PUBLICATIONS
FRAME THE FUTURE
CONVERSATION
SERIES
The Global Federation of Competitiveness Council (GFCC) hosted eleven conversations defined by five future-defining attributes: innovation, partnership, resilience, inclusiveness, and sustainability. For the GFCC, these attributes are interconnected and must be applied simultaneously to drive future strategies into a truly transformative agenda.
Throughout these conversations, policymakers, CEOs, researchers, entrepreneurs, government and civil society leaders gathered to share insights and expertise on ten subjects: innovation, talent, intellectual property systems, infrastructure, public-private partnerships, regulations, local development, natural assets, trade & global partnerships, and benchmarking.
Below you can find a brief recap, teaser video, post-event video, post-event report, list of panelists, a list of resources, and the full video for each individual session. You are also able to jump directly to the session of your interest by choosing one of the options below.
Opening Session | Innovation | Talent | Intellectual Property Systems | Infrastructure | Public-Private Partnerships | Regulation | Local Development | Natural Assets | Trade & Global Partnerships | Benchmarking
Frame the Future Guidelines and Recommendations for Future Competitiveness
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.
Frame the Future
Session #11: BENCHMARKING
Benchmarking performance and practices is essential to support competitiveness strategies. Societies are living through a period of accelerated transformation and uncertainty. Learning and adaptation have become critical capabilities at the center of any economic and business strategy. Countries and organizations that benchmark business models, initiatives, regulatory frameworks, and policy will be better prepared to react to future shocks and jump ahead in global competition. The COVID-19 pandemic stressed the importance of learning from past crises to build resilience and ensure the sustainability of social and economic models. Future-looking perspectives must consider innovation, resilience, sustainability, and partnership as design-criteria for benchmarking initiatives.
Session Speakers - Benchmarking
Sekai Nzenza
Nzenza Minister of Industry and Commerce Zimbabwe
Colin Grant
Vice-Principal International, QMUL UK
HOST
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Yuichi Ono
Professor, International Research Institute of Disaster Science (IRIDeS), Tohoku University Japan
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
Chad Holliday
Michinari Hamaguchi
Chairman, GFCC Former Chairman Dupont, Shell, and Bank of America
President, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) Japan
HOST
Roberto Alvarez
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Session Video Clip - Benchmarking
Full Session Video - Benchmarking
Situation Paper - Benchmarking
Post Event Report - Benchmarking
Frame the Future
Session #10: TRADE & GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS
Global flows of goods, finance, people, and information have been a common thread in economic growth for centuries. But today's increased interconnectedness has accentuated interdependence across consumers and producers worldwide. Decisions made at a local level can have global impacts. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of having
manufacturing capabilities to respond, sustain, and guarantee populations' well-being during disruptive scenarios. In addition, sustainability, social responsibility, and resilience have become crucial to assessing global supply chains' performance. Open and transparent markets and institutions must support the international flows of goods, capital, information, talent, and ideas. With a fast-changing and more digital global landscape, the need for a new framework is
evident.
Session Speakers - Trade and Global Partnerships
Stefan Kraxner
Head of Competitiveness Performance Division Competitiveness Office of Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development UAE
Simos Anastasopoulos
President, The Council on Competitiveness of Greece Chairman & CEO, PETSIAVAS S.A. Greece
HOST
Barbara Stephenson
Vice-Provost for Global Affairs and Chief Global Officer, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
Taeho Bark
Ana Maria Monteverde
President, Lee&Ko Global Commerce Institute; Former Minister of Trade, South Korea
Co-founder and CEO Mujeres WOW Ecuador
HOST
Roberto Alvarez
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Session Video Clip - Trade & Global Partnerships
Full Session Video - Trade & Global Partnerships
Session Cases & References - Trade and Global Partnerships
Frame the Future
Session #9: NATURAL ASSETS
Population growth and the expansion of the global economy are putting pressure on natural resources. Biodiversity loss has reached unprecedented levels, and the effects of climates are threatening societies worldwide. The preservation of water, land, forests, minerals, and biodiversity is critical for global health. It supports the sustainability and resilience of cities and nations, and ultimately, humanity's collective future. In low-middle income countries, populations often rely on the depletion of natural resources to generate basic income, engaging in activities such as deforestation, animal trafficking, poaching, informal and low-tech mining that directly harm the environment and compromise the future of the planet. Restructuring economic outlooks to include more people in the knowledge economy can be a pathway out of this negative circle.
Session Speakers - Natural Assets
Omar Al-Ansari
Secretary General at Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation Council, Qatar
C. Derek Campbell
Zakri Abdul Hamid
Guy Poppy
Executive Chairman, AlphaSierra Group, USA
Science Advisor Campaign for Nature & Scientific Advisor to the President Islamic Development Bank, Malaysia
Chief Scientific Advisor to the Food Standards Agency, UK Government; Director, Transforming UK Food Systems SPF; and Professor of Ecology, University of Southampton, UK
HOST
HOST
Karin Calvinho
CTO and co-founder, RenewCO2, Brazil
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
Roberto Alvarez
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Session Video Clip - Natural Assets
Full Session Video - Natural Assets
Frame the Future
Session #8: LOCAL DEVELOPMENT
Cities respond for 80% of the global economic output. They concentrate talent and resources, provide citizens with services and businesses, infrastructures, connections, and knowledge, and are essential for innovation. Cities also respond to most of the consumption of global resources, and will need to decouple growth from energy consumption, regulate emissions, and use resources in the years to come. Innovation is the answer to drive these changes, reduce city footprints and promote a positive impact. Orienting innovation efforts and entrepreneurship towards concrete solutions for city problems can create many opportunities for investment, growth, and local innovation ecosystems.
Session Speakers - Local Development
Jefferson Gomes
Superintendent of Innovation and Technology of National Service for Industrial Training - National Department (SENAI-ND), Brazil
Kwanza Hall
Maria Skotte
Petros Doukas
GFCC Senior Fellow, Former US Representative, US
Director, Clean, Denmark
GFCC Distinguished Fellow, Chairman of the Board, Capital Partners, Mayor of Sparta, Greece
HOST
HOST
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Paul Madden
Director, Centre for Competitiveness, UK
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
Roberto Alvarez
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Session Video Clip - Local Development
Full Session Video - Local Development
Situation Paper - Local Development
Post Event Report - Local Development
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Frame the Future
Session #7: REGULATION
Regulatory frameworks and institutions at large are the operating systems of societies. They set the limits of what public and private sector entities can do and define the roles that they can play in the economy. Regulatory approaches must push economies to operate with the lowest level of friction. At the same time, they need to assure collective rights and steers the actions of economic players towards desired social goals. The exercise of regulating the economy has become more challenging due to the acceleration of technology growth, the proliferation of new business models, and the increased complexity of societies and economies.
Session Speakers - Regulation
Chad Evans
Executive Vice-President, Council on Competitiveness and Treasurer, GFCC
Juan Pedro Corica
Laura Sandys CBE
Margareta Drzeniek
Co-Founder & Executive Director, QMAX Energías Renovables
Chair, BEIS Ofgem Energy Digitalisation Taskforce
Managing Partner, Horizon
HOST
HOST
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Tengku Azhar
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
Roberto Alvarez
Head of Innovation Ecosystem, Futurise Malaysia
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Tengku Azrul
Head of Innovation Ecosystem, Futurise
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
Roberto Alvarez
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Session Video Clip - Regulation
Full Session Video - Regulation
Frame the Future
Session #6: PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS
Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) are essential for the advancement of economies and societies. Partnerships between the public and private sectors help develop local and national economies and increase global progress. Effective PPPs involve exchanging information, the circulation of resources and talent, risk-sharing, joint investment, and transparency. They are enabled by the alignment of interests, trust, and clear and stable rules of engagement. A critical aspect of this conversation is the nature and configuration of PPPs and building them to foster a positive and lasting impact.
Session Speakers - Public-Private Partnerships
Lori Schmidt
President, Loral Management Group
Canada
Anuar Buranbayev
Eduardo Jorge Oliveira
Tapiwa Chiwewe
Managing Partner, Center for Research and Consulting, LLP
Kazakhstan
Head of the Center for Strategic Technologies in Health, Paraiba State University
Brazil
Senior Research Manager and Program Director, IBM Research
South Africa
HOST
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Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
HOST
Roberto Alvarez
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Session Video Clip - Public-Private Partnerships
Full Session Video - Public-Private Partnerships
Session Cases & References - Public-Private Partnerships
Frame the Future
Session #5: INFRASTRUCTURE
Every country depends on infrastructure to function appropriately and cost-effectively and to provide basic living standards to its populations. Investments in energy, transport, water management systems, and telecommunications are crucial to drive future prosperity and advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Today, economies across the globe struggle to finance infrastructure needs. Estimates show a 15 trillion-dollar gap in investments in the sector beyond commitments already announced by governments and through Public-Private Partnerships. Innovation, sustainability, resilience, and inclusiveness will be imperatives to optimize the design of future systems and bridge current gaps.
Session Speakers - Infrastructure
Chad Holliday
Elisa Jagerson
Mahmoud Samir Abdulwahed
Pia Henrietta Moon
Chairman, GFCC; Former Chairman Shell, DuPont and Bank of America
U.S.
General Partner, Wildcat Venture Partners
U.S.
Director of President's Strategic Innovation Office, Qatar University
Qatar
CEO & Co-Founder, Carbo Culture
Finland
HOST
HOST
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Frannie Leautier
Senior Partner at SouthBridge Group and CEO of SouthBridge Investments
France
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
Roberto Alvarez
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Session Video Clip - Infrastructure
Full Session Video - Infrastructure
Frame the Future
Session #4: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY SYSTEMS
Intellectual property (IP) lays the foundation for the innovation economy. It allows artists, scientists, creators, and businesses to commercially benefit from their original work, incentivizing creativity and competitiveness. In recent years, technological advancements have added a new emphasis to IP policies and strategies. Trends related to open innovation and collaboration challenge available mechanisms, demanding new models to pursue collective creations. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is also pushing a revolution in the field, and IP systems still need to catch up with regulations for computer-generated inventions.
Session Speakers - Intellectual Property Systems
Gulay Ozkan
Design lead, EU Maturolife and Founder, GEDS
Turkey
Paul Roben
Associate Vice Chancellor-Office of Innovation and Commercialization, University of California San Diego
U.S
Claudio Furtado
President, National Institute of Industrial Property
Brazil
Christopher Geiger
Enterprise Rise and Sustainability Director, Lockheed Martin
U.S.
HOST
Noam Shemtov
Deputy Head of the Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London
UK
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
HOST
Roberto Alvarez
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Full Session Video - Intellectual Property Systems
Session Video Clip - Intellectual Property Systems
Situation Paper - Intellectual Property
Systems
Post Event Report - Intellectual Property Systems
Session Cases & References - Intellectual Property Systems
Frame the Future
Session #3: TALENT
Human capital is the backbone of any economy. It is the people, with their capacities, capabilities, and skills, that lead nations and perform the tasks needed for business to thrive. Today, talks about talent development occupy a central stage because every country in the world is dealing with a skills shortage.
At the same time, increased global connectivity can enable governments and organizations to mobilize talent at scale and speed from virtually everywhere to solve global challenges and foster a positive impact. This conversation analyzed the main trends in the talent landscape and potential future opportunities.
The GFCC launched a new report during the session, Future Skills: Lessons and Insights from a Review of Innovative Skills Development Initiatives.
Session Speakers - Talent
Isabelle Christina
Ashoka Young Changemaker Founder, Black Girls Project, Program Ambassador, Unicef Brazil
Isabel Gil
Rector, Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Portugal
Michael Fung
Deputy Chief Executive, SkillsFuture
Singapore
Chad Holliday
Chairman, GFCC;
Former Chairman Shell, DuPont and Bank of America
USA
HOST
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Aleksandar Subic
Deputy Vice-Chancellor (STEM College) & Vice President Digital Innovation - RMIT University
Australia
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
HOST
Roberto Alvarez
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Full Session Video - Talent
Session Video Clip - Talent
Situation Paper - Talent
Post Event Report - Talent
Session Cases & References - Talent
SkillsFuture movement
https://www.skillsfuture.gov.sg – info and links to range of initiatives/programs
Skills Frameworks
https://www.skillsfuture.gov.sg/skills-framework - open access to set of frameworks for different industries Some Relevant Publications
Paradigm shifts for education and training
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-0983-1_14
Foundations for Asia's digital workforce
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/opinion/laying-the-foundations-for-asias-digital-workforce
Lifelong learning
Philippines Skills Framework Development
https://www.pressreader.com/philippines/the-freeman/20210630/281762747233865 - https://www.dti.gov.ph/speeches/launch-of-the-philippine-skills-framework-initiative/ - https://fb.watch/6rnRcTJVie/
ADB Industry 4.0 in Southeast Asia
https://www.adb.org/news/events/adb-study-industry-4-southeast-asia
World Bank
https://olc.worldbank.org/content/knowledge-exchange-singapore-0
Frame the Future
Session #2: INNOVATION
Innovation is a key driver for future growth. We need innovation to build sustainable, resilient, and inclusive businesses, urban systems, and economies.
At the same time, these three imperatives forge massive opportunities to create new value. The session surveyed how sustainability, resilience, inclusiveness, and partnership can simultaneously be translated and addressed through innovation strategies.
We displayed concrete solutions, models, programs, initiatives, and cases that can serve as models for leaders and citizens interested in framing the future of innovation.
Session Speakers - Innovation
Ghadah Al-Dabbagh
Head of the Omnipreneurship Lab, Al-Dabbagh Group Saudi Arabia
Jaime Alvarez
Head of Future Studies, National Council of Innovation for Development (CNID) Chile
William Lese
Managing Partner, Braemar Energy Ventures - USA
Hiro Nishiguchi
CEO, Japan Innovation Network
Japan
HOST
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HOST
Ken Sloan
Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Senior Vice-President, Monash University
Australia
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
Roberto Alvarez
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Full Session Video - Innovation
Session Video Clip - Innovation
Situation Paper - Innovation
Post Event Report - Innovation
Frame the Future
Session #1: OPENING
Five future-defining features will guide the conversations throughout the Frame the Future series: innovation, partnership, resilience, inclusiveness, and sustainability.
These attributes are interconnected and must be applied simultaneously to drive future strategies into a truly transformative agenda.
They will also help map out strategic issues and interdependencies across the ten competitiveness areas based on the GFCC Global Competitiveness Principles framework.
Session Speakers - Opening
Socrates Lazaridis
CEO - Athens Exchange Group
Greece
Mohd Yusoff Sulaiman
President & CEO, Malaysian Industry-Government Group For High Technology (MIGHT)
Malaysia
Gianna Sagazio
Innovation Director, Brazilian National Industry Confederation (CNI)
Brazil
Alfred Ongere
Managing Director, Mind Intelligence Ltd; Founder, AI Kenya
HOST
HOST
Chad Holliday
Chairman, GFCC; Former Chairman Shell, DuPont and Bank of America
USA
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
Roberto Alvarez
President, Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC), President & CEO, Council on Competitiveness (CoC)
Executive Director - Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils (GFCC)
Session Video Clip - Opening
Full Session Video - Opening
Post Event Report - Opening
Session Cases & References - Opening
Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement is an agreement to broaden and deepen ASEAN’s engagement with Australia, China, Japan, Korea and New Zealand. Together, these RCEP participating countries account for about 30% of the global GDP and 30% of the world population. The objective of the RCEP Agreement is to establish a modern, comprehensive, high-quality, and mutually beneficial economic partnership that will facilitate the expansion of regional trade and investment and contribute to global economic growth and development. Accordingly, it will bring about market and employment opportunities to businesses and people in the region. The RCEP Agreement will work alongside and support an open, inclusive, and rules-based multilateral trading system.
Link: https://asean.org/summary-regional-comprehensive-economic-partnership-agreement/
Malaysia’s National Technology & Innovation Sandbox Initiative
National Technology and Innovation Sandbox (NTIS) is a facility that allows researchers, innovators, startups and high-tech entrepreneurs to test their products, services, business models and delivery mechanisms in a live environment.
Link: https://sandbox.gov.my/
Free the Seed Sdn. Bhd.
An enterprising firm in Malaysia addressing a problem unwittingly created by farmers burning rice straw when they are preparing their soil. Free the Seed Sdn. Bhd. a company which is converting rice straw and husks into biodegradable packaging. The company uses its patented biotechnology process, utilizing protease serene enzymes, delignified cellulose fibers and enzymatic gratification methods, to produce packaging products that once used organically compost within six months.