Why 2 characters matter on Twitter: @davos to @wef

The World Economic Forum is swapping Twitter handles. This is not an earth-shattering event in the busy world of social media. But there is method in our madness. We are reclaiming two characters for yet longer report titles.

OK, that’s not the real reason for the change.

Back when we started our Twitter account in April 2007, the @wef handle was taken. Instead we used @davos, the location of the meeting for which we were best known. That account now has more than 2.1 million followers. We have since managed to take the @wef handle for live tweeting, and 180,000 people follow us there.

But as important an annual milestone as Davos remains, it is just a small part of what we do, and how we do it. We think the world’s problems are too complex for any one organization, government, corporation or individual to address in one place at one time.

Our role @wef is to make a difference year round by connecting leaders from business, government and civil society to improve the state of the world. We work to ensure that important issues stay on the agenda, and we do it as an impartial, independent, international institution.

We connect communities of leaders around key global issues not just once a year, but 24/7 through high-level meetings and digital networks. We support those communities with rigorous research (you can see some of it on Pinterest).

We’ve helped leaders find common ground where there was conflict. We give critics a place to contribute. And we provide a safe space for sensitive discussions. We’ve helped move issues such as climate change, business responsibility, gender equity, and inequality up the global agenda.

The communities we create are free to define their own challenges, solutions and actions, and they do so thanks to the funding and engagement of our 1,000 members and partners.

Our 500-plus people, from 50-plus countries, are expert, focused and relentless in identifying places where the Forum can make a difference.

And in nearly half a century, we’ve seen how entrepreneurship in the global public interest can meet the challenge of improving the state of the world. That challenge keeps getting bigger, and we’ll keep trying to rise to the challenge of meeting it.

So for us, @wef means much more than what we do @davos (though it will live on as our live tweet account). You don’t need to change any settings, but we appreciate your continuing to follow us, thank you for helping us grapple with the issues, and let’s use those two characters wisely!

Author: Adrian Monck is managing director of the Public Engagement team at the World Economic Forum.

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