IGCF 2019 is a platform to transform ideas: Speakers

The eighth edition of International Government Communication Forum (IGCF), will kick off tomorrow at Sharjah Expo Centre with the participation of international communication experts, and prominent media figures to discuss a series of topics relating to the forum’s theme ‘Behavioural Change Towards Human Development’.

Participants and speakers will discuss the impact of IGCF and its role in shaping social development policies, and behavioural change of individuals.

Sheikh Sultan Bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, Chairman of the Sharjah Media Council (SMC), underscored that the government communication sector in the UAE, particularly in Sharjah, has been successful because of an official discourse that highlights the benefits of government communication in fostering the relationship between citizens and government entities, in addition to educating the community on the role of each individual in supporting the development process.

Sheikh Sultan said: “Government communication in the UAE and Sharjah sees a remarkable development with its positive and direct impact on UAE’s overall policies. It has succeeded in engaging all community members in the development process, and consolidated the pillars of this ongoing partnership to have sustainable positive results.”

Chairman of SMC remarked: “A nation’s civilisation is measured by the practices and education of its people, in addition to their role in achieving the general objectives of their government.”

Sheikh Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi, a lecturer and researcher on social, political and cultural affairs in the GCC said “one of the greatest challenges we have today, in this era of information is the rise of fake news and spread of rumours online. This is especially true for the 24-hour media networks as well as social media platforms. We will be exploring with the veteran journalist Larry King the risks that these new developments pose on the media industry and the possible ways to reduce it if not completely stamp out this phenomenon.”

“At the International Government Communication Forum, we will highlight and discuss why everyone has a major part to play in every teams’ success, as nothing is best done alone anymore – Collaboration is the New Leadership. As we all strive to meet increasingly demanding targets, we do this best when we are all committed to each other’s success.

Sports teams have mastered this, and now it’s time for all who work with and for government to do the same,”  said Rene Carayol, Global Speaker on Inspirational Leadership and Culture, UK.

Dr David Katz, a clinician, a researcher, an author, an inventor, and a journalist, said “we know a great deal about what it takes to help people be healthy and vital- and since healthy people have more fun- happier, too!  We know a great deal about adding years to lives and life to years but do far too little with that vital information.  

Knowledge isn’t power unless it is used to fix what’s broken and make things better.  Bringing what we know to leaders and change agents is where knowledge and power come together.  IGCF is a rare, exciting opportunity, filled with the promise of turning what we know into the good we do.” “It’s amazing to see how far technology has advanced and what it will become in the near future.

Technological advancements are helping us to become better at everything we do, but these advancements come at a cost. In other words, and to be specific, intelligent systems can be wonderful or horrible — regardless of the situation we should always consider maintaining the human factor in everything we build.

This is why we have this important platform; the International Government Communication Forum, to be able to answer all these questions and much more,” commented Dr Adiy Tweissi, Assistant Professor and Director of E-Learning Centre, Princess Sumaya University for Technology, Jordan.Meik Wiking, CEO, the Happiness Research Institute in Copenhagen, Denmark, said “how can we measure the good life, why are some people happier than others and how do we improve quality of life? These are the core questions that I try to solve at the Happiness Research Institute and which I will be discussing at the 8th edition of IGCF in Sharjah.