Taking Faith to the World Economic Forum

In late October, 2015, in Abu Dhabi, the annual Summit on the Global Agenda – the world’s largest brainstorming event – brought together the thought leaders of the World Economic Forum’s Network of Global Agenda Councils, comprising more than 80 groups of experts from academia, business, civil society, international organizations and government.

Among these councils, members of the Global Agenda Council on the Role of Faith aim to provide thought leadership that furthers within World Economic Forum activities the understanding of faith’s complex influence on global affairs. The council and its members seek to raise awareness of the criticality of “religious literacy” – ensuring leaders from government, business and civil society adequately comprehend religion’s nuances and drivers, as well as its impact on communities, markets and governance. It aims to transform perspectives on faith in government and the private sector, specifically in nations experiencing dramatic change (for example, immigration dynamics, internal conflicts, freedom of beliefs/religion and emerging market challenges).

The council is developing a toolkit to teach religious literacy through awareness, assessment and analysis. The first part of this toolkit highlights the impact faith has on economies, particularly through demographic and market analysis.

As part of this toolkit, Brian Grim presented a new study by the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation, Changing religion, changing economies, to the Global Agenda Council on the Role of Faith at the annual summit in Abu Dhabi.

For a summary of the research, see How Religious will the world be in 2050?

The study has been covered in the media, including articles in Forbes, Christianity Today, Deseret News, Il Folgio, Acton Institute & the World Economic Forum