Academy Award Winner Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy is all set to Co-Chair the 47th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting scheduled to take place on 17 – 20 January 2017 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, under the theme “Responsive and Responsible Leadership”. The meeting will convene more than 2,500 participants from nearly 100 countries to take part in over 300 sessions. A recipient of the World Economic Forum ‘Crystal Award’ and part of the Young Global Leaders community, Sharmeen is the first artist ever to Co-Chair to prestigious forum’s annual meeting.
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Established since 1971, The World Economic Forum is committed to improving the state of the world. The World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos-Klosters remains the foremost creative force for engaging the world’s top leaders in collaborative activities to shape the global, regional and industry agendas at the beginning of each year.
On being the first artist and Pakistani to Co-Chair, Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy has said; “It is a great honour to be the first artist ever to be given the opportunity to co-chair the prestigious World Economic Forum at Davos in 2017. I have always believed that the true mark of any thriving society is the amount of investment made in its cultural and artistic infrastructure. There is, now, an increasing recognition of the fact that business and economics must go hand-in-hand with culture and arts for society to move forward and it is with great pride that I will be representing both the art community and my country, Pakistan!”
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“Our world continues to become increasingly interdependent, even as political events signal a desire for isolation and a retreat from globalization. To address both of these profound forces, we must strive for better global governance systems that provide everyone with a voice,” said Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum.
Having worked with refugees and marginalized communities from Saudi Arabia to Syria and from Timor Leste to the Philippines by bringing their voices to the forefront, Sharmeen has often helped them bring about a critical change in their community. She has made various multi award winning films in over 10 countries around the world. Her films include Saving Face, Transgenders: Pakistan’s Open Secret and Pakistan’s Taliban Generation. Her work has aired on channels spanning 4 continents including, HBO, CNN, PBS, Channel 4, CBC, Arte, SBS and the Discovery channel. In 2012, Time Magazine included Sharmeen in their annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. In 2013, the Canadian government awarded Sharmeen a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for her work in the field of documentary films and the World Economic Forum honored her with a Crystal Award at their annual summit in Davos. She has also been awarded the Hilal-e-Imtiaz by the government of Pakistan – the country’s second highest civilian honor.
