DUBAI, March 11, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Young Presidents' Organization (YPO), the world's premier network of chief executives and business leaders, concluded its flagship event, YPO EDGE, in Dubai, where it hosted more than 2,400 senior business leaders from more than 90 countries.
Change agents and industry disruptors from different fields shared innovative ideas and business models at the 2016 YPO EDGE. From world leaders and humanitarians, including former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan and current Amnesty International Secretary General Salil Shetty, members heard stories of success and failure, high risk and great reward.
Other speakers, including Group President of Focus Brands Kat Cole, Founder and Group Chief Executive of The Abraaj Group Arif Naqvi, and Former President of Costa Rica and current President of Carbon War Room José Maria Figueres, inspired YPO leaders to deliver impact to the global community in the form of economic opportunity, sustainable environmental change and compassionate leadership – creating a deeper appreciation of empathy as a transformative skill.
EDGE dialogue focused on current global crises in a series of security sessions led by YPO members including Nancy Aossey, president and CEO of International Medical Corps, who discussed the human rights toll as well as the business implications incited by the current Syrian refugee crisis.
"The 2016 EDGE provided the ideal opportunity for YPO members to witness the power of visionary leadership. In a world of increasing uncertainty and social inequality, business leaders, working together with government and civil society, can spur economic growth and create opportunities." said Santiago Sanchez, 2015-2016 international chairman of YPO. "YPO members from diverse background and geographies left Dubai inspired and committed to the principals of idea exchange, inclusiveness and collaboration towards achieving a more prosperous and equitable future."
The conference also provided a platform to interact with scientists and inventors who dream of alternate worlds – including theoretical physicist Michio Kaku, co-founder of string field theory; Professor Angelo Luigi Vescovi, pioneering neural stem-cell researcher; André Borschberg, who is completing the first solar-powered flight around the world; and Jim Kwik, who bounced back from his own brain injury to become an expert on increasing brain power.
"YPO EDGE is the world's largest gathering of chief executives. Through dynamic lifelong learning and idea exchange, the EDGE encourages participants to push their boundaries, challenge their way of thinking and stretch their imaginations," said Scott Mordell, chief executive officer of YPO.
Past EDGE events have been held in Melbourne, Los Angeles, Istanbul, Singapore, Barcelona, Toronto, Cape Town, Sydney and other major cities and have featured prominent leaders including Apple Co-founder Steve Wozniak, Nobel Prize Laureate and President of the National League for Democracy in Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi, King Abdullah II and Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of Jordan, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Virgin Group Founder Sir Richard Branson. The 2017 event is slated for Vancouver.
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About YPO
YPO (Young Presidents' Organization) is a not-for-profit, global network of young chief executives connected through the shared mission of becoming Better Leaders Through Lifelong Learning and Idea ExchangeTM. Founded in 1950, YPO today provides 23,000 peers and their families in more than 130 countries with access to unique experiences, extraordinary educational resources, access to alliances with leading institutions, and participation in specialised networks to support their business, community and personal leadership. Altogether, YPO member-run companies employ more than 15 million people around the world and generate US$6 trillion in annual revenues. For more information, visit www.ypo.org.