This candid admission by one World Economic Forum representative that he wants the globalization process to remove almost any public interest protections brilliantly illuminates the reason that citizens worldwide have become increasingly concerned about corporate-led globalization. In the past several decades, corporations have pushed a free market economic model that has deregulated global finance and investment at an unprecedented pace and scale. This market "liberalization" was supposed to deliver progress and well-being for all, but in reality has steadily contributed to a global climate of economic inequality, environmental degradation, and instability.

It is not surprising that multinational corporations are the biggest proponents of a deregulated process of economic globalization. They have benefited from access to cheap labor, overly generous tax breaks and other concessions used to lure investment, and lax or nonexistent enforcement of environment and health standards. Indeed, the current mode of globalization championed by the WEF has led to unsustainable extraction and use of natural resources, made millions of people dependent on foreign markets and reduced their economic self-sufficiency, and distorted economies through rigid austerity and structural adjustment requirements.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) is the opportunity for major corporate leaders to come together to make their plans for the future of the global economy.

The World Economic Forum is a foundation that is funded by the contributions of its members, which include 1,000 of the largest and most powerful multinational corporations with a turnover of at least $100 billion annually. Founded in 1971, it was first named the "European Management Forum," which focused on the challenges European business faced in the international marketplace. Since then, the range of topics has been expanded to include the global economy, politics and society.

The WEF's annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland brings together high-ranking elected officials, heads of influential international institutions like the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and World Trade Organization (WTO), and prominent media personalities. The WEF's goal is to create "partnerships between and among business, political, intellectual and other leaders of society to define, discuss and advance key issues on the global agendaî in order to achieve its self-proclaimed mission of ìimproving the state of the world."

The WEF claims its membershipís ingenuity and investments further the global public interest. In truth, the WEF represents the financial interests of its own members and endeavors to widen the influence of corporations in international policymaking.

While no formal decisions are made, the annual meeting of the WEF helps set the stage for future economic liberalization that overwhelmingly benefits its membership. Past WEF meetings have paved the way for the launch of the General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs (GATT) Uruguay Round, from which the WTO was born, and for the launch of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). These were milestones in corporate-led globalization, each time guaranteeing new and easier market access for transnational corporations.

United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan launched the "Global Compact" at the 2000 annual meeting. The Global Compact is a UN initiative to strengthen its cooperation and partnership with the business world through a declaration of "shared values" based on environmental, labor and human rights agreements. With no independent monitoring or enforceability, the Global Compact is actually an instrument to renovate the tarnished image of multinational companies and distract from their destructive corporate practices.

The annual meeting of the WEF takes place for the most part with little public or civil society input. The WEF determines the agenda and it decides which media representatives are allowed inside. Unrestricted access is granted only to those who belong to the WEF club of "World Media Leaders."

Only a few critical voices are heard inside the WEF's annual meeting and it is far from a balanced platform where all stakeholders are represented. Among the almost 3,000 participants at the annual meeting, there are approximately fifty NGO representatives present. Given the lack of civil society and public participation, the WEFís alleged multi-stakeholder approach and self-imposed obligation to be ìcommitted to improving the state of the worldî remain an empty promise.

The WEF claims it addresses the social and environmental impacts of globalization. But humanitarian and green rhetoric along with voluntary commitments are not sufficient to tackle the negative impacts of globalization. Rampant financial deregulation and economic liberalization have enriched transnational corporations and well-connected elites, but poverty alleviation remains illusive and global environmental destruction continues unabated.

"The Public Eye on Davos" was launched in 1999 in Davos, Switzerland to critically monitor the closed annual meeting of the World Economic Forum and to offer alternatives of a socially and ecologically oriented economy. This year's Public Eye conference will be held January 31 through February 3, 2002 at the UN Church Center, 777 UN Plaza.

Representatives of non-governmental organizations and economists from both developing and developed countries will present their views of the current model for the global economy. Presenters will include Robert Kuttner of The American Prospect; Yash Tandon, Director of the International South Group Network; Tony Juniper, Vice President of Friends of the Earth International; and John Passacantando, Director of Greenpeace US.

The Public Eye on Davos contends that international economic policies and other global public affairs should no longer be discussed at private meetings like the WEF, but in public, transparent and democratically legitimate platforms. The United Nations, for example, is a more representative international body and more appropriate for such discussions.

The Public Eye on Davos calls on governments to strengthen the United Nations, both politically and financially. Public Eye also calls for reform of the United Nations to make it more effective and independent of corporate influence. Rather than promoting voluntary corporate good behavior, the UN should negotiate legally binding rules for transnational corporationsí global activities that protect human rights, human health, labor standards, and the environment.

(Matthias Herfeldt is an organizer of Public Eye on Davos.)