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2015 is a year of several landmark anniversaries of historic international events that pursued peace, security, stability and fairness in international affairs:

• 800^th Magna Carta
• 200^th Congress of Vienna
• 70^th Ratification of United Nations Charter and First Session
• 60^th Ending of the Allied administration of Austria
• 40^th Helsinki Principles and CSCE/OSCE
• 20^th Dayton Accords on Bosnia Herzegovina
• 10^th Responsibility to Protect

These anniversaries inspired the Chumir Foundation to create an event that will examine current risks, conflicts, and challenges for global governance with a focus on practical initiatives for a more peaceful and prosperous world.  Here’s how.

The Chumir Foundation for Ethics in Leadership, in collaboration with a number of leading policy organizations will, over the course of 12-16 months, addressing major issues affecting global stability by:

• Hosting a series of pre-Congress workshops of specialists from around the world that will produce policy papers to inform the main discussion at the Congress of Vienna
• Hosting the “Congress of Vienna 2015” in that city from October 22 to 25, 2015
• Preparing a report on the recommendations from the Congress of Vienna to be presented at a public session at the United Nations in New York in February, 2016.

The Congress of Vienna brought together 40 leading global thinkers, former government and international institution practitioners and experienced business-people who were challenged to create relevant and practical solutions to global problems.

Sessions involved:

• Expert briefings on the state of knowledge and thought
• Focused keynote statements
• Dialogue among the delegates led by a moderator
• Question and answer period

Congress of Vienna 2015 Program

Thursday, October 22^nd 

Opening of the Congress

Keynote Address: Romano Prodi

Friday, October 23^rd

MANAGEMENT OF RELATIONS AMONG THE MAJOR GLOBAL STATES

This discussion explored the prospects for contemporary shared interests among the major world powers (U.S, EU, Russia, China, Japan, and India) so as to avoid tensions resembling a new Cold War; and to identify principles and rules to which these powers should be urged to agree:

• Might establish a stable economic, political and security architecture among states, particularly in the two major world theaters of priority concern, Europe and Asia
• Might build a relationship among these countries that, over time, could optimize the prospect of achieving similar results in areas of local and regional tensions and conflicts and;
• Create conditions that raise the bar from a goal of ‘stability’ to a standard of ‘fairness’ in the world order, helping to avoid extremism and polarization.

Saturday, October 24^th

MAJOR DESTABILIZING ISSUES

The Congress of Vienna, and its precursor meetings also considered the best current information and ideas on two priority issues currently increasing the risks of  impacting global instability:

POPULATION MIGRATION AND THE CHALLENGES OF SOCIAL INTEGRATION

Particularly in the case of forced migration, essential humanitarian assistance appears to give inadequate attention to the ultimately required social integration of displaced people, if a stable and fair solution to this growing problem is to be realized; and

TECHNOLOGY, ECONOMIC GROWTH AND DISTRIBUTION PART I:

There is some evidence to suggest that innovation and technology are intensifying an unevenness in the distribution of the increased productivity and output generated.  We seek to address the failure of the global economy to produce a promised greater leveling of benefits from economic development.

Sunday, October 25^th

TECHNOLOGY, ECONOMIC GROWTH AND DISTRIBUTION PART II

INSTITUTIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF RULES PROPOSED BY THE CONGRESS OF VIENNA

The Congress of Vienna considered the mechanisms of governance that could support the implementation of proposed principles and rules among the leading countries by effectively motivating the reform of new international institutions, or the creation of new ones, to make these proposals work in today’s world.

Finding answers to these questions is an ambitious goal, especially as populations in many, or most, countries are becoming noticeably less trusting of governments and leaders. Add to this the effects of new technologies, a shifting media landscape, and a rise in the influence of non-governmental actors and we are challenged with proposing new ideas not just to leaders, but to global populations. Solutions require contemporary dialogue among representatives of contending interests and views to find shared interests. And it calls for the engagement of the best thinkers, political and policy and diplomatic practitioners, as well as non-governmental actors of increasing influence.”

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