Our mission

Because the current times are complex, because the future has become more difficult to anticipate, and because our decoding grids and navigation instruments require constant upgrading, the mindset of René Descartes stands out as one of the most powerful tools we can use to be future ready. To do this, we need to combine two core qualities, namely (1) offer innovative ways to look at tomorrow while building on proven facts and measurable realities, and (2) doing so by constantly challenging established ways of describing the world, and offering new bridges between various areas of thoughts, culture and ways to see the world.

Our thirty years of experience in dealing with the highest levels of government and business management, and our reputation in building global indices and resourceful benchmarks in future-critical areas such as technology, innovation and talent is our strongest asset to help private and public organizations to be more future-ready.

About us

Intellectually and practically, Descartes had no borders.

René Descartes is one of the leading intellectual figures of modern times. He cannot be ‘slotted’ easily : was he a philosopher ? a mathematician ? a scientist ? Clearly, he was all of those, making headways in each of these areas. But he was much more than the addition of the three, as he built bridges between intellectual domains that had been seen as separate until Descartes came around and changed forever our vision of the world.This being said, René Descartes was not just an intellectual. He was a man of action : as a soldier, he traveled much of Europe, and also took part in reshaping his times’ geopolitics.

He was not afraid of being different, and thinking differently.

Descartes gave us a brand new way to consider, measure and navigate space (with one of his best-known creation, i.e. cartesian coordinates), but also time and logics. He offered a radically new way to look at reality : fact-based, experience-proofed and open to innovation and creativity. Those remain the fundamental roots of cartesianism.

Our most recent publications

BOOKS

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Lanvin, B. (2024), The Key to Cities’ Competitiveness: Future Readiness, in Eurasianomics – Sustainable and Innovative Economic Policy Strategies in Eurasia (Eds.: Barnabás Virág & Marcell Horváth).

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Lanvin, B. (2024). Prosperous and inclusive cities. IMD.

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Lanvin, B. & Sultan, O. (2022). The future is young. IMD.

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Bris, A., Cabolis, C., Chan. H.C. and Lanvin, B. (2021), Cities in a Time of Global Emergencies: can Smart Cities help ? IMD.

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Bris, A., Cabolis, C., Chan. H.C. and Lanvin, B. (2019), Sixteen Shades of Smart: How cities can shape their own future. IMD.

PRESENTATIONS & REPORTS

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FCCI 2025 report

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GCTI 2022 report

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Articles & Interviews

Global Launch of the Arab Cities Culture and Creative Industries Index

Cities and culture are at the core of the next wave of globalization.

Cities are becoming the core of global competition. In such a context, many comparative advantages can be built. However, a few of those are genuinely un-replicable: they often have to do with centuries of history, and inherited traditions and creativity in arts, craftmanship, architecture and ways of living.

In other words, culture is becoming a key ingredient in the ways in which cities compete globally, and brand themselves vis-à-vis the rest of the world. Yet, this fundamental pillar of the next wave of globalization remains largely unrecorded, and poorly measured.

As underlined by Hala BadriHala Badri, Director General at Dubai Culture & Arts Authority, ‘For a long time, culture has been discussed in aspirational terms. Today, it is increasingly approached through evidence, policy, and long-term impact.’

It is against this background that, in the course of the recent World Governments Summit (held in Dubai from 3 to 6 February) that the Arab Cities Culture and Creative Industries (ACCCI) Index was announced.

, See full post on LinkedIn here and more info on the ACCCI here.

The world in 3D

In the span of a few weeks (late January to mid-February 2026) I shall have been participating in a series of significant international meetings. Been there. Done that. What else is new ?

Well, the three events I am referring to have a common background, and several key specificities. They also share a symbolic complementarity. I call them the 3 Ds, because altogether they invite us to look at today’s world in all its totality and in all its complexities.

The accelerated adoption and development of AI has so far outpaced the adoption of commonly agreed rules and governance principles. It is only one of the many challenges that the global community needs to tackle urgently, but it is a particularly critical one. The way in which it is addressed will tell us how prepared (or unprepared) we are to tackle the other ‘biggies’ (including restoring multilateral trust, mitigating the effects of climate change, and reducing global inequalities, to name a few).

D1️⃣ Davos (World Economic Forum, 19-23 January 2026) was a reality call, perfectly illustrated by Mark Carney’s masterpiece of a speech about ‘being realistic and remaining principled’.

D2️⃣ Dubai (World Governments Summit, 3-6 February 2026) brought many of the issues raised in the Swiss alps to a region of the globe where local conflicts immediately take a global importance. Many minister and heads of state focused their speeches around AI. Pedro Sanchez, Spanish Prime Minister repeated the call he had made in Davos to bring about a ‘community of the willing’ to restore ethics and balance in the world if social networks. More modestly, we launched at WGS the latest annual edition of the Network Readiness Index report, devoted to ‘AI Governance in a Global Context – Policy and Regulatory Approaches’. The full report is available at : https://lnkd.in/eMr4k3bq. We also announced a new (and very exciting) cultural index that will soon be launched (more on this later)

D 3️⃣ Delhi (Global Business Summit, 13-14 February, followed by the AI Impact Summit, 16-20 February) will undoubtedly help call business and government attention to these issues in the context of a global rebalancing of trade and investment relations. The growing role of India in this deep reshaping of globalization must also be seen against the background of diminished multilateral disciplines. As some nation states continue retreating from global commitments, cities and regions are taking new roles and responsibilities. This will also be at the core of exciting debates in Delhi. Stay tuned for more !

See original LinkedIn post here

Now back from Davos: my ‘optimism tank’ was (only partly) refilled.

I am now back from Davos, an my ‘optimism tank’ was only party refilled.

I posted earlier about Mark Carney’s address and the standing ovation (a rare tribute in Davos) it received. It will remain for me the highlight of Davos 2026. Davos 2026: Special address by Mark Carney, PM of Canada | World Economic Forum

Started in French and pursued in English, Carney’s speech built on a quote that sounded very current, although it was more then 2000 years old:

“It seems that every day we’re reminded that we live in an era of great power rivalry, that the rules based order is fading, that the strong can do what they can, and the weak must suffer what they must.
And this aphorism of Thucydides is presented as inevitable, as the natural logic of international relations reasserting itself.
And faced with this logic, there is a strong tendency for countries to go along to get along, to accommodate, to avoid trouble, to hope that compliance will buy safety.
Well, it won’t.”

In the traditional French education system, “Rhétorique” (Rhetoric) was the final year of secondary school (lycée), focusing heavily on classical languages (Latin/Greek), philosophy, and advanced French literature/composition, serving as a rigorous capstone to develop powerful argumentatives and solid communication.

This was the time when students learned about how to use simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, alliteration, and humour to convince an audience. On the technical side, they would learn how to master anaphore (Winston Churchill: “We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields…”.), epistrophe (Nelson Mandela: “I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities.”), chiasmus (John F. Kennedy: “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.”).

In his Davos address, Mark Carney used all of those, within a well structured logical message (diagnosis, vision, call for action). Delivered with the right tone of voice (compound, calm, clear), it also conveyed an important undertone, which can be summarized as ‘I am talking to an intelligent audience which I respect, whether they agree with me or not.’.

Smart City Miami magazine: see full article and magazine here (December 16, 2025)

Beyond “Smart”: WeGO Launches a New Index to Measure City “Future Readiness”: see full article here (November 21, 2025)

A glimpse at the future of multilateralism (July 11, 2025)

15 years separate these two pictures : same room (ITU in Geneva), same date (6 July). On a bright summer Sunday of 2010, an unlikely gathering took place on the banks of Lake Geneva in Switzerland: co-chaired by the president of a small African country involved in a complex process of recovery and re-unification (President Paul Kagame of Rwanda) and the then wealthiest person in the world (Carlos Slim from Mexico), the Broadband Commission held its inaugural meeting. Its vice-chairs were the heads of the two most prominent UN agencies involved in telecommunications, education and knowledge : ITU and UNESCO. They were surrounded by 15 founding commissioners, coming from industry (telecom and service companies mostly), academia and governments.

From then on, this unique group of individuals started to meet regularly in Geneva, New York, North Makedonia, Mexico, Rwanda, Davos, often on the margins of large conferences or gatherings. Over time, new members joined, others moved on. But the team spirit remained. Reports, analyses, quantitative targets, on-the-ground projects followed, often at the origin of significant shifts in global attitudes and strategies to extend the benefits of broadband (and information in general) to the largest numbers.

Because all its members had busy schedules, the Broadband Commission would typically meet over week-ends, earning it the nickname of ‘Sunday Club’. Members would generally travel and participate at their own cost. Private sector commissioners generated the support of their respective companies to support the rest.

Fifteen years later, the Broadband Commission is alive and well. It continues to operate in its unique style of openness and discretion, and its focus on action.

Yet, it has produced something that few of us expected 15 years ago : a new style of governance and a possible model for the future of multilateralism.

As we witness the rapid collapse of the complex edifice of international cooperation established since the Congress of Vienna in 1815, we are reminded of a few unescapable truths and facts :

Present multilateral institutions and mechanisms were created as ways not to repeat the mistakes of the past (the Vienna Treaty wanted to prevent the emergence of future Napoleonic empires and wars, the League of Nations tried to restore a long-lasting peace after WWI, and the United Nations aimed ‘to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war,’).
The emergence of these political structures was accompanied by the creation of technical, commercial, economic and social institutions and mechanisms (the ITU – the oldest UN agency – was born 160 years ago), around a common idea: multilateral cooperation allows all countries to benefit from the positive sum games of standardization, cooperation and mutual respect.
The current times call for a revival of multilateralism, which will need to be designed around a few principles, namely (a) be guided by ‘coalitions of the willing’, (b) involve combinations of players : nation states for sure, but also cities, private enterprises, and civil society at large, and (c) be agile and flexible enough to address the needs of the time, especially in areas where technological change is the fastest. This means that the future of multilateralism will rely heavily on our collective ability to set up, operate and combine networked organizations.

This is where the example of the Broadband Commission deserves increased attention: it is a unique entity that has endured the challenge of time, and one that suggests how a new spirit and energy can be injected in current efforts to re-build multilateralism.

As the multilateral edifice built over the last 80 years continues to crumble, cities are called to play increasingly important roles on the international scene. The governance of cities hence becomes de facto a basis of global governance. Are we ready for this paradigm shift? See full interview here.

Cities will be the place to watch in 2025. Innovation, talent and branding will be key to build the next wave of globalization on a solid basis combining sustainability, inclusion, openness and reduced inequalities. How can GCC countries drive innovation, build smarter cities, and enhance talent competitiveness for a sustainable future?