Under the theme of “HR Solutions for the Next Generation,” the 2007 Global Human Resources Forum brought together over 150 global leaders from 35 countries into a unique setting to exchange accumulated experiences, share best practices, and search for innovative HRD solutions that will ultimately lead to the co-prosperity and sustainable development of the whole world.Organized on October 23~25 by the Government of Korea, in collaboration with the Korea Economic Daily and the Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education & Training, the 2nd annual Global HR Forum attracted a huge crowd of participants numbering over 4,000, who were eager to learn from the insights and expertise of the 150 speakers who included top business CEOs, government officials, academics and international organization representatives. Oscar Arias Sanchez, President of the Republic of Costa Rica and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, opened the grand meeting with a video message in which he stressed the importance of bridging social polarization through investment in education and HRD. Former U.S. President Bill Clinton also delivered his congratulations for the gathering in a video-taped speech, touching on the need to work together in addressing common challenges amid an increasingly mutually dependent environment.Keynote speakers included Richard C. Holbrooke, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Ben Verwaayen, CEO of British Telecom, Jerome C. Glenn, Director of the Millennium Project at the World Federation of United National Association, and Francis Fukuyama, Professor of Johns Hopkins University.Twenty-three active sessions followed in four separate tracks, allowing for expert debate from the perspectives of higher education, businesses, government and international cooperation, respectively. Alongside, in the mornings of October 24 and 25, three separate sessions opened for the opinion sharing of corporate CEOs, HR management officers and financial officers. At the same time, 12 one-hour special debate programs were organized for domestic and foreign speakers to share dialogue on focused agendas including university restructuring, urban environment for global talents, the inter-Korean summit and peace building in Northeast Asia, improving MBA programs, visions for future education, and key talent development in the field of science and engineering. Of the four main tracks, business sector discussions were led by Chairman Yoshiaki Shin of Mitsui Sumimoto Insurance Co., Ltd., CEO Chow Kok Fong of Changi Airports International Singapore, and top HR managers from well-known multinational enterprises including IBM, Goldman Sachs, BMW and HSBC.In the academic track, Chancellor Mark Wrighton of Washington University in St. Louis, Professor Robert Barrow of Harvard University, and Harry C. Katz, Dean of the ILR School at Cornell University, were among the long list of prestigious speakers who talked about ways to bring innovation to higher education.From the government circle, a large number of high officials including H.E. Abd Dhiyab Al Ajili, Iraqi Minister of Higher Education, H.E. Mohamed Yousif Abdallah, Sudanese Minister of Culture, Youth & Sports, and H.E. Kircho Atanasov, Bulgarian Deputy Minister of Education and Science, sought ways to deepen mutual understanding and build trust among nation states through the exchange of human resources. Leading figures from international organizations also provided depth and diversity to the Forum, including Director Barbara Ischinger of the OECD Directorate of Education, Tertiary Education Coordinator Jamil Salmi of the World Bank, and Director General Al Monji Bousnina of the Arab League Educational Cultural and Scientific Organization(ALESCO). In addition, two special sessions were newly organized this year under the fourth track, under an aim to find viable solutions for regional, religious and social conflicts across the globe. In the afternoon of
