WEF uses metaverse for private-public collaboration
The Global Collaboration Village has been unveiled at the annual Davos meeting and aims to use new technology to shape innovative solutions to help address critical global challenges.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) has announced it is building a “Global Collaboration Village” – harnessing the potential of the metaverse – as the virtual future of public-private cooperation.
In collaboration with Accenture and Microsoft, the aim is to provide immersive spaces where stakeholders can “convene, create and take action” on the world’s most pressing challenges.
Critical global issues
“Since our founding in 1971, the forum has served as a platform where business, government, civil society and other stakeholders can come together to address critical global issues,” said Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman, WEF.
“The metaverse will influence the way, people, governments, companies and society at large think, work, interact and communicate for the purpose of collectively addressing issues on the global agenda.”
He continued: “The Global Collaboration Village will be an extension of the World Economic Forum’s public private platforms and in-person meetings and will provide a more open, more sustained and more comprehensive process for coming together.”
“This will complement the forum’s real-world collaborations and invite a range of diverse stakeholders to come together to address the world’s most critical challenges and innovate a more sustainable future for all”
The Global Collaboration Village will bring together key global stakeholders – international organisations, governments, partner companies and civil society organisations – to imagine alternative futures, explore ideas in an immersive way and envision what the future world could be. The forum said it aims to be a pioneer within this new space and bring together others to co-create within it.
“While the metaverse is only in its early days, it already holds great promise, not only for redefining how organisations work and interact but also for fostering effective public-private partnerships,” said Julie Sweet, chair and CEO of Accenture.
“We are pleased to collaborate with the World Economic Forum and Microsoft in creating the Global Collaboration Village and pioneering a trusted metaverse space. This will complement the forum’s real-world collaborations and invite a range of diverse stakeholders to come together to address the world’s most critical challenges and innovate a more sustainable future for all.”
- Global cooperation – to create a new virtual space where global interaction can be enhanced and cooperative solutions found
- Interactivity – to provide immersive experiences to foster a better understanding of key global challenges
- Inclusivity – to offer a collaborative public space where broad participation in discussions about pressing global issues is both encouraged and enabled
- Impact – the platform and all of its goals are geared towards catalysing more effective individual and collective action following the forum’s mission statement and commitment to improving the state of the world.
The World Economic Forum, in collaboration with strategic partners Accenture and Microsoft, presented the overall concept and architecture of the Global Collaboration Village, as well as a proof-of-concept of the experience and functionality, at the Annual Meeting 2022.
“The Global Collaboration Village will be an extension of the World Economic Forum’s public private platforms and in-person meetings and will provide a more open, more sustained and more comprehensive process for coming together”
According to WEF, the launch is the first step on a new journey. The forum will continue to develop the Global Collaboration Village, together with a founding partners group, over the coming months and years, with the aim of turning the metaverse into a place where international cooperation can be strengthened and re-energised.
In addition, WEF is launching a new initiative on Defining and Building the Metaverse, which convenes more than 60 leading companies from technology and other sectors alongside experts from governments, academia and civil society to accelerate the development of governance and policy frameworks for the metaverse and strengthen economic and social value creation opportunities.
The intention of the initiative and the Global Collaboration Village is to help shape the foundations of the metaverse to truly create an equitable, interoperable and safe digital environment from the onset.
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