‘Living by true values’ is key to sustainable future

DUBAI — Coordinated response in the public and private sector and the necessity to integrate sustainability into people’s way of life, policies and business models are necessary in shaping the future of governments worldwide, Miro Cerar, Prime Minister of Slovenia, said Tuesday on the final day of the fifth World Government Summit (WGS 2017). In a session entitled ‘Smart and Sustainable Slovenia’, Cerar spoke about the global challenges facing mankind and the rapid social progress we have witnessed. He said: “The accumulation of advanced scientific knowledge has been the driver of progress in society, it has changed human life. It has also enabled the transfer of ideas, knowledge, goods and people faster than ever. However, it is not clear whether this will bring us to the peak of civilization or accelerate its downfall. It is important for our countries and for the international community as a whole to have a vision and strategy for the future.” Reiterating the importance of educating today’s youth for ensuring a sustainable future, he said: “We often think that we need to buy apartments, cars and other material things for our children to give them a secure and positive future but we forget that the best way to provide them such future is to be an example with our own positive behavior and work. “Our youth is truly our future but we must not forget that we are the future for them as well. Living according to true values and being a good example is the best future for youth. The belief that youth are the driving force for our future has been long on the agenda of the United Arab Emirates. With the engagement of young people, the United Arab Emirates is an important example of inclusive work in planning our future.” Meanwhile, Reid Hoffman, co-founder and Executive Chairman of LinkedIn, said during a one-on-one session entitled ‘Conversation with Reid Hoffman’ on the final day of the summit, that the most important ingredients for building an entrepreneurial culture include allowing people to connect with others, take intelligent risks and not be afraid of failure. To a question about how governments can assist entrepreneurs in setting up businesses, Hoffman said: “There is a two-fold reason for Silicon Valley’s success: the culture encourages learnings from failure, and entrepreneurs can operate at the nexus of business and technology. Many smart engineers gather in a lot of places around the world, but what they need to succeed and to ultimately build businesses of scale are the right networks and connections, as well as access to venture capitalists who recognize and understand intelligent risk taking.” Hoffman sees it as his personal mission to advance humanity through his business LinkedIn and his numerous venture capital activities: “My personal mission is helping humanity to scale. How can we help individuals transform their economic lives? By connecting them with the right people, opportunities and resources to advance, I believe we can empower all individuals to forge better paths for themselves.”