2019 and 2020 and features accomplishments, new memberships and fellows, and key initiatives. Some highlights from the report include the 2019 and 2020 Global Innovation Summits, the Now. Bridge. Reboot. online conversation series, and the work of the University and Research Leadership Forum.

This report presents strategies for governments, businesses, and communities to collaborate in addressing the COVID-19 crisis and driving long-term economic transformation through innovation, skills development, infrastructure improvement, regulatory agility and sustainability-focused growth.

The 2019 GFCC Global Competitiveness Principles report presents a ten-point framework designed to help nations, regions, and cities drive economic transformation and innovation, emphasizing collaboration, talent development, infrastructure, technology, and regulatory reform, all aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

This report showcases innovative, cross-sectoral strategies from countries including Ecuador, Kazakhstan, Qatar and the United States that illustrate how governments, universities, and industries are transforming education, public services, and economic systems to enhance national competitiveness in a rapidly changing global landscape.

The 2018 GFCC Global Innovation Summit convened leaders from over 30 countries to explore how emerging technologies and global collaboration can scale up innovative and sustainable businesses, especially in developing economies, by leveraging digital tools, talent development, and policy alignment to drive inclusive competitiveness and sustainable growth.

This report spotlights major developments in the GFCC’s 2018 agenda, including the Annual Meeting and Global Innovation Summit, and the groundbreaking University Research Leadership Forum reports that reviewed the toolkits universities have to engage in innovation and transformational leadership technology projects.

The 2018 GFCC annual report showcases practical examples from seven countries of how innovative and sustainable business models can be scaled to enhance productivity, competitiveness, and economic growth.

Universities’ engagement with industry and alliances to foster innovation are crucial for economic development and prosperity. GFCC’s Optimizing Innovation Alliances, the report of one of the two Task Forces of the GFCC University and Research Leadership Forum, that were launched in 2016 in London, outlines these innovative practices and explores new, innovative and fruitful ways to improve such alliances across 18 participating universities.

This report features a comprehensive account of GFCC activities, initiatives, and publications from 2017. It demonstrates the GFCC’s commitment to advancing sustainable development and the importance of leveraging technology to transform economies, as discussed in various events and through the work of the University and Research Leadership Forum.

The GFCC's 2017–2018 report details the ongoing work of its University and Research Leadership Forum, highlighting global collaboration among 40 universities, outcomes from the 2017 Kuala Lumpur meeting, and preparations for the next gathering in Argentina to advance higher education competitiveness.

The 2018 GFCC Global Competitiveness Principles offer a ten-point framework to scale up innovative and sustainable businesses by fostering innovation, talent, infrastructure, and global collaboration aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The 2017 Global Innovation Summit, hosted by the GFCC in Kuala Lumpur, explored how disruptive technologies, sustainability imperatives, and new models for education, work, and policy can transform the future of production, consumption, and work to drive inclusive prosperity and global competitiveness.

Universities are key drivers of large-scale, transformational projects that shape economies and technologies, as explored by the GFCC’s Leveraging Extreme Innovation Task Force, which examined 17 major initiatives spanning over 60 years.

This report from 2017 provides a global roadmap for building resilient, innovation-driven, and sustainable economies by encouraging collaboration across sectors, leveraging local strengths, enabling regulatory agility, and integrating sustainability and technology into future development strategies.

Smart integration of technology can help create sustainable urban food ecosystems (UFEs) for the rapidly expanding urban population in the developing world. It can increase production of nutritious food in the cities and surrounding regions where the food is consumed. Technology, especially recent advances in digital-enabled devices based on internet connectivity, is essential for building UFEs at a time when food availability is not meeting demand. For the first time in human history, food production will be limited on a global scale by the availability of land, water and energy. By 2050, two thirds of the world will be urban, with a net world population growth of 2 billion people (increasing the global population to nearly 10 billion) — expected to occur in urban regions in the developing world.

This 2017 GFCC annual report, presents case studies from Brazil, Ecuador, Qatar, and the United States that showcase innovative strategies leveraging technology, policy, and collaboration to drive sustainable economic growth, workforce development, and national competitiveness
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The GFCC's new report, “Convergence & Circulation,” highlights the 2016 launch of its University and Research Leadership Forum, the formation of two global task forces on innovation, and the collaborative efforts of forty universities from twenty countries to advance research as a driver of economic growth.

The 2016 Global Innovation Summit, themed “Cities: Competitive, Innovative, and Sustainable,” convened global leaders from business, academia, and government to explore how cities can harness innovation, sustainability, and collaboration to enhance urban life and drive inclusive economic growth.

This report focuses on the work of the GFCC throughout 2016, a year that marked a turning in the organization’s trajectory and inclusion of industry and universities in its membership. The document showcases the inaugural meeting of the GFCC University and Research Leadership Forum and launched two innovation-focused task forces.

This 2016 GFCC report highlights how cities around the world are implementing innovative and sustainable practices to drive economic growth, improve quality of life, and build resilient, competitive urban ecosystems.

The 2015 Global Innovation Summit and GFCC Annual Meeting, held in Saudi Arabia, brought together leaders from 25 countries to explore how infrastructure, innovation, and competitiveness intersect, showcasing global best practices, launching key publications, and setting an ambitious action agenda for 2016.

This report outlines the GFCC's 2016 Global Competitiveness Principles, emphasizing strategies for promoting inclusiveness, innovation, sustainability, and resiliency in cities to drive global competitiveness, economic growth, and sustainable development.

This report from 2015 is focused on enhancing national competitiveness and economic value creation through infrastructure development, emphasizing innovation, public-private partnerships, sustainability, talent development, regulatory clarity, and global benchmarking.

This 2015 report by the GFCC explores how investments in infrastructure, both physical (e.g., transport, energy) and soft (e.g., education, policy frameworks) can significantly enhance national and regional competitiveness. Drawing on case studies from eight countries, the report highlights diverse strategies and initiatives that connect infrastructure development with innovation, economic transformation, and societal well-being.

This 2014 report by the GFCC, highlights successful regional innovation strategies and their contribution to national competitiveness and economic prosperity, drawing examples from various countries including Brazil, Korea, and the United States.

This report from 2014 is focused on how regions can strengthen and leverage their competitive assets to drive economic growth and national prosperity, based upon established foundational principles.

This 2013 report highlights how developing creative and skilled talent, strengthening formal education, and providing training for a changing economy are critical drivers of national competitiveness and economic growth, drawing insights from countries like Brazil, Chile, Korea, Mongolia, the UAE, and the United States.

The GFCC is introducing this report from 2013 that applies its foundational Global Competitiveness Principles to emphasize the crucial role of human creativity and innovation in driving economic growth and prosperity.

The GFCC presents its 2012 Global Competitiveness Principles, a framework designed to guide government policies toward strengthening national competitiveness, stimulating economic growth, and fostering innovation through investments in scientific discovery, a skilled workforce, and a favourable business environment.

This 2012 report by the GFCC offers actionable insights and diverse case studies from around the world to guide nations and organizations in developing robust innovation ecosystems and strengthening national competitiveness.

This report from 2011, updates the existing principles to reflect the evolving global economy by emphasizing private sector involvement in societal change, fiscal responsibility, balanced development, the role of critical resources in innovation, and the importance of non-traditional measures of competitiveness like culture and community.

This 2011 report by the GFCC showcases diverse national strategies and case studies from twelve GFCC member organizations, including Brazil, Egypt, Korea, and the UAE, on how to enhance national competitiveness, drive innovation, and foster economic growth through improved policies and streamlined processes.

The 2010 Global Competitiveness Principles by the GFCC highlights that international collaboration and engagement are vital for national economic competitiveness and global growth, promoting innovation and economic prosperity through shared principles and private-public partnerships.