The Changemakers @ Davos

If you didn't happen to be at #WEF19, you missed one of the more exciting spaces for women, equality, diversity, and progressive humanity. No, really. Despite the press, I have spent four days meeting some of the most amazing humans in the world - people doing things we can be proud of - most of whom were women.

At the Equality Lounge FQ (Female Quotient) @ Davos, each and every session was packed to the gills. Panel after panel showcased women who are doing work that matters and the men who arrived in full support.

In the lounge and all over the town, I conversed with some of these women and a host of others, each as dynamic as the next.

I was especially touched by Jennifer Schorsch of Water.org, who genuinely feels privileged to serve as President. I understand why - she's heading an international nonprofit organization that has positively transformed more than 16 million lives around the world. (Let that sink in... 16 million lives.) Founded by Gary White and Matt Damon, they pioneer market-driven financial solutions to the global water crisis. To put it plainly, a woman who formerly had to spend a significant portion of her income to meet her family's water needs through off-market, extortion-rate water sources now has affordable options. Through Water.org's efforts, such a woman can legitimately borrow money to establish a household water connection to the established municipal water system. Doing so dramatically reduces her expenses, saves her time, and gives her the power that comes from being a paying customer. With a small, easily repaid loan, a woman can get her water safely at less than $10 a month ($4.50 for water and a $5 loan repayment) instead of $60 a month. That means $50 more dollars each month to save or spend on her family's needs, children's education or entrepreneurial endeavors. That, my friends, is how you change lives. Millions of them.

I also enjoyed Hillary Sutcliffe, Director of SocietyInside, who reverse-engineers innovation from the needs of society and explores the purpose, risks, ethics, stakeholder involvement and governance through research, writing and acting as a "sounding board and critical friend." (Love the "critical friend." That's exactly who it feels like you are meeting in the EQ lounge. To me, that's the kind of language we ought to be able to use more freely.)

And who could forget Margalit Yekutiely, a Tel Aviv COO and Co-founder of REEPCopr.com, who is bringing to market a digital paper platform (think paper you can use again and again while capturing the data and even recycling the ink)? Tirelessly working to save the world one piece of paper at a time, she will undoubtedly make herstory.

Margalit was there as a partner of the extraordinary HCL, where I mistakenly showed up for a meeting and was nonetheless warmly invited to a Michelin Star breakfast to discuss "Disruptive Innovation: Banking in 2030" moderated by Fast Company's Stephanie Mehta and then later, an evening gala to honor five "Wavemaker" women who truly are changing the world. #HCLATDAVOS

And what about Claudio Romo Edelman, founder and co-host of the Global Goalscast at WeAreAllHuman.org? She is very clear that "Fear, isolation and intolerance will take us back. Only love, compassion and connection will move us forward." Again, language as clear as the Alpine mountain air.

Finally, let's be inclusive here and meet a few remarkable men who were more than happy to show up and be present at the Female Quotient lounge. Meet Jake Schwartz, CEO and Co-Founder of the General Assembly, "a global education institution specializing in 21st century skills "empowering a global community to pursue work they love through opportunities and instruction across data, design, technology and business" and Connor Diemand-Youman, CEO of PhilanthropyU.org, who is bringing the skills of scaling to the Global South, transforming global development from the ground up" with 200,000 small entrepreneurs learning the basics of what it takes to grow a business at the local level.

Truly, there are far too many remarkable people to mention and every one worth mentioning. So I'll suffice by listing all of the topics and panelists who brought us to standing room only talks at the HQ Lounge. Why? Because you need to know who is doing what and where. And while a direct invitation to Davos may be hard to come by, these ideas are and must be for everyone.

TOPICS AND PANELISTS

Why Diversity Should Be a Business Goal

Stephanie Ruhle, Anchor, MSNBC Live; Correspondent, NBC News (Moderator)

Linda Yaccarino, Chairman, Advertising and Client Partnerships, NBCUniversal

Julie Sweet, CEO, North America, Accenture

Male Champions of Change

Elizabeth Broderick, Founder, Male Champions of Change and UN Special Rapporteur (Moderator)

Lord Tony Hall, Director General, BBC

Brent Hoberman CBE, Chair and Co-Founder, Founders Forum/firstminute capital/ Founders Factory

Growing Up Equal: How We Are Challenging Gender Norms for Young Girls and Boys

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient (Moderator)

Carolyn Tastad, Group President, North America, P&G

Sherrie Westin, President of Global Impact and Philanthropy, Sesame Workshop

Intersectionality: How Feminist, Racial Justice, LGBTQ and Social Justice Movements are Working Together in This Current Global Cultural Climate

Hayley Romer, Chief Revenue Office and Publisher, The Atlantic (Moderator)

Ariadne Getty, President and Executive Director, The Ariadne Getty Foundation

Sarah Kate Ellis, President and CEO, GLAAD

God-is Rivera, Global Director, Culture & Community, Twitter

Aria Finger, CEO, DoSomething.org

Technology for Good: Better Capitalism Leading Innovation

Jen Berman, Chief Marketing Officer, Business Insider (Moderator)

Cathy Bessant, Chief Technology Officer, Bank of America

Laura Brounstein, VP Content and Partnerships, WeWork

Allison Dew, Chief Marketing Officer, Dell

Women Changing the Trajectory of Distrust in the World Through Tech

Edie Lush, Co-Host, The Global GoalsCast and Executive Editor, Hub Culture (Moderator)

Claudia Romo Edelman, Founder, We Are All Human Foundation

Ed Williams, CEO, UK and Ireland and Vice Chairman, EMEA, Edelman

Rose Beaumont, Senior Vice President of Global Marketing, MasterCard

Mariéme Jamme, Founder, #IAmTheCode

Arts for Action: Cultural Tools for the Greater Good

Susan Boster, Managing Director, Boster Group (Moderator)

Marisa Drew, CEO Impact Advisory and Finance, Credit Suisse

Nadja Swarovski, Member of the Executive Board and Head of Corporate Branding and Communications, Swarovski and Head of Swarovski Foundation

The Feminists at Davos

Shelley Zalis, CEO, Female Quotient (Moderator)

Kathleen Landy, Founder and CEO, The Feminist Institute

Tom Lindboe, Photographer

Princess M?rtha Louise of Norway

Susan Goldberg, Editorial Director, National Geographic Partners and Editor in Chief, National Geographic Magazine

The Equality Mindset: The Most Important Skills for Tech Leaders of Tomorrow

Meredith Kopit Levien, Chief Operating Officer, The New York Times (Moderator)

Alison Wagonfeld, Chief Marketing Officer, Google

Amy Weaver, President, Legal and Corporate Affairs, General Counsel and Secretary, Salesforce

Anand Rao, Global Artificial Intelligence Lead, PwC

Spending Better to Change Lives: Advancing Women’s Equality Through Connected Commerce

Ann Rosenberg, SVP and Global Head, SAP Next-Gen (Moderator)

Alex Charlton, Chairman and CEO, Carlyle Global Partners

Tifenn Dano Kwan, Chief Marketing Officer, SAP Ariba

Anita Dongre, CEO and Founder, House of Anita Dongre

Cori Lathan, Board Chair and CEO, AnthroTronix

#SeeHer: How Media Defines Culture

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient (Moderator)

Pam Kaufman, President, Viacom/Nickelodeon Global Consumer Products, Viacom

Patty Kerr, Executive Director, #SeeHer

Culture Shifters: How Agencies Can Advance Diversity

Tara Walpert Levy, VP, Agency and Brand Solutions, Google (Moderator)

Michael Roth, Chairman and CEO, IPG

Is Switzerland Ready to Win the Race and What Needs to Happen Next?

Kathrin Puhan, Founder, you advance gmbh

Sylvie Durrer, Director Swiss Federal Office for Gender Equality, FOGE

Manuela Tomei, Director Work Quality Department at ILO, EPIC

Simona Scarpaleggia, Co-Chair, UNHLP and CEO, IKEA Switzerland

Advancing Diversity In a Global Context

Nicola Mendelsohn CBE, VP EMEA, Facebook (Moderator)

Sung-Joo Kim, Founder and Chief Visionary Officer, Sungjoo Group and Chairperson, MCM Holding AG

The Inclusive Future of Media, Work, Democracy

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient (Moderator)

Megan Smith, CEO, shift7; 3rd US Chief Technology Officer

Susan Alzner, Co-Founder, Chief of Strategy and Operations, shift7

Committed to Change: Value Driven Leadership

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient (Moderator)

Alison Wagonfeld, Chief Marketing Officer, Google

Alicia Tillman, Chief Marketing Officer, SAP

Alicia Hatch, Chief Marketing Officer, Deloitte Digital

Leading with Purpose

Amy Bernstein, Editor, Harvard Business Review (Moderator)

Janet Foutty, Chair and Chief Executive Officer, Deloitte Consulting LLP

Teresa Carlson, Vice President, Worldwide Public Sector, Amazon Web Services

The Power of Parity: Achieving Global Gender Equality in the Developing World

Eshe Nelson, Economics and Markets Reporter, Quartz (Moderator)

Vivian Hunt, Managing Partner, McKinsey & Company

Amy Agnew, Europe Director, Global Citizen

Katja Iversen, CEO, Women Deliver

A Conversation with Jamie Dimon

Jamie Dimon, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Jennifer Nason, Global Chairman, Investment Banking, J.P. Morgan

Judy Miller, Chief of Staff, Office of the Chairman, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Cocktails and Conversation with Sustainable Citizen Heroes: Celebrating Female Visionaries in Fashion and the Arts

Ann Rosenberg, SVP and Global Head, SAP Next-Gen (Moderator)

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient

Eva Kruse, CEO, Global Fashion Agenda

Anita Dongre, CEO and Founder, House of Anita Dongre

Prof. Dr. Christoph Meinel, Director and CEO, Hasso Plattner Institute

 Step Change for a Sustainable Future

Jeanette Calandra, Managing Partner, PwC Silicon Valley (Moderator)

Bob Moritz, Global Chairman, PwC

ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, Former President of Iceland

Dorrit Moussaieff, Former First Lady of Iceland

Mark Hawkins, President and Chief Financial Officer, Salesforce

The Evolution of Work

Jeanette Calandra, Managing Partner, PwC Silicon Valley (Moderator)

Kristine Miller, Chief Strategy Officer, eBay

Mary Snapp, Corporate Vice President and Lead for Microsoft Philanthropies, Microsoft

Carol Stubbings, Global People and Organization Leader, PwC

Millennials and New Workforce Expectations

Nikki Waller, Editor, Live Journalism and Special Coverage, The Wall Street Journal (Moderator)

Cindy Hook, Chief Executive Officer, Deloitte Asia Pacific

Sarah Kunst, Managing Director, Cleo Capital

Nola Weinstein, Global Head of Culture, Engagement and Experiential Marketing, Twitter

Marissa Aydlett, SVP Marketing, Braze

Workplace Strategies with Adam Grant

Samantha Saperstein, Head of Women on The Move, JPMorgan Chase & Co. (Moderator)

Adam Grant, Bestselling Author and Professor, The Wharton School

Amplifying Women’s Authoritative Voice

Ruth David, Senior Reporter at Bloomberg News, London (Moderator)

Tina Brown, Founder and CEO, Tina Brown Live Media and Women in the World

Ed Williams, CEO, UK and Ireland and Vice Chairman, Europe, Edelman

Kiersten Barnet, Head of Gender Equality Index, Bloomberg LP

Jeanne Bourgault, President and CEO, Internews

#Unstereotype: Action for Gender Equality

Moira Forbes, Executive Vice President, Forbes Media and Publisher, ForbesWoman (Moderator)

Keith Weed, Chief Marketing Officer, Unilever

Gary Barker, PhD, President and CEO, Promundo, US

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient

Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenge

Amy Cuddy, Social Psychologist, Award-Winning Harvard Lecturer, Best-Selling Author, Presence

The Future of Masculinity

Stephanie Ruhle, Anchor, MSNBC Live; Correspondent, NBC News (Moderator)

Marc Pritchard, Chief Brand Officer, P&G

Carolyn Everson, VP, Global Marketing Solutions, Facebook

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient

How Technology Can Advance Equality

Louise Roug, International Director, Huff Post (Moderator)

Maxeme Tuchman, CEO and Co-Founder, Caribu

Cristina Shapiro, Global Director of 10,000 Women, Goldman Sachs

Influencing Culture: The Role Leaders Play as Change Agents

Jack Leslie, Chairman, Weber Shandwick (Moderator)

Miki Tsusaka, Senior Partner and Managing Director, Chief Marketing Officer, Boston Consulting Group

Kylie Wright-Ford, Chief Executive Officer, Reputation Institute

Achieving Smart, Sustainable Economic Growth in Cities Across the World: Women in the Lead

Kari Eik, Lead of United Smart Cities, Co-Founder, WomenLed 2030

Carolien de Bruin, Founder, C-Change and Co-Founder, WomenLed 2030

Carine de Meyere, Senior Investment Advisor and Investor Relations, Future Planet Capital and Director of Partnerships and New Business Development, TEDxAmsterdamWomen

The Citizen Agenda for the SDGs to Drive Sustainable Living

Ann Rosenberg, SVP and Global Head, SAP Next-Gen (Moderator)

Nate Hurst, Chief Sustainability and Social Impact Officer, HP

Majken Gilmartin, Founder, EIR Soccer and Global Goals World Cup

Lotte Hansen, CEO and Founder, iLoveGlobalGoals

Gail Gallie, Co-Founder, Project Everyone

Ana Hajduka, Founder and CEO, Africa GreenCo

Unplugged Discussion with Anthony Scaramucci

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient (Moderator)

Anthony Scaramucci, Founder and Co-Managing Partner, SkyBridge

Data Driven Strategies for the New Global Workforce

Jia Hyun, VP, Head of North America, Marketing Solutions, LinkedIn (Moderator)

Carol Stubbings, Global People and Organization Leader, PwC

Amy Wilkinson, CEO, Ingenuity and Lecturer, Stanford GSB

Karen Carter, Chief Inclusion Officer, The Dow Chemical Company

Danielle Merfeld, Chief Technology Officer, GE Renewable Energy

Six Traits of an Inclusive Leader

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient (Moderator)

Terri Cooper, Chief Inclusion Officer, Deloitte

Sarah Levy, Chief Operating Officer, Viacom Media Networks

Cid Wilson, President and CEO, Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility

Action Steps for Change: Gender Equality At All Levels

Anne Cocquyt, Executive Director, Women in Product (Moderator)

Melissa Barnes, Head of Global Brands,Twitter

Michelle Hulst, GVP, Strategic Partnerships and Marketing, Oracle Data Cloud

Joy Robins, Chief Revenue Officer, Quartz

Good Karma, Great Leadership: Unlocking the Power of Consciousness in the Workplace

Mike Romoff, Head of Global Agency and Channel Sales, LinkedIn (Moderator)

Laura Brounstein, VP, Content and Campaigns, WeWork

Jo Confino, Executive Editor, Impact, Huff Post and Board Member, Parallax Press

Kelly Grier, US Chairman and Managing Partner and Americas Managing Partner, EY

Climate Change and Conflict: The Challenges Ahead

Hadley Gamble, Anchor, CNBC (Moderator)

Peter Maurer, President, International Committee of the Red Cross

Nicholas Kristof, Op-Ed Contributor, The New York Times

Building Better Boardrooms: How to Close the Leadership Opportunity Gap

Heather Landy, Editor, Quartz At Work, Quartz (Moderator)

Stacy Janiak, Chief Client Officer, Deloitte US

Tara Walpert Levy, VP, Agency and Brand Solutions, Google

Louise Pentland, EVP, Chief Business Affairs and Legal Officer, PayPal

Executive Stance: How Corporate Activism is Shaping the Way We Do Business

Jia Hyun, VP, Head of North America, Marketing Solutions, LinkedIn (Moderator)

Suzanne Kounkel, Chief Marketing Officer, Deloitte Consulting LLP

Cindy Robbins, President and Chief People Officer, Salesforce

Darryl White, CEO, BMO Financial Group

#SeeHer: The Road to 2020

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient (Moderator)

Marc Pritchard, Chief Brand Officer, P&G

Linda Yaccarino, Chairman, Advertising and Client Partnerships, NBCUniversal

Male Champions in the Wake of #MeToo

Mark Thompson, CEO, The New York Times

Andrew Cohen, CEO, J.P. Morgan International Private Bank

Why Caring, Purpose, and Equality at Work Matter in the Digital Age

Mandeep Rai, CEO, Creative Visions Global (Moderator)

Tim Ryan, Chairman and Senior Partner, PwC US

Isha Sesay, Author, Journalist, Former CNN Correspondent

Carrie Duarte, Workforce of the Future Leader, PwC US

Talent of the Future

Alyson Shontell, Editor-in-Chief, Business Insider US

Ellyn Shook, Chief Leadership & Human Resources Officer, Accenture

Jennifer Schorsch, President, Water.org

Science Fiction: A Starship for Innovation

Ann Rosenberg, SVP and Global Head, SAP Next-Gen (Moderator)

Sissel Hansen, Founder and CEO, Startup Guide

Caitlin E. Krause, Director, AI Global Ambassador Program, Swiss Cognitive and Founder, MindWise

Christine Ntim, Founder and CEO, Global Startup Ecosystem

Julie Kronstrom Carton, Founder and Partner, Mate Bike

The Power of Heart Intelligence

Mother Ocean, Author, Evolutionist, Founder and Spiritual Director, SAMADHI Training Centre, Hong Kong

Pathways for Women to Get on Board(s)

Tina Daniels, Director, Business Development, Google (Moderator)

Stephanie Cohen, Chief Strategy Officer, Goldman Sachs

Julie Teigland, EY Regional Managing Partner Germany, Switzerland and Austria and Global Leader, Women. Fast forward

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient

The Art of New Business: Body, Mind and Soul of Digitization

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient (Moderator)

Barbara Bulc, Founder and President, Global Development and Ambassador, Reboot the Future

Hans Reitz, Co-Founder, The Grameen Creative Lab

Harald Neidhardt, CEO & Curator, futur/io

Thomas Juli, Co-Founder and New Business Architect, The Art of New, and Managing Director, Motivate2B

Human-Powered Innovation and Leadership 4.0

Meredith Kopit Levien, Chief Operating Officer, The New York Times (Moderator)

Joe Ucuzoglu, Chair and Chief Executive Officer, Audit and Assurance, Deloitte & Touche LLP

Mentorship and Advancement: Strategies for Success

Tara Walpert Levy, VP, Agency and Brand Solutions, Google (Moderator)

Michael J. Wolf, Co-Founder and CEO, Activate, Inc.

Harnessing Data to Drive Inclusion in the Workplace

Nikki Waller, Editor, Live Journalism and Special Coverage, The Wall Street Journal (Moderator)

Allen Blue, VP Product Management and Co-Founder, LinkedIn

The Case for Inclusive Artificial Intelligence

Andrew McAfee, Co-Director and Co-Founder, MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy and Principal Research Scientist, MIT (Moderator)

Justine Cassell, Associate Dean, Technology, Strategy and Impact, School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University

The Leaders Of Tomorrow: Future Thinking From Gen Z

Shelley Zalis, CEO, The Female Quotient (Moderator)

Suba Umathevan, National Director, Plan International Switzerland

Selina Stuessi, Youth Ambassador, Plan International Switzerland and President, The FQ Lounge @ University of Zurich

Women Leaders and the SDGs – How Can Women Achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals?

Jo Confino, Executive Editor, Impact, Huff Post and Board Member, Parallax Press (Moderator)

Amanda Ellis, Former New Zealand Ambassador, United Nations in Geneva & Director Global Partnerships, ASU Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability

Dr. Márcia Balisciano, Head of Sustainability, RELX Group and Board Member, Ban Ki-Moon Centre for Global Citizens

Dr. Sanjeev Khagram, Dean, Thunderbird School of Global Management

Alyse Nelson, President and CEO, Vital Voices Global Partnership

I'm Robin Rice, a senior advisor in conscious leadership for individuals and organizations. I lead, mentor and teach at the intersection of work, personal relationships, and social impact. I invite you to connect with me here on LinkedIn or through my website at RobinRice.com.