Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir – Reflection
"We rarely use the words happiness and love in politics... but why are we in politics? What do we want to achieve in politics if not love and happiness."
Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir
fr. Foreign Minister of Iceland
Yves Daccord – Reflection
"We have to be curious. It opens our hearts to others. Anger doesn't allow us to be curious. Curiosity helps us establish a common language rather than an attitude where we don't want to know."
Yves Daccord
Executive Chairman Edgelands Institute @ Harvard, former CEO of the International Red Cross
Sister Jayanti – Reflection
"Spirituality says that everything begins inside, and then it begins to manifest outside…Learning to love myself is not a sign of ego, but a sign of spiritual development. And when I can begin to love myself, I can start loving others unconditionally also."
Sister Jayanti
Additional Administrative Head and European Director, Brahma Kumaris
Peggy Dulany – Reflection
"How does love support our differences? Building trust through open listening. I do need to be authentic to what I believe, but also be able to listen deeply to where others are coming from. It is critical (when our views are challenged) to be able to step back and listen and not fall into reaction. To be able to meet as human beings, to develop a sense of appreciation for the other person and then build on that.”
Peggy Dulany
Founder and Chair, Synergos
John, Lord Alderdice – Reflection
"A scientific way of thinking can help me understand how the world is made up and what has happened in life, but it cannot tell me how I ought to relate with my fellows."
John, Lord Alderdice
House of Lords, UK
Gabriela Michetti – Reflection
"We must be aware when we do our work and carry out the responsibilities that it is very important to take care of ourselves. You may nourish your soul, but if you do not look after your body it will create a problem. Lack of well-being will have an impact on others. Looking after the self is fundamental.”
Gabriela Michetti
Former Vice President of Argentina, President, Ser Consultancy
Madeleine von Holzen – Reflection
"I was very impressed with what Gabriela was saying. I think it is a big issue... When working with high ambition and wanting to provide quality, one can end up working a lot and get people to work a lot. I think it is a big discussion."
Madeleine von Holzen
Chief editor, 'Le Temps'; Editorial director, 'Heidi.news'
The Most Revd Dr Thabo C. Makgoba – Reflection
"Indeed, the world needs to hear about well-being and how we can participate, through our love, to create that well-being."
The Most Revd Dr Thabo C. Makgoba
the Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town
Kamlesh Patel – Reflection
“We are not fully aware of what we are not doing. We are not fully aware of the consequences of not playing our part. When this awareness comes, then the world will change.”
Kamlesh Patel
Founder, Heartfulness
Prof Tania Singer – Reflection
"Being a social neuroscientist and psychologist also working cross-disciplinary together with economists, educators, politicians and health-care providers, I am repeatedly astonished by the fact that in all these large-scale systems we have created, LOVE is somehow a taboo. We do not do research and do not like to speak about it publicly neither. However, it is the basis for humanity."
Prof Tania Singer
scientific head of the Max Planck Social Neuroscience Research Group
Mohammed Mohammed – Reflection
"Our world needs love more than anything else. Love that is transcendent, love that is inclusive, love that is accompanied by forgiveness, love that is unconditional."
Mohammed Mohammed
Senior Programme Officer, the Fetzer Institute
Myrian Castello – Reflection
"Living together as one and spreading and sharing love, and knowing that...the world is on fire, but we still have time, and I have a lot of hope. And I want to call you all to do that, to leave no one behind, to spread love and dreams and do our best so we can prevail."
Myrian Castello
Co-Founder, Dream Factory and Right to Dream Movement
Ásmundur Einar Daðason – Reflection
"When you involve young people, you don't lose power, you will make things better."
Ásmundur Einar Daðason
Minister of Social Affairs and Children, Iceland
Karam Jaber – Reflection
"Well-being all comes from the mind and the heart. When a person has a calm mind they live peacefully... To be kindhearted, not give with the expectation to get something back, not being sentimental, but even just a sincere smile can draw a smile on your face... To be kind, good and peaceful. ."
Karam Jaber
Secondary School student, Lebanon
Amin Khosravi – Reflection
"A fundamental part of what we do is based around empathy…the first step is really just listening, listening to other people and be prepared to be changed by those experiences."
Amin Khosravi
Urbanist, Co-founder urbz Geneva
Ines Sanguinetti – Reflection
"When I established “Crear vale la pena”, I realized that we were trying to make room to work on vulnerability, a vulnerability we tend to see in the less favoured social classes, but which is a kind of vulnerability that is also present in our societies at large."
Ines Sanguinetti
Co-founder and President, Fundación Crear Vale la Pena
Ella Gregory – Reflection
"Moving towards a loving world requires each of us to embody love, peace and compassion. This can be encouraged by leaders who embody these values and lead by example, creating effective action and building a kinder world. Leadership and governance can be beautiful things, inspiring all to live fully and create a socially and environmentally just world."
Ella Gregory
High School Graduate, UK
Prof Ursula King – Reflection
"We need to learn to love - to expand love into developing energies we have within us which we can draw from and share with each other… we have to unite and relate to each other to develop our humanity in much fuller ways.”
Prof Ursula King
Professor of Theology and Religious Studies
Dr Thomas Bruhn – Reflection
"I empathize with leaders who often experience substantial pressures and dependencies in their daily responsibilities and hope that the Forum can strengthen all participants in their capacity to live and lead in accordance with their aspirations."
Dr Thomas Bruhn
Research Group Leader, Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies (IASS)
Dr Kelly James Clark – Reflection
"Almost all love is local. Reach out to others, bring well-being to our neighbours, our communities."
Dr Kelly James Clark
Professor of Philosophy at Ibn Haldun University, Istanbul
Martin Frick – Reflection
”Other people can’t change the systems for you - you need to participate - we all have personal responsibility because we are all part of the systems.”
Martin Frick
Deputy to the Special Envoy for the UN Food Systems Summit 2021
Óttarr Proppé – Reflection
”It is important to find the balance of listening to the public and listening to the experts.”
Óttarr Proppé
fr Minister of Health, Iceland; musician, actor and bookseller
Zhang Lanying – Reflection
”If everyone cultivates themselves we can change the systems from a spiritual level - when you nurture the invisible you can change the visible.”
Zhang Lanying
Executive Deputy Dean of the Institute of Rural Reconstruction of China, Southwest University, Chongqing
Nicole Schwab – Reflection
”Our rhythms are so fast and demanding. They are disconnected with the rhythm of nature.”
Nicole Schwab
Co-Director, Nature-based Solutions, World Economic Forum
Ranara Alhoundova – Reflection
"Music creates a bridge for people to move out of thinking and into Presence. In my experience, the more powerful communication and connection with the essence of each person happen through the live improvisation. I suppose this is because an improvisation is music created in the present moment."
Ranara Alhoundova
Pianist and composer
Ragnheiður Gröndal – Reflection
"I strongly believe that well-being starts inside. And we must change on the inside to change the outside."
Ragnheiður Gröndal
Singer and Composer
Dr Rama Mani – Reflection
”The paramount purpose of leadership and governance is to secure the well being of all life. The time has come for the power of love to replace the love of power.”
Dr Rama Mani
Founder of Theatre of Transformation Academy, Co-founder Home for Humanity
Jean-François Clervoy – Reflection
"The Earth does not need to be saved. She just needs to be loved."
Jean-François Clervoy
CNES and ESA astronaut
Dr Vinya Ariyaratne – Reflection
"Inner transformation is fundamentally important to us as leaders who is dedicated to creating outer transformation in our societies- if we are to overcome the unprecedented challenges we face in the world today we need to create a world where we share and care for each other … let’s create outer peace by creating peace within ourselves."
Dr Vinya Ariyaratne
President of Sarvodaya, the largest Community Development organisation in Sri Lanka
H.E. Haifa Najjar – Reflection
"We need to go beyond the academic understanding of leadership - leadership is about giving, generosity, love and about sharing a part of yourself."
H.E. Haifa Najjar
Senator in the Jordanian Parliament, Superintendent of Ahliya and Mutran International Schools
Father Dr Anselm Adodo – Reflection
"Leadership is self-knowledge. A true leader leads with humility, love and selflessness… we need to revive the spirit of co-operation. In Africa, we say that one rich man in a village is a poor man… but when he shares his wealth with everybody, he is a wealthy man … because he does not need to build high walls to protect himself out of fear"
Father Dr Anselm Adodo
Founder of Pax Herbals, initiator of Pan-African Action Research Network for African Indigenous Knowledge in Nigeria
Thais Corral – Reflection
"It is now the time to be the best version of who we can be. We already know it, but we have to re-learn what it means to love and express it."
Thais Corral
Founder of Sinal do Vale
Pops Mohamed – Reflection
”Love one another, touch someone’s hand, head or shoulder and just tell him that you love him.”
Pops Mohamed
South African multi-instrumentalist, jazz musician and producer
Katie Weintraub – Reflection
"We need to put humanity at the core of leadership - we can have all the technical solutions in the world, but if we don’t have the personal evolution in the centre of our leadership we cannot go forward… love must be in the centre."
Katie Weintraub
Partnerships co-ordinator, Sinal do Vale
Prof Kristín Vala Ragnarsdóttir – Reflection
"Love can be cultivated through inner work, and it will always come back to you. People around you will respond. If you make your kindness visible, that builds trust. Building trust leads to love and compassion, and listening is a very important way to build trust."
Prof Kristín Vala Ragnarsdóttir
Professor of Sustainability Science University of Iceland
Karen Björk Eyþórsdóttir – Reflection
"The only thing you have power over is yourself. So, if you dislike something, like greed, judgement or prejudice in the world, then it is your responsibility to adopt something different. To adopt the values you would like to see more of in the world."
Karen Björk Eyþórsdóttir
Programme Director of Sustainability, City of Reyjavík
David Cadman – Reflection
"If we take love seriously … our whole being is transformed, and our attention is centred on our ways in which we relate lovingly to each other, to the earth and to the cosmos.”
Prof David Cadman
Quaker Writer, Professor of Practice at the University of Wales Trinity St. David
Anne Baring – Reflection
“Love is the pulse of the cosmos and the pulse of our own deepest nature. We are all connected to each other, to the earth and the cosmos through our participation in a miraculous way of life.”
Anne Baring
Jungian Analyst, Historian and Author
Dr Miriam Subirana – Reflection
”Let us explore, share and co-create practices that enable us to develop as creative, autonomous, emotionally and spiritually mature people, to become leaders that embrace in the joy of caring.”
Dr Miriam Subirana
Meditation teacher, Author and Professor at Ramon Llull-Blanquerna University
Michael West – Reflection
”To contribute to a transformed world requires we all commit to nurturing loving environments, compassionate cultures and leadership, and cultivating an experienced sense of our interconnection with all.”
Michael West CBE
Senior Fellow at The King’s Fund, London and Professor at Lancaster University
Richard Dunne – Reflection
”Now more than ever, we need to learn to create a loving world, a world in harmony, where well-being for all is our goal, and we seek to heal ourselves and our world in the process.”
Richard Dunne
Founder and Director of Education at The Harmony Project
Hester O Connor – Reflection
”As we emerge from the Global pandemic, this is a crucial time for leaders to embrace the importance of what it means to have the courage to soften and to face the changes we need to make in order to build a more humane and compassionate world for ourselves, for colleagues and for our communities. It is a time to listen and live from within the beauty of our own hearts.”
Hester O Connor
Clinical Psychologist, Heartfulness Meditation Trainer
Judith Nelson – Reflection
”The ability to lead, love, and help others, starts within each of us. Just as we should put on our own oxygen mask before helping others, a good leader needs the skills, time, and space to look after themselves and plan for a better world and future.”
Judith Nelson
Physiotherapist, Journalist and Heartfulness Meditation Trainer
Cornelis (Cees) J. Hoogendijk – Reflection
”We spend a major part of our time in some organisation, which serves consciously or unconsciously as an influencing context. The more constructive, appreciation, connectedness and love we experience in our work, the more we will spread it in our lives, families and networks.”
Cornelis (Cees) J. Hoogendijk
Co-creator of Learning Organizations - OrgPanoptics & AI Academy
Four Arrows, aka Dr Don Trent Jacobs – Reflection
”Loving the world must begin with loving all life forms fearlessly.”
Four Arrows, aka Dr Don Trent Jacobs
College professor, writer and activist for Native American rights
Kelly Burks – Reflection
”Love, compassion and humanist consideration - caring for others - from local community leaders all the way up to the leadership of nations is a key element in moving towards a Loving World. We all have to take responsibility and work together to change our world.”
Kelly Burks
Explorer, poet, writer, photographer, designer, consultant, young offender counsellor and film-maker
Vanitha Chandrasegaram – Reflection
”The Covid pandemic has given many of us time to go within and begin the journey of self-love and self- reflection, which enables us to live more consciously and be more loving towards others and Earth.”
Vanitha Chandrasegaram
Pioneer Dramatherapist in Malaysia
Alan Gegenchatz – Reflection
”I fully agree that we need more well being and that love is the force for fixing it.”
Alan Gegenchatz
Owner and founder, Outobox AG Ltd
Martin Doblmeier – Reflection
”The common theme that unites us all today is an understanding that the world cannot continue on its present course. What is needed is bold, enlightened and selfless leadership with the courage to forge a new path in both the social and political spheres. But the great obstacle today is the painful erosion of trust in leadership and governance.”
Martin Doblmeier
Founder and President of Journey Films
Eric Bednarski – Reflection
"Through my film work over the years, I have tried to tell inspiring stories of people who have made difference, and who have had a lasting transformation in the world."
Eric Bednarski
Film director, writer and producer
Lindsay Seavert & Ben Garvin – Reflection
”As directors of the Love Them First, a documentary featuring a Minneapolis principal fighting for students in the city’s longest-standing ‘failing’ school, we strongly felt the title of the film should reflect the force behind the school’s triumphant turnaround. It all starts with love. Principal Mauri Friestleben once told us, “If you are in this work, you are in it to change the world.” The story has now stretched from Minnesota, across the United States, and around the world to countries like Iceland, farther than we could ever measure as each child is transformed by a school that loved them, just as they are.”