The Global Shapers Community offers a wide range of opportunities to develop leadership skills, create impact and engage with the World Economic Forum ecosystem. This guide is designed to help you navigate those opportunities and understand how they connect to your journey as a Global Shaper. The guide begins with From Skills to Opportunities, a foundational section that explains how leadership development, personal expertise, Hub impact and visibility come together to create opportunities across the Community and the wider Forum ecosystem. Every opportunity in this guide contributes to one or more of the Community's three strategic objectives:
Develop Youth Leaders
- Hub Engagement
- Retreats and Community Events
- Leadership Roles
- Global Shapers Annual Summit
Accelerate Youth Action
- Hub Projects and Impact
- Flagship Collaborations
Amplify Youth Voices
- Access to Forum Resources
- Forum Stories
- World Economic Forum Meetings
- Strategic Intelligence
- Forum Communities
While opportunities vary in format and focus, they are connected through a common principle:
As your engagement grows, so do the opportunities available to you!
Every journey starts locally, and every opportunity builds on the previous one. As your engagement grows, so do the opportunities available to you. Whether you are participating in Hub activities, leading a project, contributing expertise to a Forum initiative or engaging in global conversations, each experience helps strengthen your leadership, expand your network and increase your impact. This guide is not simply a catalogue of opportunities. It is a roadmap to help you understand how the Global Shapers Community and the wider Forum ecosystem connect, and how you can make the most of both.
From Skills to Opportunities
Global Shapers Skills
Leadership development in the Global Shapers Community happens through experience, action and collaboration. Throughout their journey, members can acquire and practice critical skills that enhance their leadership, effectiveness and personal growth.
Our learning activities are also structured around the Community’s five core leadership values, including: passion, integrity, service, cooperation and commitment. These values provide the foundation for how we lead, collaborate and create impact throughout our journey as Global Shapers.
What Makes You Relevant?
Leadership development within the Global Shapers Community does not happen in isolation. As members grow through experiences, projects and leadership opportunities, they strengthen both their ability to create impact and their ability to contribute to broader conversations and initiatives. At the same time, many opportunities within the World Economic Forum ecosystem are shaped not only by your engagement as a Global Shaper, but also by the expertise you bring as an individual. Your professional experience, subject-matter knowledge, entrepreneurial journey, academic background and personal achievements all contribute to the value you can bring to Forum initiatives and communities. This means that there are often two complementary pathways for engagement:
- As a Global Shaper: Through the projects you lead, the partnerships you build, the leadership roles you take on and the impact your Hub creates.
- As a Subject-Matter Expert: Through your professional expertise, lived experience, research, entrepreneurship or leadership in a specific field.
The most meaningful opportunities often emerge when these two dimensions come together.
Great projects create expertise. Expertise creates relevance. Relevance creates opportunities.
As your impact, expertise and visibility grow, opportunities may emerge to contribute to Forum initiatives, collaborate with Centres, participate in Flagship Collaborations, share thought leadership, join expert consultations or apply to attend Forum meetings and other global engagements.
Building expertise and creating impact are important first steps. But opportunities can only emerge if others can see and understand the value you bring. The Global Shapers HQ shares opportunities regularly through the monthly Newsletter and Community Live Shows, while Forum teams may also identify and engage members directly based on specific needs and priorities. Whether opportunities are shared through open calls or members are identified directly for a specific initiative, visibility matters. To maximize your chances of being considered for relevant opportunities, make sure your Forum Spaces profile is complete and up to date. Your biography, expertise, professional experience, areas of interest and community contributions help others understand who you are and what you can contribute.
Stay informed. Stay visible. Stay engaged.
These are some of the most effective ways to position yourself for opportunities across the Global Shapers Community and the wider Forum ecosystem:
Develop Youth Leaders
Leadership development in the Global Shapers Community is not confined to training programmes or events. It happens through experience, responsibility, collaboration and service to others. Every Global Shaper begins their journey in a local Hub, where they develop relationships, contribute to projects and build the skills needed to create positive change. As engagement grows, opportunities emerge to connect with other Shapers, learn from peers, take on leadership responsibilities and contribute at the regional and global level. The opportunities in this section are designed to help members progressively expand their sphere of engagement, responsibility and influence.
Hub Engagement
Being selected as a Global Shaper is more than joining a network; it is an opportunity to become part of a global community of young leaders committed to improving the state of the world. That opportunity comes to life through active engagement in your Hub. Every leadership journey in the Global Shapers Community begins at the Hub level. Your Hub is your leadership laboratory: a space to build relationships, develop new skills, exchange ideas and contribute to meaningful change alongside a diverse group of peers. Hub activities are the first and most accessible opportunity available to all members. Hubs organize a wide range of activities based on local priorities and member interests, including capacity-building workshops, retreats, learning journeys, debates, discussions and community events. At the same time, Hub engagement goes beyond attending activities. It means contributing your time, ideas, expertise and energy to strengthen your Hub and its impact. It is through this engagement that members learn how the Community operates, discover their strengths and begin developing the leadership skills needed to create meaningful impact. The Global Shapers Community is also a community of doers. Members are encouraged to identify local challenges and develop projects and initiatives that create positive change. These projects form a central part of the Community's mission and provide valuable opportunities to learn, lead and grow. We will explore them further in the Accelerate Youth Action section. The more actively members engage in their Hub, the more opportunities emerge to contribute, lead and grow across the Community and the wider Forum ecosystem.
Speak to your Curator about upcoming Hub activities, or better yet, propose one yourself!
Retreats and Community Events
As members deepen their engagement within their Hub, opportunities emerge to connect with Global Shapers beyond their local community. National Retreats, Sub-Regional Retreats and regional events provide opportunities to learn from peers, exchange ideas and build relationships across the network. Through these experiences, members gain exposure to different leadership styles, project approaches and community challenges, while exchanging expertise, sharing best practices and collaborating on issues that matter locally and regionally. Just as importantly, they strengthen members' sense of belonging to a global movement of changemakers and help build the relationships that often lead to future collaborations and leadership opportunities. For many members, retreats represent their first opportunity to engage with the Global Shapers Community beyond their local Hub. They are often where lasting friendships, cross-Hub collaborations and future leadership opportunities begin.
Leadership Roles
As members grow their engagement, experience and commitment within the Community, opportunities emerge to take on greater responsibility and help shape the experience of others. Leadership roles provide practical opportunities to strengthen skills in team management, stakeholder engagement, project delivery, strategic planning and community building. Members can take on leadership roles within their Hub, including serving on the Curatorship Team, as Curator, Vice-Curator or Impact Officer. In addition, many Hubs create their own leadership roles, workstreams and titles based on local priorities, needs and ambitions. These may include roles focused on projects, partnerships, communications, events, membership engagement, learning, fundraising or other areas of Hub activity. As members grow their experience, expertise and leadership within the Community, opportunities may emerge to serve as Community Champions. These roles enable experienced members to support Hubs across a country, sub-region or region, share best practices, mentor leaders and help strengthen the broader Community. Experienced leaders may also be invited to contribute to the governance and strategic direction of the Community through service on the Global Shapers Foundation Board. Serving in these roles is often one of the most meaningful leadership experiences within the Global Shapers Community, providing hands-on opportunities to learn, lead and create impact.
Global Shapers Annual Summit
The Global Shapers Annual Summit is the Community's flagship leadership event and the World Economic Forum's foremost gathering of young innovators, activists and changemakers. Each year, newly elected Curators are invited to participate in a three-day programme focused on strengthening leadership capacity, accelerating collective action and building relationships across the global network. Community Champions are also invited to participate in recognition of their leadership and contribution to the Community. The Summit serves as a key onboarding and leadership development experience for Hub Curators, giving them a stronger understanding of the Community, its opportunities and the role they play in shaping its future. Through a dedicated programme, Curators gain the knowledge, tools, resources and connections needed to lead successful terms and strengthen the impact of their Hubs. Along the way, they exchange ideas, learn from peers and build relationships that often become a valuable support system throughout the year.
Together, these opportunities help members progressively expand their sphere of engagement, responsibility and influence across the Community.
Accelerate Youth Action
Hub Projects and Impact
The Global Shapers Community is a community of doers. Hub Projects are one of the most meaningful opportunities available to Global Shapers, allowing members to transform ideas into action and create positive change in their communities. Through Hub Projects, members identify local challenges, design solutions and work together to create measurable impact. Success is ultimately measured by improving the life of at least one person outside of the Hub. Beyond their impact, Hub Projects are powerful leadership and learning experiences. They provide opportunities to develop practical skills in project management, stakeholder engagement, fundraising, partnerships, communications, teamwork and implementation. They also help members build expertise, credibility and experience while contributing to issues that matter locally and globally. For guidance on designing, implementing and measuring successful projects, please refer to the Hub Projects and Reporting Guide. As projects grow in quality, impact and innovation, they can become increasingly relevant to broader conversations and initiatives across the Forum ecosystem.
Flagship Collaborations
One of the ways local expertise and impact can connect to the Forum ecosystem is through Flagship Collaborations. The World Economic Forum organizes its work through Centres and initiatives focused on some of the world's most pressing challenges, including climate, health, education, technology, the economy and society. Flagship Collaborations integrate the Global Shapers Community into this work through structured, outcome-driven engagement aligned with Forum priorities. They create opportunities for Global Shapers and Alumni to contribute expertise, perspectives and solutions while helping ensure that youth voices are represented in conversations that shape global agendas. Members can participate as Contributors, sharing expertise and supporting specific workstreams, or as Core Collaborators, taking on leadership and coordination responsibilities within a collaboration. These opportunities provide direct pathways to engage with Forum Centres, deepen expertise, expand professional networks and contribute to initiatives shaping global agendas. Opportunities are shared through the monthly Newsletter and Community Live Shows, while members with relevant expertise may also be identified and invited directly. To learn more about current Flagship Collaborations, Contributor opportunities and the Core Collaborator role, please refer to the Flagship Collaborations Guide.
Projects create impact and impact creates insights. This takes us to the third strategic objective of the Community. Amplifying youth voices is about ensuring those insights contribute to broader conversations and priorities.
Amplify Youth Voices
The World Economic Forum brings together leaders, experts and practitioners to address some of the world's most pressing challenges through its Centres and initiatives. Global Shapers and Alumni with relevant expertise have opportunities to contribute to this work by sharing perspectives, participating in initiatives, engaging in thought leadership and collaborating with Forum teams and communities. Many of these opportunities are communicated through the monthly Newsletter and Community Live Shows, while others may arise through direct outreach based on expertise and alignment with specific Forum priorities. To maximize your visibility within the ecosystem, make sure your Forum Spaces profile and biography are up to date, including your expertise, experience and areas of interest. The following opportunities provide different pathways to share your expertise, engage with global conversations and contribute to the Forum's mission of improving the state of the world.
Access to Forum Resources
As a Global Shaper, you have access to a wide range of resources, knowledge platforms and engagement opportunities across the World Economic Forum ecosystem. When you log in to your Forum Spaces account through the Global Shapers Community website, you gain access not only to Community content and opportunities, but also to a broader range of Forum resources and platforms. This includes access to Forum events, publications, communities, thought leadership, Strategic Intelligence and other opportunities to learn, contribute and engage. Access to these resources is an opportunity in itself. They allow Global Shapers to stay informed about emerging global challenges, deepen their expertise and connect their local work to broader conversations taking place across the Forum ecosystem. Your Forum Spaces profile also serves as your professional identity within the ecosystem. Keeping your expertise, experience and interests up to date helps increase your visibility for relevant opportunities and initiatives. To learn more about Forum Spaces and the resources available through it, please refer to the Forum Spaces Guide.
Forum Stories
Access Forum Stories to explore the Forum’s latest content, including articles, recorded meeting sessions, podcasts, videos and publications from leaders in business, government and civil society. You can even subscribe to the Forum Stories Newsletter if interested. Global Shapers and Alumni also have the opportunity to contribute to Forum Stories, which reaches millions of readers each month. Contributions should reflect relevant expertise, professional experience or unique insights that add value to ongoing global conversations. If you wish to submit a pitch, please inform your Community Manager in advance. Please note that pitching is limited to a maximum of two submissions per year.
World Economic Forum Meetings
Connections to the World Economic Forum and its network of experts and leaders, expand our members influence and desire to take action. The World Economic Forum convenes two flagship Annual Meetings, alongside several meetings and events throughout the year. Reflecting its strong commitment to youth representation and intergenerational dialogue, youth delegations are invited to participate in both Annual Meetings.
- Annual Meeting in Switzerland: Convenes leaders from government, business, and civil society to address the state of the world and discuss priorities for the year ahead.
- Annual Meeting of New Champions in China: Global gathering on science, technology, innovation and entrepreneurship, convening next generation leaders and executives.
Access to events and opportunities is earned, not guaranteed. All major events are subject to open application and selection processes. Global Shapers listed on Forum Spaces may apply, provided they remain eligible at the time of the meeting. All event opportunities are communicated through the monthly Newsletter. For more information on how to apply and selection criteria, review our Forum Meetings FAQs.
Strategic Intelligence
As Global Shapers, our members automatically receive a free Pro Digital Membership, which grants them access to our Strategic Intelligence platform with unlimited use of advanced analytics and collaboration tools. The World Economic Forum's Strategic Intelligence is a comprehensive platform designed to enhance understanding of the global, regional, and industry agendas. It leverages a dynamic system of Transformation Maps, which are interconnected and knowledge-driven visualizations of global issues, industries, and countries. These maps are developed in collaboration with experts, practitioners, and researchers and are continuously updated to reflect the latest insights and emerging trends. Global Shapers and Alumni have the opportunity to contribute to these Maps.
Forum Communities
The World Economic Forum Communities are integral components of the Forum's multi-stakeholder approach, designed to foster collaboration and drive global change across various sectors and disciplines. These communities consist of diverse groups, including business leaders, political figures, academics, and other influencers who come together to address the world's most pressing issues. Exceptional Global Shapers and Alumni, recognized for their impact and leadership, may be nominated or apply to join these communities, where they contribute their perspectives and expertise to addressing pressing global challenges. If you believe you or a fellow Global Shaper should be nominated for a World Economic Forum Community, email your regional Community Manager with details on the nominee's contributions and potential impact. For example, Global Shapers and Alumni frequently engage with the following communities:
The Forum of Young Global Leaders
The Forum of Young Global Leaders (YGL) is an initiative of the World Economic Forum that brings together exceptional young leaders under the age of 40 from diverse backgrounds and sectors. Aligned with the World Economic Forum’s mission, the YGL Foundation seeks to drive public-private co-operation in the global public interest. Founded in 2004, the YGL Foundation provides leaders with the insights, tools and learning opportunities they need to amplify aspirations of improving the state of the world. The community is composed of dynamic individuals who have demonstrated significant leadership, impact, and a commitment to shaping a better future. Members are selected for their achievements and potential to drive positive change in their industries and communities. The programme brings them together for a 3-year leadership development journey to realize their potential by joining forces to achieve more.
Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship
The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, sister organization of the World Economic Forum, is a leading global platform to advance social innovation that works to transform society for a more inclusive, equitable and sustainable world. It brings together a community of over 450 social innovators operating in 190 countries across the most diverse and challenging social and environmental issues. Since its inception, the Schwab Foundation has acknowledged social innovators as a brave new breed of leaders – values-driven, inclusive, entrepreneurial individuals who reimagine social and economic systems to be more inclusive of people and more sustainable for our planet. Their models put purpose before profit and have proven to be effective and economically viable in creating social and environmental progress where market or development approaches have failed. The Schwab Foundation’s Awards seeks to honour social change leaders, across a diversity of social innovation models in society in four different award categories:
- Social Entrepreneurs
- Corporate Social Innovators
- Public Social Innovators
- Collective Social Innovation Award
Global Future Councils
The World Economic Forum’s network of Global Future Councils is the world’s foremost multistakeholder and interdisciplinary knowledge network dedicated to promoting innovative thinking to shape a more resilient, inclusive and sustainable future. Each council’s insights are taken forward by the Forum’s ongoing initiatives, communities and meetings to ensure impact. The Network is an invitation-only community. Members join for a two-year term. It works as a time-bound think-tank and convenes around 600 of the most relevant and knowledgeable thought leaders from academia, government, international organizations, business, and civil society, grouped in expertise-based thematic councils.
Innovator Communities
- Technology Pioneers: The Technology Pioneer Community is composed of early-stage start-ups from around the world involved in the development and deployment of new technologies and innovations. The World Economic Forum selects 100 companies annually to work with society's foremost political, business and cultural leaders to address issues facing people and the planet.
- Global Innovators: The Global Innovators community was established in 2019 to engage mission-driven, growth-stage companies in the Forum's content-driven initiatives. Companies that are selected to become Global Innovators share insights and connect with public and private sector leaders to solve key issues for people and planet.
- Unicorns: The Forum’s Unicorns community was established in 2022 to engage hypergrowth, mission-oriented companies, valued at over $1 billion, in the Forum’s work. The Unicorn community offers them a platform to gain insights, develop professionally and connect with large industry players and policy-makers.
UpLink
UpLink unites motivated, mission-aligned entrepreneurs, investors and partners committed to building a resilient global economy. Early-stage start-ups often lack the resources, visibility and connections needed to scale their solutions, and UpLink bridges that gap through a collaborative ecosystem that drives real-world impact. By combining capital, expertise and shared purpose, this growing network accelerates the adoption and scaling of solutions that can transform entire systems and industries, creating measurable progress across economies, sectors and communities.