As the youngest continent with a rapidly urbanizing population, Africa is leapfrogging traditional infrastructure and deepening regional integration through initiatives such as the Lobito Corridor and the African Continental Free Trade Area. Its reserves of critical minerals are taking on new strategic significance, positioning the continent as an essential partner in global supply chains and industrial growth.
However, as AI and shifting geoeconomics redefine competitiveness, can Africa fully participate or risks being sidelined?
An unpredictable operating environment is weighting on global growth and traditional engines such as trade are expected to expand by just 0.9% in 2025. With debt-to-GDP reaching a record 95%, there is increasingly limited space for leaders to make drastic policy and operational changes. At the same time, AI is emerging as a key driver of growth in some economies, improving productivity, enabling new business models and accelerating innovation across industries.
What will be the new sources of growth and how can we ensure that the benefits are shared broadly?
Digital embassies offer an emerging model that allows nations to extend sovereign digital infrastructure beyond their borders while maintaining control over data, compute and governance. However, establishing such arrangements requires political alignment, legal clarity and robust technical and operational safeguards.
The Digital Embassy Framework, spearheaded by the World Economic Forum and co-developed with stakeholders, will provide a shared baseline for designing, governing and operating trusted digital embassies worldwide.
Nature-based solutions have moved from aspiration to necessity as climate shocks and biodiversity loss intensify. Every $1 invested in restoring degraded land can generate an estimated $7-$30 in economic benefits, making the case for scaling natural infrastructure in land and ocean ecosystems both urgent and compelling.
As economies tighten and priorities compete, what does it mean to seek a meaningful return on nature?
Source: US National Institute of Justice (video statements)
Historically, the predominant means of assigning statistical weight to many DNA mixtures in the U.S. has been the combined probability of inclusion, or CPI. Accordingly, many forensic DNA analysts, as well as attorneys and judges, are well-versed in the CPI as a match probability. In the fifth module of this workshop series devoted to probabilistic genotyping, the presenters will help DNA analysts and legal professionals understand degrees of statistical weight and properly communicate likelihood ratios and their meaning. The SWGDAM recommendations for reporting likelihood ratios will be discussed, along with an explanation of the empirical basis for its verbal scale that may be used in reports and testimony along with the likelihood ratio. Participants’ ears will also be tuned to lines of questioning that could lead to a fallacious statement about the statistic.
This webinar is part 5 of of the Probabilistic Genotyping Of Evidentiary DNA Typing Results Webinar Series and was presented by the NIJ Forensic Technology Center of Excellence on June 8, 2019.
(Opinions or points of view expressed represent the speaker and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. Any product or manufacturer discussed is presented for informational purposes only and do not constitute product approval or endorsement by the U.S. Department of Justice.)
Forced displacement has reached unprecedented levels, with more than 122 million people affected worldwide as of mid-2025. As natural disasters and geopolitical pressures intensify this trend, the growing scale and complexity of forced displacement underscores the need for new financial and operational approaches.
How can the way we approach this challenge be changed to build more effective systems that respect human lives?
What is the power of radical stillness when living in a fast-paced, increasingly hyperconnected world?
In this session, the works of renowned conceptual and performance artist Marina Abramović are explored through a lens of intentional slowness, examining what it can teach us about empathy, culture and the future of human connection.
Each year, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship recognizes and supports the world’s leading social innovators for their collective efforts in creating a just, equitable and sustainable world for all.
Join us for the 2026 Schwab Foundation Social Innovation Awards ceremony to celebrate this year’s outstanding changemakers.
