Not just WEF host; Davos boasts of innovation, medical and obviously skiing

Davos is also home to the World Radiation Center WRC, which was founded as the Physical Meteorological Observatory Davos PMOD in 1907 and has a mandate from the World Meteorological Organization to maintain the world standard reference for solar radiation measurements.Particularly appropriately, given its alpine setting, Davos is also home to the WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research, which employs 140 researchers and technical staff from around the world to study snow and its interaction with the atmosphere.Another major scientific organization based in Davos is the recently opened Lab42.

With its snow-clad streets and buildings and sub-zero temperature setting, this small town has much more to boast of than just being a host for the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting.

As the annual powwow of the global elite got underway here, Davos native Mat Morgan says the much talked about 'Spirit of Davos' is not an apparition, it plays a key role in this small town of just about 10,000 people having been so successful in hosting such huge summits.

At over 2,500 metres above sea level -- the highest for any town on the Alps, the nature plays a key role by making participants of these high-profile summits feel that they are a small part of a whole and that makes it easier to find compromises and otherwise unimaginable solutions, he said.

For residents and businessmen of the town, the WEF and other summits mean the much-awaited revenue windfall brought in by thousands of participants and their delegations.

According to local estimates, the summit brings in about USD 60 million of windfall revenue to this small town, which otherwise mainly depends on ski tourism.

According to the Swiss government, the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum is one of the most important economic and socio-political events in the world and hosting it for exchanging views and seeking solutions to world problems is very positive and continues Switzerland's longstanding tradition of serving as a host country for international conferences and gatherings.

''A great many jobs in Davos depend on the economic benefits of conferences and other events, and the people of Davos have repeatedly expressed their support for hosting the WEF Annual Meeting in a number of popular votes,'' the Swiss government said.

Davos also has a strong foundation in science and innovation and has been known as a centre for scientific excellence for more than 100 years. Known for traditional winter sport and mountain activities, it has also hosted the Spengler Cup – said to be the oldest ice hockey tournament in the world – almost every year since 1923.

By 2030, the town is set to become Switzerland's first climate-neutral destination with all guests and businesses jointly funding the myclimate Climate Fund Davos, which supports carbon emission-reducing projects in the resort.

It also has a strong medical reputation, immortalised by Thomas Mann's fictional portrayal of the town's sanatoriums for tuberculosis sufferers in the early 1900s.

Today, one of the medical organizations based there is the not-for-profit the AO Research Institute aims to advance orthopaedic patient care through innovative research and development.

With a global network of more than 460,000 healthcare professions, the AO seeks to improve patient outcomes in the treatment of trauma and musculoskeletal disorders.

Each year, the AO hosts its AO Davos Courses, which in 2022 saw participants and faculty from 77 countries to teach, learn and experience how the future of surgery is digital.

Elsewhere in the medical sphere, the alpine town also homes the Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF). Davos is also home to the World Radiation Center (WRC), which was founded as the Physical Meteorological Observatory Davos (PMOD) in 1907 and has a mandate from the World Meteorological Organization to maintain the world standard reference for solar radiation measurements.

Particularly appropriately, given its alpine setting, Davos is also home to the WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research, which employs 140 researchers and technical staff from around the world to study snow and its interaction with the atmosphere.

Another major scientific organization based in Davos is the recently opened Lab42. This global artificial intelligence (AI) research lab aims to create human-level AI for humankind and improve quality of life on a global scale.