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Summit 2019 will explore ways to instil an ethical culture in SA’s leadership.

The Dalai Lama has called for compassion, care and kindness in a message to the Conscious Leadership and Ethics Summit 2019, to take place on October 3 at The Venue in Melrose Arch.

In this milestone in the conscious leadership journey, he says: “As participants in the same global economy, we depend on each other and must address some of these issues that are relevant to make this world a better place for us all.”

The summit has attracted formidable international and local speakers including professor Saul Klein, the dean of Canada’s Gustavson School of Business at the University of Victoria and a global advocate of responsible leadership; Dr Jan Bellermann, founder of the Conscious Leadership Academy in Germany, as well as His Excellency, Dr Jong-Dae Park, South Korea’s ambassador to South Africa, who is an Africanist.

He is the author of Re-inventing Africa’s Development.

Business leaders who have instilled ethical and conscious practices in their organisations and will contribute to the conversation include Merrick Abel of Primeserv Group, Adam Craker of IQBusiness, Vikas Khandewal from BNP Paribas, Richard Firth of MIP Holdings, philanthropist Marc Lubner of AfrikaTikkun and governance stalwart Dr Nimrod Mbele.

The outcome of the summit’s narrative will be handed in as a paper to President Cyril Ramaphosa to urge him to embed conscious and purpose-driven ethical leadership in the public service.

Conscious Companies chief executive Brenda Kali, the guiding light behind the summit asks: “When do we move into a portal of normality, and when are our leaders going to end the dishonourable compromises they seal behind closed doors?

“As we choke on techno-embellished information, it demands that we evaluate and examine the behaviour of our leadership.

“There may just be hope from a handful of conscious leaders. They are the voice of integrity, driven by moral purpose, reasoned thinking and balance to save the day with wisdom, clarity and awareness. But there is only so much they can do, despite their best intentions.”

An impressive list of speakers is testament to the urgent need to create a culture of conscious leadership.

Panellists also include Cape Town’s Marlon Parker, founder of Reconstructed Living Labs and an Asoka Fellow; Prof Mervyn King, chairman emeritus of the King Committee on Corporate Governance and Michael Judin, senior partner in the law firm JudinCombrinck Inc.