Hope Global Forums meet in Atlanta

The 2018 Hope Global Forums Annual Meeting ended yesterday at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis. It was sponsored by Operation Hope, Inc. and organized by CEO John Hope Bryant. (http://hopeglobalforums.org/2018-annual-meeting/)

"This universal message of hope - that humankind for the first time has the technology and resources to eradicate poverty and global suffering - continues to resonate today."  ---Operation Hope, Inc.

When I told one attendee, Gina West who works for Fannie Mae, that I didn't know about the event until it was over, she said, "You wouldn't have known about it unless you were in the financial community."

There was no mention of it in the AJC although it was supposedly "covered by 100 media outlets from around the world." I did find this article posted after the fact:

http://www.mdjonline.com/neighbor_newspapers/northside_sandy_springs/news/brokaw-progress-on-race-still-needed-on-global-scale/article_baa65c26-32e1-11e8-afe2-873628bf43e3.html

According the organization's website, "Last year, the corporate, financial, governmental, technology, academic, nonprofit, startup, diplomatic, philanthropic, media and faith-based sectors were all represented. Over 3,200 thought leaders and influencers representing over 25 countries attended."

The forum brands itself as being "the largest and most prestigious gathering in the world on behalf of empowering the poor." How is that done??? What representatives from "poor" organizations were invited, and what poor people were invited?

 

It's like the meeting in Europe when all the monarchs from the European countries decided how to divide up or manage Africa, and no Africans were in attendance. ---Tomi Johnson

According to their website (http://hopeglobalforums.org/about/), "The HOPE Global Forums are a community of events that serve as a call to action: to re-imagine the global economy so the benefits and opportunities of free enterprise can be extended to everyone."

The forum's theme was “Navigating a New World Order” and challenged "participants to outline a vision for a new, global economy – where the poor, underserved and dislocated middle class are viewed as untapped assets for entrepreneurship, job creation and economic growth." Six key tracks examined were The Future of Work, Social Mobility, Financial Inclusion, Media and Culture, Technology and Innovation and Public Policy. 

 

I will post more on this event when information is available.

This video is a mind opener: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSnENL0huA8

FYI: http://hopeglobalforums.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Agenda-DescriptionPDF.pdf