Get Herald RSSPresident Ruth Simmons has joined 2,500 other world leaders in business, government and education at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week.
The meeting - whose theme, "Shaping the Post-Crisis World," suggests the ominous background to the week's discussions - began Wednesday and will continue through Sunday.
Simmons moderated a discussion on nonprofits at the forum Thursday. The debate "focused on identifying new partnerships, involving youth, reaffirming our missions and setting sound priorities," she wrote in an e-mail to The Herald.
Though Davos gives Simmons the opportunity to rub elbows with prominent Brown alums, including potential donors, and other international supporters, Simmons wrote that she "can't promise a big gift."
At last year's meeting, Simmons announced a $5.75 million gift from Israeli businessman Idan Ofer P'12 that funds a scholarship for Brown students from sub-Saharan Africa.
Though the forum is dominated by political and business leaders - like Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and philanthropist Bill Gates - Simmons wrote that the forum also allows leaders of universities around the world to discuss the economic crisis. She has met with Indian and African educators and will make a presentation today on improving universities in sub-Saharan Africa, she wrote.
