4th June 2018, London – International entrepreneurs, investors, CEOs, political figures including former Presidents and Prime Minister’s academicians, media giants, sports and film personalities convened in London for the second edition of Power Brands Global and London International Forum for Equality (LIFE) Summit. The ceremony saw high profile global leaders in politics, business, sport and philanthropy inducted into the Power Brands Hall of Fame at the Hilton Kensington, London.
The event was powered by the Centre for International Competitiveness & Research (CICR), an organisation providing research for the business, policymaking and academic communities, focused on the level of competitiveness of businesses within economies and presented by Contentra Technologies USA, a leading publishing services, digitisation and content transformation company. Power Brands Global also coincided with the London International Forum for Equality (LIFE) Summit, a unique confluence of some of the most powerful and humane international minds from the sphere of politics, business, academics and entertainment.
The evening was presided over by hosts sports journalist, author and broadcaster Ian Stafford, and model-actress Ellie Torrez, with India’s leading 24-hour English-language news channel TIMES NOW supporting the event as Media Partner. Power Brands Global also provided much attention from 10 global leaders inducted into the Power Brands Hall of Fame. Experts in their respective fields, each awardee was commended for building a brand that has promoted faith, hope and commitment to spreading equality, and were honoured with their induction into the Power Brands – Hall of Fame. This year’s inductees featured figures from the Charity/ Not for Profit sector, Sports, Politics and Business, including:
Charity/Not for Profit sector:
- Helen McEachern, CEO Cherie Blair foundation – their work focuses on strengthening the capability, confidence and access to capital of women entrepreneurs in countries where they lack equal opportunities. Thanking Power Brands for the recognition, she spoke about the work for gender equality that the Cherie Blair Foundation does, saying: “We have been working with women for 10 years, during which we have been able to reach entrepreneurs across the world, from India to Rwanda, and have seen their lives transform as their businesses grow. But it’s still not enough. Women equality is in danger of going backwards. If the current lack of progress on equal pay continues, it will be 217 years before women become economically equal to men. We want to achieve this equality now.”
- Dominique Airey, CEO, Khulisa – a crime prevention and offender rehabilitation charity based in North London with roots in South Africa. Speaking about the induction of Khulisa, she said: “I’m proud and humbled to accept this award alongside so many. Khulisa is a Zulu word that means ‘to nurture’. We believe that people need to be given the opportunity to be nurtured and supported. Everyone deserves to have equal access to a safe nurturing life, and our work ensures that even those who have made mistakes because of a lack of nurture and support can have that access. ”
- H.E. Mohamed Waheed Hassan, 5th President of the Maldives – recognised as one of the most influential voices on foreign relations, democracy, and human rights in the Maldives. With dedicating his life to increasing humanity both at home and abroad, his Excellency has worked in a number of UN agencies. He played a key role in reconstructing Afghanistan and has helped to enroll over 5 million children in schools, vaccinate 6 million and provide health services, water, and vaccination. Speaking about his induction, a H.E. Mohamed Waheed Hassan said: “Thank you for recognising our work. I really applaud the emphasis on equality and urging of brand leaders in India and elsewhere in the world to pay attention to the issues of inequality and injustice. This is really important as we can find world happiness only through the people that can make others happy.”
Sports:
Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson – one of UK’s most successful Paralympian – and now a politician in the House of Lords, who also delivered the keynote address at the evening. Speaking about equality and the work she put into her career, she said: “We know that diversity, inclusion and equality makes good business sense but it is so much more than that. It is about the power to bring about real and lasting change. And it’s so important to me as when I suddenly became paralysed there were all those people who told my parents all the things I could not do in my life. It was a whole list of ‘Nevers’. I was lucky my parents did listen to any of those ‘nevers’. My father, who was the biggest feminist I have ever met, had the biggest impact on me. He encouraged me to go into sport because he realised how inaccessible the world was. He was the one who said that you have to be fit and strong enough to climb up the stairs, to survive. It’s where my sports carrier started. I loved everything – being in a chair was not a barrier. I played basketball, I swam and I wheelchair raced. And getting those medals over 5 Paralympics Games takes only 19.5 minutes in the moment but it also takes 25 years of my life of training. That shows how much you have to put in to get that little bit out of it’.
- Mr. Zlatko Mateša, PhD – the 6th Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia & current President of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce – Croatian Olympic Committee. Speaking about his entry into the Power Brands – Hall of Fame 2018, Mr Zlatko Mateša, said, “I am delighted to have been chosen as an inductee into the Power Brands hall of fame. Brands have played an important part in my career, from managing the reputations of well-known Croatian companies like Croatia Airlines to representing Croatia as a brand abroad as Prime Minister and now on the Croatian Olympic Committee and the European Olympic Committees as a founder of the European Games. I would like to thank Power Brands and the London International Forum for Equality Summit for their consideration.”
Politics:
- Neena Gill MEP – UK (West Midlands) – Currently serving her third term as a Labour member of the European Parliament for the West Midlands, she’s spent over 18 years working in social housing in a variety of inner-city areas across the UK to tackle issues of social deprivation and homelessness and hit the headlines by setting up the country’s first Asian only sheltered accommodation. Discussing her career’s story at the event, she said: “Thank you for this honour. I’ve been a campaigner for equality since a young age, ever since I felt that the Indian and Asian communities were discriminated against, particularly in housing. That’s why we set up Asian housing providing Black and Asian people with equal access to housing. Sometimes all it takes to make a difference is a good idea.”
- Virendra Kumar Sharma MP – UK (Southall) – Vocal humanitarian activist and is a member of the Council of Europe Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights. Chairs the Indo-British All-Party Parliament Group leads APPG for Gurkha Welfare and Co-chairs APPG on Nepal, Tuberculosis and Hepatitis Group. Speaking about his entry, he said: “I feel proud and privileged to be part of the team who have taken the trouble to fight for the rights and equality of the disabled. I thank you for this honour and look forward to raising even further support for this cause.”
Business Figures:
- John Atwal OBE – His brainchild Premier Decorations started almost 30 years ago from nothing and now employs 250 people at its peak in the year. Discussing his story and values in the Hall of Fame, he said: “I was brought into this country when I was 8 with 3 pounds in my pocket. My father worked hard to provide for us and it was his work that has instilled such work ethic into me and my siblings. During those formative days I realised that there were ‘have’s and ‘have not’s, and not much in between. Philanthropy inside me was born as I felt responsible for those who had less than. And I actually enjoyed sharing whatever I had.”
- Mike Tobin OBE – Serial technology entrepreneur and philanthropist. As the former ‘maverick’ CEO of Telecity Group, the FTSE 250 data centre operator he took from £6million to £3billion, Michael is known across the globe as the leader who created the data centre industry in Europe. Commenting on the power of equality and the way in which philanthropists give generously, he said: “Giving children all this wealth and value is worthless in a world that does not have harmony, does not have equality, and where people are more jealous than there are inspired. If you really want to give something to your descendants give them a better world through education.’
- Bright Simons – Ghanaian social innovator, entrepreneur, writer, recognised by the World Economic Forum as a young Global Leader. President of the mPedigree Network, a system that empowers consumers to instantly verify with a free text message whether their medicines are safe and not counterfeit. Speaking about his work to improve access to medicines he said: “If you walk into a pharmacy in London, you have a 1 in 100 chance of picking up something that can harm you. When you walk in to a pharmacy in Moscow and pick up the same bottle of medicine you have 1 in 8 chances of dying and 1 in 9 in Indonesia. In Guinea, you have a 2 in 3 chance that the medicine you are given can actually paralyse you. This Russian roulette-style geographical division of death cannot continue.”
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri who presented the Global Wage Equality Vision Document based upon Dr. Malay Chaudhuri and his forthcoming book to fight for a just world with 3:1 ratio of wages between the highest paid worker to the lowest paid worker, said: “This vision that we have nurtured for decades and formally announced on 5th May this year, will now gain momentum with such powerful people spreading the word. I am myself embarking on a 15-nation tour in the first phase to present a paper to Political and Corporate leaders across countries.”
Power Brands Global and the London International Forum for Equality (LIFE) Summit was powered by The Centre for International Competitiveness & Research (CICR) and presented by Contentra Technologies USA, a leading Publishing Services, digitisation and Content transformation company.
