Manifesto for more equitable and secured access to food

As an impact driven hub, we are thrilled to share a moment commemorating and signaling a massive step towards more equitable and secured access to food for the people of Geneva. This is particularly following COVID-19, where thousands of people in Geneva found themselves in a situation of food insecurity.

Following months of preparation, the first "Forum Demopratique 2023 on the Right to Food and Food Sovereignty" was finally launched on the 19th of April 2023 in Refettorio Geneva. The three days forum was organized by Chef Walter el Nagar, founder of MATER Fondazione, and in collaboration with FIAN International the Global Shapers Community of Geneva, la fondazione pistoletto, and the Social Gastronomy Movement.

The forum followed the method of Demopraxis" by Fondazione Pistoletto, founded by the influential artist Michelangelo Pistoletto. It strived to engage experts and various stakeholders from the public/private sector, academia, and direct beneficiaries to demo-practically and constructively create a political proposal and launch a campaign to support the inclusion of the right to food and food sovereignty in the canton's constitution. That is in light of the recent parliamentary initiative to include the Right to food adopted by the grand council (cantonal parliament). The population of Geneva will be asked to vote on this inclusion in June 2023.

It is with honor that we share that the head of the coordination and facilitation of the forum was our newly joined shaper, Masa Awad.

““Being part of impactful moments stays with you forever.””

— Geneva Hub

Here she signs the manifesto outcome of the forum, which will be introduced into the Geneva constitution if the people of Geneva vote in favor of this inclusion.

MEET THE SHAPER

Masa AWAD

Shapers at summer Davos 2018

From the 18th to the 20th of September, the city of Tianjin hosted the Annual Meeting of the New Champions, the foremost global summit on innovation, science and technology, promoting entrepreneurship in the global public interest. It brought together more than 2,000 leaders from government, business, science and civil society from all over the world. With a group of fellow shapers from all over the world, our shapers Giulia Zanzi and Giovanni Porcellana were invited by the World Economic Forum to represent the Global Shapers Community! They joined three-day intense discussions and panels gathering forward-looking minds to explore the forefront of the Fourth Industrial Revolutions and take value-driven actions.One of the main themes of Summer Davos was Artificial Intelligence and how it will change our life.Giulia summarized the takeaways of this in three main points:

1. AI is enhancing our understanding of the world.Hardware enhancement is allowing machines to compute big data and to learn: this is at the foundation of deep learning, and is unquestionably behind the explosion of AI from a developer’s laboratory to its massive exploitation with real-time applications.

2. AI is changing the power structure. Artificial intelligence is a unique opportunity to bring equality and overcome infrastructure limitations. We need to make sure that AI is not increasing the gap between high-skilled and low-skilled workers but is actually empowering the broader population.

3. The importance of human skills in an AI world. Skills needed are changing rapidly and the best skill to learn is actually the “skill of learning”.

Giulia and Giovanni, together with other Global Shapers who attended the event, were invited to participate in an exclusive session with Jack Ma, founder of the global giant Alibaba. Jack Ma shared the idea that “heart, values, and intellectual thinking are what can’t be replaced by technology”.

This was probably the biggest lesson from the Summit: the Fourth industrial Revolution needs to be human centric. All technologies need to be used in a beneficial way and artificial intelligence needs to be at the service of humans.

Are you willing to read more about the Annual Meeting of the New Champions?

Have a look at the articles below!

• 10 highlights from AMNC18

• How AI will change your life: 3 lessons from Summer Davos

• Globalization is unstoppable and we must fix its flaws. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang’s speech in Tianjin.

• Goodbye drugs, hello electroceuticals. The top 10 emerging technologies

Youth Voices at Davos

On January 23-26, under the theme “Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World”, the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) took place in Davos.

The meeting brought together leaders from business, government, international organizations and civil society in order to promote stronger multi-stakeholder collaboration and address the political, economic and societal challenges of our times.

50 Shapers - the #Davos50, the best young minds in the world - had the chance to bring their voices and ideas to Davos, as representatives of the Global Shapers Community. The Geneva Hub took part to some of the most amazing moments and initiatives of the Annual Meeting.

To start with, on January 19-21, the Hub went to Zurich to be part of the Pre-Davos Summit 2018. This event was hosted by the Zurich Hub with the goal of gathering together the #Davos50 and many Shapers from the Swiss Hubs. Shapers had the opportunity to actively engage in discussions on “How to use technology to create positive impact in our communities”.

For instance, they worked together in workshop sessions with the aim of creating and scaling local and global projects focused on Integration & Tolerance, Nutrition & Food Waste, Healthcare, Climate/Finance, Future Mobility, and the Future of Work.

After the Pre-Davos Summit, the actual WEF Annual Meeting started on January 23rd. This year Zineb El Ouazzani, Vice-President of the Geneva Hub, was selected as one of the #Davos50 to officially represent the voice of youth in Davos!

As a forward-looking female leader and entrepreneur, she has always put her passions and skills to good use by supporting organizations and projects focused on healthcare, education, e-waste and entrepreneurship at the local and global level. Various experiences brought her to be one of the 30 young talents for the Middle East and Africa’s MACH program (Microsoft Academy for College Hires). Recently, she moved to Geneva where she has undertaken a new amazing professional adventure. Indeed, Zineb has decided to apply her relentless can-do attitude to her start-up Rising Stars – a company whose purpose is to help millennials to thrive as they enter the workforce.

At Davos, she had the opportunity to share projects achieved by the Geneva Hub and bring forward her expertise in different topics related to the 4th industrial revolution and its impact on employability and on the transformation of workplaces. She met with Ellyn Shook (Chief Leadership & Human Resources Officer of Accenture), to talk about what being a Shaper means as well as about how to tackle challenges in local communities. If you lost it, you can re-watch the video of the discussion at the following link!

Furthermore, together with other fellow Global Shapers, Zineb had a great discussion with Jean-Philippe Courtois (Executive VP and President, Microsoft Global Sales) and Mary Snapp (Corporate VP and Lead for Microsoft Philanthropies) on how to leverage Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain to drive the digital conversation and shape the world for future generations.

Last but not least, she had the opportunity to meet and be inspired by Jack Ma (Alibaba Group) during the “Meet the Leader” session in Davos.

In this occasion, the Global Shapers had the chance to ask him questions about the impact and risks of Artificial Intelligence and new technologies and on the matter of gender equality. Jack Ma explained the possible risks deriving by the recent scientific and technological discoveries and underlined his optimism in thinking that it will be possible to fight and win against hunger, diseases, global warming and discrimination.

To know more about our initiatives, you can follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

Multicultural entrepreneurship and immigration

Brain drain or new mobility of Italian migrants? Defining the new generation of people who travel and work abroad is often a matter of personal interpretation. Nowadays, many Italians still look for a job in Switzerland as their grandpas did a few decades ago. The difference lays in their training and education, both top level and highly specialized.

On January 3 the RSI, the Swiss Italian television, aired a reportage on the Italians who take their chance in Suisse Romande, a Swiss area which features a multicultural environment conducive to the success of entrepreneurial projects and initiatives. Among them, Luigi Matrone.

Interviewed at a recent gathering of entrepreneurs organized by the Camera di Commercio Italiana in Geneva, Luigi expresses his appreciation for the networking opportunities that Geneva offers, as they foster the connection among entrepreneurs for new business projects in Geneva and, more broadly, in Suisse Romande. His Italian origins have not prevented him from being a leading entrepreneur in the digital sector in this area of Switzerland as well as a broad-minded individual who constantly seeks to have a positive impact on the Geneva’s local community.

Networking, connection among cultures, and the importance of giving back to the local community where he lives are the drivers of his actions. Luigi’s Swiss story starts in 2009 when he decided to leave Italy and move to Geneva: the reason behind this decision lay in his passion for the digital and technology industry and e-business-related solutions. In 2012, after spending a few years with P&G, a multinational consumer goods corporation, Luigi transformed his passion into his own business. He founded a consultancy firm exclusively focused on allowing multinational companies to stay ahead of time and on structuring, scaling and standardizing their digital transformation. Indeed, “ideas beyond the basics” and “inspiration beyond the obvious” are among the driving commandments of his firm.

Furthermore, Luigi has been part of the amazing group that founded the Geneva Hub and recently has served as its curator.

With him, the Hub went through disruptive transformation, became a model for other hubs, and strengthened the engagement of its shapers coming from more than fifteen countries towards the Geneva local community. Under his lead, the Hub was among the five hubs that won the “Shape a Better Future” Challenge by the Coca Cola Company (2015) with Reading for Change, a project aimed at improving integration and at giving more people access to information and education. As a prize, the Geneva Hub received $ 10,000 in acceleration funding and scaled up the project globally by partnering with other hubs in the Global Shapers Community.

At the end of the RSI’s interview, Luigi’s personal note casts light upon one of the aspects that ignites purpose-oriented networking and triggers the interest of forward-looking entrepreneurs like him in this city: in his words, “the multicultural environment that characterizes Geneva is the first and foremost stimulating factor” leading him and many others to choose this city as a professional and personal home.

rE-Use it!

Geneva Shapers –rE-Use Gare Cornavin train station

Creating impact is about finding a space where change can happen. For many Global Shaper Hubs around the world this space is found where there is an urgent need for change: climate change, migration, education, security, and public health, etc. For us, Global Shapers in Geneva, this space for positive impact was found in a trashcan – literally! – and decided to tackle the problem of electronic waste (also known as e-waste).

Switzerland is the 2nd highest e-waste generator per capita (26.3 kg/inh.) according to the United Nations Global e-waste monitor. Although in Switzerland - as in most European countries - there is detailed regulation regarding collection and e-waste processing, Swiss citizens are generally unaware of the impact of their “e-trash”.

This habit is at the hearth of the problem and here is why we created project rE-Use.

rE-Use project originally started with the idea to embed educational contents in second-hand devices. But later, it evolved as we realized the impact of re-utilizing and recycling devices at the national level. Through rE-Use, we aim to create community awareness around the e-waste issue. Every year, thousands of electronic devices are tossed by corporations and individuals, just to be replaced by new ones. At the same time, there is a huge demand of devices to be used by non-profit organizations for educational and operational purposes. So, before any old but functioning device is thrown into a trash can, we decided to interrupt the vicious cycle and give a second life to those devices.

Thanks to the 2015 Shaping a Better Future challenge grant, sponsored by Coca Cola, the Geneva Global Shapers prepared an awareness raising campaign to invite individuals and organizations to donate their devices. Over the last year, we reached out to our employers, friends and other people in our network. And they did respond to our call: Uber has actively supported our online campaign, while P&G and Salesforce have donated some of their corporate desktops. Many individuals have also donated their laptops after seeing our Facebook and Twitter posts.

On 21st January, we extended our call for donations at Geneva’s main train station, Gare Cornavin: during a 6-hour in-person outreach campaign, we directly reached out to more than 700 people about the important issue of e-waste, and explained how they can help their community by giving their devices a second life. Any computer, cellphone, monitor, tablet, iPod that is “useless” to many, for the Geneva Shapers represents a unique resource to improve the life of those most in need. It could be an opportunity for amigrant to learn the local language, or for an unemployed person to learn new skills that will enable her to find a new job. rE-Use is about empowering people by giving your tech device a second chance.

In our digital communications campaign, we reached out a total of 177,000 people counting together website visitors, social media visitors, live-stream viewers and partners’ online channels reach. Many of our donors mentioned they saw our ad and wanted to contribute to the project.

Do you want to help local Swiss organizations by donating your old functioning device or replicate the project in your Hub?Join us on our project page and get in touch! Let’s shape our community together!

See all photos and live-streamed video of the event STOP E-WASTE! on our Facebook page

EdCamp Ukraine 2016

During the Annual Curators Meeting 2015, my dear friend Olexandr, Curator of the Kharkiv Hub, invited me to be a speaker at his EdCamp Ukraine event in April 2016. I have to admit that I accepted without really knowing all the details of the event. The only thing I knew was that it was dedicated to empowering and inspiring teachers, and that alone was enough for me to say “Yes!”

I am so happy today that I was able to experience and report not only the extraordinary success of this initiative but also the warmth, love and hospitality of the Kharkiv Shapers and people. Staying in Ukraine was like rediscovering a part of my family that I had not seen for a long time: pure pleasure and joy!

The EdCamp (un)conference was organized in two days, and several Shapers took active part in the discussions as speakers and moderators: Katya and Daria from Kharkiv, Liliya from Lviv, Yauheni from Minsk, Yori from Amsterdam and myself. We brought new ideas, inspiration and energy to 500 teachers - passionate individuals who strive to raise, prepare and inspire their students to become great citizens - from all over Ukraine.

Among the other contributors, Yori and I gave insights on technology and innovation, new trends and possibilities (from 3D printing to particle accelerators in medicine; from robotics and genomics to the use of fundamental research in society), to highlight what the future will look like so that the teachers, in turn, can convey it to their students. Finally, the Shapers organized a special celebration for the 5th anniversary of our beautiful Community, involving teachers and young students and making us realize, once again, how powerful this incredible Community can be.

On the day after the conference, the wonderful Jane and Katya brought Yori and myself to visit the Bogodukhiv Orphanage for mentally and physically disabled children outside Kharkiv. There Yori shared his moving and inspiring story to show them how, even in the most adverse conditions, you should keep fighting for your dreams and what you think you deserve from life, and never give up.

"You have to change what you cannot accept, you have to accept what you cannot change, but is only you that has to decide what to accept in your life"

Even now, while writing, I get goose bumps and feel the strong emotions evoked by his powerful story.

Then we returned to Kharkiv, where we met young people with different types of disabilities, members of the Charitable Foundation called “Hesed Shaare-Tikvah” and some of them participants of the Kharkiv city public organization “Creavita”. The conversation that started after Yori's presentation was very touching and just the expressions on the faces of the audience - of excitement, hope and joy - were enough to make the whole day unforgettable.

Finally we also had a brainstorming meeting with the Livelihood Development Programme team and we ended the day with the lovely company of Katya’s family.

I left Ukraine with an intense feeling of gratitude for these beautiful people, with big hearts and shining eyes, fully committed towards their community, who made me feel part of their family and always at home. Dyakuyu!

This article is a personal reflection of the author, Giovanni Porcellana, Global Shaper at Geneva Hub

Geneva hub wins the "Shaping a Better Future" challenge

We are proud to announce that our hub flagship project, Reading for Change, is among the 5 projects that won the Shaping a Better Future challenge by The Coca Cola Company. The Geneva Hub will receive US $ 10,000 in acceleration funding for this project. We started Reading for Change in Geneva with the aim to improve integration and give more people access to information and education. We do this by collecting second-hand tech devices such as eBook readers, laptops, MP3-players etc., and uploading them with educational content. We then distribute these pre-loaded devices to selected associations, so that they can use them for specific free skills trainings and language courses.This way, we ensure that a virtuous recycling of technologies is matched with actual needs. Some of our partners include companies (such as Procter & Gamble) who have donated old/unused devices, and community-based associations (such as Espace Solidaire Paquis) who receive these devices in support of their social activities.Some of the key project milestones include:

• Delivered 35 devices that enabled Espace Solidaire Paquis to conduct free multimedia language courses and IT skills trainings

• Established a trusted relation with P&G on the suppliers-end

• Created and shared a blueprint to help other fellow hubs establish their own local chapter of R4C

• Connected with hubs in Canada, France and Morocco for future expansion

After the initial local success, we are now working to scale up the project globally and are partnering with other hubs in the Global Shapers Community. So far, we have produced a comprehensive, easy to read blueprint to help other hubs reapply this project in their communities. We are certain that this combination of rapid local execution and seamless global re-application can help improve the lives of thousands of communities around the world.This award is a testament to the hard work of our team and will allow us to maximize impact in our community and beyond.  With this Coca-Cola grant, we now plan to scale up Reading for Change by:

• getting higher quality content;

• exploring options to promote e-waste reduction;

• offering strong support to other Hubs for the project implementation.

We thank all the Global Shapers for votes and great support over the last few months. We also congratulate the Kathmandu Hub on winning the 2015 Grand Prize Winner of the Shaping a Better Future challenge for their Nepal Earthquake Relief Project, as well as the other finalists: Cartagena Hub, Columbia, with the Water for Life project, Chandigarh Hub, India, with the I Break My Silence project, Gaza Hub, Palestine, with the Solar Power Lighting Disabled Lives.To learn more about Reading For Change and donate any digital devices visithttp://www.readingforchange.ch/ Follow the Geneva Shapers on Facebook and Twitter Author: Beatrice Montesi, Giulia Zanzi

The beautiful story of a Hub

One month already passed since the Annual Curators Meeting 2015.

It has been an incredible event, full of beautiful experiences for the mind and the heart. However, many dear friends already wrote excellent words about it.

I want instead to tell a story - one of the many - around the ACM: the story of the Geneva hub. The ACM has been the greatest achievement, so far, of this awesome group, of which I am a proud "external" member / visiting shaper (since I’m formally part of the Turin Hub).

Geneva Shapers created a Media Team for the ACM, releasing every day a magazine to the curators, performing interviews, organizing out-of-agenda events and social activities around the city, and in general welcoming the curators like no hub ever did before.

But only a year ago, this would have never been possible, or even only imaginable.

Last year Geneva was still a sleeping hub, with few projects and few committed Shapers that were participating only as individuals, not as a team. It was very sad to see that what could have been the most connected hub of all, thanks to its proximity to the WEF, was only a fade copy of itself.

Like in the best stories of all times, this is the moment in which a core team of highly motivated and awesome Shapers decided that It was time to change the situation, and make Geneva an example for all the other hubs.

They started working on people first, then projects. At first, they established a united and strong team with the most committed Shapers, then worked on more projects ambitious, setting every time the bar higher and continuously engaging the hub members.From there, they started looking for new people that could fit in the newborn hub in terms of spirit, enthusiasm and passion. They were able to integrate them in a totally new environment, where people are alive and driven to improve the local community. The momentum kept growing.

From events like #ShapeTheWorld to the position in the final round of the Coca-Cola Challenge for Reading For Change, passing through closer interactions with the Global Shapers Team and the whole Community, Geneva hub became more engaged, active and aware of its potential.

At that point, they decided to take the ultimate challenge of the year, and make the ACM a flagship project of the hub. The result was simply beautiful.

What really excites me is to know that this is only the beginning. Quoting the curator, Luigi Matrone, "we have awakened a sleeping beauty and many other fairy tales are still to come". And I know what they are capable of!

Finally, few words to say that I am very grateful to have been accepted by this awesome group in their ranks. I’m so happy to be one of you: thank you Geneva Shapers! WHOA!!!

A better life for patients

Combining leadership with computer science, neuroscience, physics and robotics

#Meettheleader Session with Tej Tadi, founder and CEO of Mindmaze, YGL 2015

We were privileged to meet a true thought passion-driven leader: Tej Tadi, founder and CEO of Mindmaze. The company brings together computer science, neuroscience, physics and robotics to enhance the quality of life of brain trauma survivors. Tej became a Young Global Leader earlier this year for his innovative, groundbreaking work and contribution to society.

The day of our meeting was special.  August 19th followed an intensive and inspiring #ShapersACM week and this #MeetTheLeader session was also attended by the curators who were still in town. After an exciting ACM where the Global Shapers community had an opportunity to exchange ideas, the audience was particularly eager to learn about new innovations.

Tej’s path and life can be a true inspiration for all of us. While he was working on his PhD in neuroscience at the EPFL, he witnessed first-hand that the methods used to treat patients suffering from brain traumatism, particularly those who had experienced a stroke, were not advanced and mostly based on the qualitative observation of the treating doctor during his visit rather than quantitative data and continuous monitoring of the patient. Likewise, available treatments were very limited and therefore patients’ recovery was, in many cases, compromised by this lack of medical options. He started thinking about creative ways to combine engineering and healthcare to address these problems.

This out of the box thinking was very much needed. Indeed, cerebrovascular accidents or Strokes are a global socio-economic problem. About 15 million people suffer strokes every year, which translates into a stroke every 45 seconds. Because of the challenges related to modern society and changing behavioral patterns, there has been a 180% increase in the stroke rate in recent years, and strokes now affect people as young as 30 years old – in some cases even 16 years old. Cerebrovascular accidents represent a huge financial burden as well: the U.S. and Western Europe alone spend about 100 billion in stroke care every year.

In 2011, Tej founded MindMaze with the intent to design and develop novel applications in Neuro-Rehabilitation, Game training & Interfaces. In particular, MindMaze’s devices use virtual reality, brain imaging and gaming technologies to retrain the brain of stroke victims and help them regain motor functions. The company recently caused a stir with the introduction of the industry’s first thought-powered, augmented reality and motion capture Neuro-Rehabilitation system. Basically, by monitoring the patient’s brain signals the devices are capable of translating the thought into an animation on the screen. In other words, the system tricks the brain into believing it’s functioning properly which helps the recovery of damaged cerebral regions.

This technology’s field of application can also be scaled up. Because of this symbiosis between augmented reality and the patient brain and thought, there are possibilities it can also help people who suffered spinal cord injuries, limb amputations and many other conditions.

During our meeting, Tej also shared some insights on his experience on starting a business and more generally on the Swiss start-up ecosystem. “It doesn’t take experience to have an idea, but it does take experience to take this idea to the market,” he said, highlighting that the journey from developing the first device and getting it to patients was quite long and complicated. This is why Tej encouraged everyone to not be afraid of making mistakes and to learn from them as much as possible; “If you want to start something the time is now; if you want to fail something, the time is also now!”.

In 2014, MindMaze was confirmed among the TOP 100 Best Swiss startups. The future priorities for Tej include making the devices more affordable and available in emerging markets. He stressed that time is very important for them: “For every day we ‘waste’ someone is not getting the device that can help improve their lives”.

If you’d like to learn more about Tej’s work and the devices produced by MindMaze visit their website MindMaze.com or follow MindMaze on Facebook and Twitter.

Photo credit: Geneva Hub

An Interview with Guillame Barazzone

On the occasion of the Annual Curators Meeting (ACM) 2015, taking place from 13 to 17 August in Geneva, Guillame Barazzone, Young Global Leader (YGL) 2015, gave an exclusive interview to the Geneva Hub Media Team, which will be featured in their daily ACM magazine. This week, he will be attending the Annual YGL Summit, also held in Geneva.

Guillaume is a Swiss politician and member of the Swiss Christian Democratic Party (CDP). He was elected to the Administrative Council of the City of Geneva in 2012 and re-elected in 2015, and has been member of the Swiss National Council since December 2013. He holds a master's degree in law (L.L.M.) from Columbia Law School in New York. He has also studied at the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) Columbia University.

Congratulations on your recent appointment as YGL in 2015. Can you tell us about your experience in this community so far? What do you like the most about being a YGL?

My experience has been limited so far, since I have only been a part of YGL for few months. That said, I have recently met very interesting Young Global Leaders and Global Shapers in Geneva. I am amazed by the various backgrounds and experiences of the members of the YGL community. It is a great opportunity for Geneva to host the YGL Annual Summit. I am excited about attending my first YGL event in my home town!

Having started your political career in Switzerland and in the Geneva Canton, you have gained significant knowledge of the area.In your opinion, what are the characteristics that make Geneva such a special place?

Geneva is Switzerland’s most international and multicultural city. Of its 480,000 inhabitants, 41% are foreigners representing 184 nationalities. This is very unusual for such a small city. Geneva’s global GDP is $51.6 billion. Its per capita of $108k, is one of the highest in the world. The healthy economic environment, combined with a steady political system, has ve been core in developing sustainable and diversified growth. The region’s economic layout includes many leading multinational headquarters, prominent financial institutions, international organization and NGOs, as well as a strong layer of diverse local service and industrial businesses. Geneva’s strong international purpose has made it the host of more than 95 international organizations, programs or institutes such as the UNO, WHO, WTO, WIPO, CERN and ICRC. Over 200 international NGOs and nonprofit organizations are registered in Geneva.

What has been the focus of your political action over the years? What are the areas you have tried to improve and how?

In Geneva, my main focus has been security and the environment. During the past 3 years we have developed the “proximity police” of Geneva and increased by 50% the number of policemen.

Our goal is to make Geneva one of the greenest cities in Europe. For that purpose, we are developing many “pocket parks” to increase the quality of the city urbanism.

As a member of the Swiss parliament, I was mainly involved in the drafting of the regulations on financial reform. My main focus was to ensure that Switzerland could implement the new GAFI (Groupe d'Action Financière Internationale, also know as Financial Action Task Force) rules regarding anti money laundering and effectively fight the financing of terrorism. We are also making sure that the Swiss financial institutions remain competitive and innovative.

According to the Tribune de Genève, you are one of the most influential members of parliament in 2015 rankings. How do you manage to keep a close link with your electorate, and particularly to engage youth?Being able to play a political role at the local level is vital. Meeting regularly with my constituents in the different neighborhoods of Geneva is very important to keep a close link with the electorate. It gives you new ideas and is the only way to really understand their concerns. Swiss people are regularly asked to vote on particular issues and this also helps keeping people engaged. As regards youth, social media is probably the most important communication channel.

In May, you have been reelected in the Administrative Council of the City of Geneva. What challenges will Geneva have to face in the coming years?

Geneva will have to face new challenges. The end of banking secrecy is one of them. The Swiss financial industry is becoming one of the most transparent in the world. In the future, Geneva can become an international hub for financial innovation and sustainable finance.

The continued strength of the Swiss franc against the US dollar and Euro, originating from Switzerland’s safe-haven status, has affected Geneva, which heavily depends on exports for its internationally orientated financial, trading and watch industries. In addition to currency pressure, the OECD’s has challenged Switzerland on its favorable tax structure for multinational companies (multinationals benefit from a 12% rate).

The stable economic environment and strong Swiss Franc have led to high labour costs and housing prices (the vacant house ratio is below 0.5%).

Geneva is perceived as expensive and unattractive in terms of living. This negative perception remains a challenge in attracting tourism, talent, and modernization. Additionally, the relatively solid economic situation has put little pressure on government and local businesses to reposition themselves.

In 2013, the Swiss nationalist party launched  a general referendum on immigration was launched by the Swiss nationalist party. On 9 February 2014, Swiss voters narrowly backed this controversial referendum proposal to bring back strict quotas for immigration from European Union countries. Final results showed 50.3% voted in favour (people from Geneva voted against it). This vote is catastrophic for Switzerland and Geneva because it could render the Swiss-EU agreement on freedom of movement moot. It further jeopardizes other Swiss-EU agreements on trade, air and road traffic, agriculture, science, research and education. While other cantons have more flexible options, Geneva is at the center of the issue, as its international organizations, NGO’s and multinational companies are greatly exposed to potentially restrictive immigration policy.

What are your expectations from your first YGL meeting? It is a great opportunity for Geneva to host the YGL Annual Summit.

I consider this first YGL meeting as a unique opportunity to acquaint myself with other YGLs, with which I hope to develop a fruitful relationship over the years. I am sure I will learn a great deal from my peers, and looking forward to exchanging views and acting as each other’s sounding board.

I am excited about attending my first YGL event in my hometown!

As today’s leader, what is your advice for tomorrow’s leaders, in particular for the Curators attending the Global Shapers Annual Curators Meeting (ACM) this week in Geneva?

Always be yourself and never pretend to be someone else. People will trust you as a leader because of your own personality and skills, and will turn away from someone who seems a fake.

For updates on the ACM 2015 follow the Geneva hub on Twitter @GenevaShapers and Facebook at Geneva Hub. Use the official hashtag #ShapersACM. Other hashtags include #ACM2015 & #ShapeTheWorld.