Globethics Presidency Handover
Following the conclusion of the Global Ethics Forum 2024, on 4 September, the presidency of Globethics was officially handed over from founder Christoph Stückelberger to Dietrich Werner.
During the ceremony, Prof. Dr Dr h.c. Stückelberger, founder of Globethics and president since 2016, presented Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Werner with a stole from Indonesia reflecting the global and intercultural nature of the organisation.
For Stückelberger, this was the third and last handover of responsibility. The first, in 2008 saw him take up the role of Executive Director, giving Ambassador Walter Fust the role of President. The second, in 2016, saw him retire as Executive Director, handing over this role to Prof Obiora Ike, and again become President of the organisation.
In his handover speech, Stückelberger shared his thanks to the thousands of people who have supported Globethics in manifold ways over the twenty years since its foundation.
He also spoke of the core values that continue to guide the organisation in its mission of ethical leadership for a more just, inclusive and sustainable world. Concluding his address, he called for Globethics to remain “a hopeful and joyful global community of people, who do not give up!”.
Dietrich Werner (Germany), most recently senior advisor at the international development agency Bread for the World, senior research fellow at Humboldt University, and Professor in Intercultural Theology, Ecumenism and Development Studies, was unanimously elected as the incoming President of Globethics at the meeting of the Board of Foundation in June 2024.
In Werner's speech, he emphasised the urgent need for global ethical leadership to address critical challenges like climate change, inequality, and political polarisation.
He outlined a vision for Globethics to promote institutionalized ethics, youth empowerment, and global cooperation in order to foster sustainable development and social cohesion: "The world – beyond any doubt – strongly needs ethical leadership in this moment of a global poly-crisis!".
During the ceremony, members of the international Board of Foundation were also welcomed on stage to celebrate the election of the two Vice Presidents - Divya Singh (South Africa), Chief Academic Officer and Senior Research Officer at Stadio Holdings’ Head Office, and Dicky Sofjan (Indonesia), Core Doctoral Faculty in the Indonesian Consortium for Religious Studies (ICRS), at the Graduate School of Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) - and the two new board members - Marie-Laure Salles (France), Director of the Geneva Graduate Institute, and André Schneider (Switzerland), CEO of Geneva Airport.
The gathering of the Globethics network, partners, and team for the Global Ethics Forum 2024 also provided an opportunity to celebrate the organisation's 20th Anniversary together.
Amongst other moments happening throughout the year, the celebrations in Geneva included the launch of a new publication by Christoph Stückelberger: Sharing Values Across Borders: My story with Globethics. Through a series of interviews, Stückelberger takes readers through his journey with the foundation, with stories, reflections, and philosophical insights.
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