Google hosts a conference for the good and the great each year. Our very own Sue Unerman was there and delivers this round-up of the best of the best:
Agenda : Day 1
Opening address Lord Mandelson.
Said nothing for half an hour about making what we could of the world after the storm and being pragmatic as opposed to idealistic. He fears a W shaped recession and admitted that the govt is underequipped to deal with the 24/7 digital world (echoing Andrew Neil at our first Age of Dialogue Conference three years ago).
Best bit was when Richard Eyre asked him to guarantee that the internet would not be regulated in a way which might hamper entrepreneurialism and he asked the question back : “Do you really think the people of this country want a totally unregulated www?” Richard had no answer.
*The World in Data – Hans Rosling.
Well worth watching his act if you haven’t seen it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SynjhagPiw
Panel1
Staying the Course
CEO and Chairs of Daimler, John Lewis and Telecom Italia
Bit tame as you’d expect.
Franco Bernabe “Not all that is new is good, not all that is good is new”.
Charlie Mayfield J. Lewis “I can see a time when we make more from assembling a bbq than selling it”
*Panel2
Staying the Course – Nassim Taleb and Ian Bremmer.
Taleb author of brilliant book The Black Swan says “the more you study economics the less competent you’re going to be…. the past is not similar to the present.. we’re in something we’ve never seen before”.
“Forecasting is futile, being prepared is worthwhile”. Watch at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9nTsM5npZ8 .
Taleb says the nation state is irrelevant in the time of Google, get rid of nation governments. Bremmer says local and state issues are a bigger concern to people than ever.. they don’t care about the rest of the world now.
Prince of Asturias
Bit dull.
Prince of Norway
Dignity in development
“what will you say to your grandchildren when they ask you what did you do about the major challenges of our time”
Talked about Millennium Development Goals (we haven’t made much progress… nb one of the goals is gender equality – delegates 90% male)
Panel – Reinventing media
Lively debate especially enjoyable rant from Pedro Ramirez of El Mundo against Google.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-LfwlIr7pE
Realising Responsibility
Mo Ibrahim and Mary Robinson on ethics.
*Itay Talgam – Conductor
How to lead – well worth watching http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGF6E0R5tj4
Day 2
Panel – the road ahead
Deutsche Bank, Banesto, George Osbourne
Lively and honest debate re financial crash… Fantastic question re ethics vs regulation from the floor.
Anshu Jain says “bankers suffered from an excess of animal spirits”
*Prince Charles on Rainforests
Stop cutting down trees!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-G-XSRqPWA
Combining Tradition with Technology
Chief Surui – his tribe only met the outside world in the sixties.. now he’s using Google to fend off loggers. “Technology is an instrument for dialogue” . He’s been chief since he was 17!
Panel New Frontiers
Spinvox, Spotify, Playfish, Space adventures
Panel Collaborative Creativity
Nice presentation of Nike Plus, Havas have a Global Youth piece of research and are proposing to hold a conference : One Young World next Feb chaired by Kofi Annan, you have to be 25 or under to attend (and pay £3k). Nice bit of promotion for Havas though, why we should expect the next generation to come up with answers to the problems this generation have created is another question. Tony Davidson from Weiden and Kennedy wants to build a giant sundial in the desert. Chaz Jenkins talked about the YouTube Orchestra
*Panel Citizen Politics
Inspiring and humbling story from Oscar Morales Founder 1m voices against FARC – do not miss this.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7225824.stm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQWWK4tb9RU&feature=channel
*Google perspective
Larry Page and Eric Schmidt double act – whats next ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Se-wlHw9XQM&feature=channel
*Fireside Chat
Then joined by Richard Branson who is the only man with any answers… to war (Elders Group), to global warming (BioChar and inland lakes in deserts as seas rise), to Darfur (just done a 3 day fast).
Can’t knock the creativity, energy and enormous ideas and charisma.
Closing reflections
Nikesh sums up (and tells people off who are leaving the room!)
Short highlights here at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zD7UfiDbrQc
