This year the Atlantic Council took things to the next level during the IMF–World Bank Annual Meetings. With 70 events between three locations — our HQ, our broadcast center inside the International Monetary Fund, and our new content hub in the Main Atrium of the World Bank.
On the surface, these meetings may seem like finance ministers and central bank governors just talking to each other about inflation and fiscal tightening. But it’s so much more than that. These ministers, collectively, represent the aspirations of the citizens they serve. In their hands are decisions that shape the lives and livelihoods of every person on the planet.
But they don’t always talk about their jobs that way. Technical language and macroeconomic jargon can feel disconnected from real problems. We see our job as breaking down these barriers, explaining why what they do matters to everyone — and then helping shape it for the better. And over the past five years, with each cycle growing stronger, that’s what IMF–World Bank Week at the Atlantic Council has been all about.
Want to learn about trade deals? We had Trump’s former trade negotiators in our IMF studios. Want to understand why the U.S. is providing $20 billion — or more — to Argentina? We had the finance minister and central bank governor in our headquarters. Want to understand why AI and digital assets are on everyone's mind this week? The World Bank's top officials talked to our senior fellows in our Bank Briefings series. Want to learn why debt in advanced economies is the number one risk everyone is talking about privately? Our live blog took you inside the room and unpacked it in plain english.
I am so proud of the entire Council for the all-out, non-stop five-day effort that went into making this happen. Special thanks to Rebekah Mechem-Nantz, who leads the charge on our engagement team during the week. It is an incredible group of extraordinarily talented people who bring this idea to life. A big thank you to my colleagues across the Council’s sixteen programs and centers who collaborated with us to make it happen. My gratitude to our Senior Fellows who pour so much of their brilliance into this project throughout the year.
And a special thanks to colleagues at the International Monetary Fund and the The World Bank Bank — Mayada Ghazala, Jennifer Beckman, Borja Prado, and Anna Thompson Quaye — for being such gracious hosts.
Finally, a thank you to the entire GeoEcon team. The best in the business, who went from our Transatlantic Foeum in Brussels two weeks ago to the IMF-World Bank meetings without missing a beat. Jessie Yin, Bart Piasecki, MBA, Alisha Chhangani, and Sophia Busch anchor this work, and you only need to watch their wrap-up video to know the future of Bretton Woods is in good hands.
You can catch up on anything you might have missed here:
https://lnkd.in/gX32Qevb
