Knowledge Summit To Kick Off First Day Focused On Major Trends

Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the 7^th edition of the Knowledge Summit will begin the sessions on Monday (March 14) focusing on major trends which include knowledge, food security, the impact of pandemics on climate, the future of education, the consolidation of innovation, Web 3.0, the role of media during crises, and entrepreneurship.

Themed ‘Knowledge: Protecting Humanity and the Planet in the Pandemic’, the summit is being organized by the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation (MBRF) in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). There will be six sessions and a training workshop which will take place in the Main Hall, while five other sessions and a training workshop will be taking place simultaneously at the ‘Knowledge Space’ located in the Parallel Hall.

His Excellency Jamal Bin Huwaireb, CEO of MBRF will mark the opening ceremony which will be held at the Main Hall, followed by a speech from UNDP.

The first session titled,‘Web Education 3.0 – The Metaversity’,will discuss the rapid growth in virtual learning platforms and the future of education and will further explore the nature of interactivity and collaboration between the physical and digital world.The second session will focus on ‘The Role & Impact of Media During Crisis: COVID-19’ to better understand its impacts on awareness and education, and the extent to which it affects people amidst crises considering the rise on behavioral concerns such as fear, anxiety, and tension, due to proliferation of misinformation dubbed as ‘info-demic’.

The third session on ‘Young Entrepreneurship’ will drive the conversation on the future directions of entrepreneurship for young people and its role in economic growth, considering that entrepreneurship is one of the key drivers in economic development.

This will be followed by ‘Food Security: Between Sustainable Supply Chains and Self-Sufficiency’ where participants will examine how Covid–19 has impacted the global economy in the past two years and the role of the knowledge industry in developing economic systems that are resilient and adaptable to future crises. The session will highlight the sustainable supply chain solutions that can help address food security and meet current needs, while also conserving the resources for the next generations.

A session on how ‘Knowledge Drives the Future’will follow to discuss the role and importance of knowledge in developing a more sustainable and robust economy for countries, societies, and the people.

The next session will be about ‘Pandemics and Their Impact on Climate: A Double-Edged Sword’ where participants will examine experiences in mitigating climate change and discuss the impact of pandemics on climate. This talk aims to shed light on global climate practices in regard to the Paris Agreement. It will tackle the economic slowdown caused by the pandemic during the past years and how these events have positively impacted the environment and climate due to the abrupt reduction on nitrogen and carbon dioxide emissions. It will also highlight the negative environmental impacts caused by the increase in medical waste and poor recycling practices.

For the sessions which will be held under the ‘Knowledge Space’ banner, the first session will be focused on ‘Scaling up Resilience in Times of Uncertainty’. It will feature ways on how to enhance resilience and adaptation to future challenges and changes, the shift from national to regional and global ecosystems based on resilience and adaptability, and the need to rethink rigid strategies demanding flexibility.

It will be followed by a session on ‘ANew Model for Education’, which will examine the importance of evaluation in education and data analysis, readiness for institutions and learners, and how to make e-learning more interactive. For the third session, the talk will go in-depth on the theme, ‘Disseminating Knowledge in Non-Traditional Ways: The Researcher’s Experience’anddiscuss the power of the media to influence based on the experiences of the TV program The Researcher.

The fourth session ‘Fostering Collaboration and Innovation Mechanisms to Manage Risks’will shed light on how participants can tackle cooperation bottlenecks, enable and promote transformative and strategic innovation, establish a multi-stakeholder network, and manage innovation risks.

The fifth and last session for the day on ‘Promoting Science and Policy Dialogues: Science–Policy Interfaces’ will examine the institutionalization of science-policy–society alliances, the relationship between these two concepts and how integrating science in policy decisions can lead towards an inclusive transformation and sustainability.

At the end of the first day, two separate workshops titled ‘Data for Development’ will be held in both the main and parallel halls.

Knowledge Summit 2022 will take place on March 14 and 15 at Expo 2020 Dubai, and from March 16 to 18 via virtual sessions. It is set to witness the participation of a wide range of experts, leaders, and government officials from around the world. This event aims to highlight the role of knowledge in meeting global challenges and study the alternatives and opportunities that can help protect humanity. This is part of MBRF’s objectives aimed at promoting and empowering knowledge in the societies in the region and the world and help find faster and more accurate solutions to health, environmental, economic, and social challenges and help provide a better future and a clear path to sustainable development.