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

Upcoming…

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

Download The Smart Cities report

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Articles & Interviews

A glimpse at the future of multilateralism

Posted on LinkedIn on 11 July 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?