Dejan Štancer: “There is only one planet Earth and it feeds all of us”

The president of the Global Chamber of Business Leaders talks about himself in an exclusive interview, among pandemic, future goals and global warming

There is a man who has made ethical business, corporate social responsibility, enlightened lobbying activities at the European Union (the Commission as well as the Parliament between Brussels and Strasbourg, attended since 2010…) and the fight against climate change as real reasons for life.
Current president of the Global Chamber of Business Leaders association based in Washington in the United States of America, Dejan Štancer is of Slovenian origin and boasts a respectable entrepreneurial curriculum, developed in various regions of the world, but above all in the native Balkans and the “conquered” Asia Minor.
One of his great feathers in the cap is, and will remain, the foundation of the Kazakh-Slovenian Business Club (KSBC), an economic development body of which he was the Secretary General for five years and of which he still remains the President, having attracted to himself, by the end of 2019, around one hundred legal entities from 16 different countries.
Not surprisingly, in a particularly prolific 2020 of new assignments and personal achievements, he was appointed Senior Advisor of the large technological investment project Balkans Skopje Technology Park (STP), supported by the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia, and concluded a partnership agreement with the Foundation of the Indian billionaire Shiv Khemka.

“Fluent in nine different languages (English, German, Russian, Italian, Spanish, Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian and Kazakh), as well as his mother tongue Slovenian, he is a consultant for companies, governments and industries all over the planet, a global ambassador for the Association of Business Women in Commerce and Industry, holder of the Entrepreneurs Sport Generation (ESG) license for Central and South-Eastern Europe and a conflict resolution “diplomat” for the Peaceful Mind Foundation, a subject for which he shows great sensitivity.
Dejan Štancer is therefore the right person not only to be introduced to the secrets of the Global Chamber of Business Leaders, represented in Switzerland by the association Swiss Federalism and its CEO Andrea Schenone, but also to discuss the evolution of a planet Earth in full emergency.

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What is the Global Chamber of Business Leaders and how would you describe it to someone who didn’t know about it?
“The Global Chamber of Business Leaders is a coalition of government leaders, CEOs and executives, entrepreneurs, investors, and business and industry leaders who share a common vision: sustainable prosperity and business growth in a disruptive and changing global economy. The Global Chamber of Business Leaders prioritizes activities that align with the Decade of Action declared by the United Nations, promoting the importance of incorporating the Sustainable Development Goals into the business models of the future, enabling our partners, members and participants to prepare their companies to be vanguards of the future. In addition to all this, at GCBL during the global pandemic of COVID-19, we sensitized our members, partners and all stakeholders in business processes to business ethics, as well as solidarity and heart, thus not just profit for its own sake. And it is this latter approach that probably puts the Global Chamber of Business Leaders at the top of the organizations most involved in this type of activity.”

What are the specific and, in a sense, personal goals of Dejan Štancer’s presidency?
“The answer to that last question might best be sought from those I lead, from my staff to my colleagues. Personally, however, I think I am judicious, analytical and fair. At the same time, I am focused on achieving goals that are set fairly high, with the result that they and I often have to really strive for success. My personal goals are intertwined with the goals of the organization I lead, to which I am fully committed. Personally, I know from experience that goal synchronicity is the only path to success for the organization you lead, as well as for your own personal happiness….” 

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What will be the elements of continuity and reversal within the association, compared to the past, in the coming months?
“Personally, I would prefer to use the term ‘progress’ as well as ‘discontinuity’. Any kind of gradualness that contributes to the progress of the people who make up the organization, and especially the progress of our members and partners, is for me the right and only progress. The beginning of my term was marked by the COVID-19 virus pandemic, which completely destroyed all previous plans for the further development of GCBL. Internal consolidation and some changes were needed, and today we have a stable and strong organization that faces the challenges of this complicated period and is fully prepared for the challenges of the future. Some structural changes will soon take place within the Global Chamber of Business Leaders, followed by some adjustments in personnel: all with the aim of further increasing the efficiency of GCBL’s operational structures.”

What are the selection criteria for the various national delegates and what are their tasks and activities to be carried out in their respective areas?
“At GCBL, we have leadership structured on a multitude of levels. At the national level in the various countries, the highest representatives of the Global Chamber of Business Leaders are the delegates. The criteria for their selection and appointment to this important function are quite high. They are appointed for a period of two years, with the possibility of extending the term, but of course only on the basis of positive results. In addition to a high level of integrity, they are also required to have experience in managing teams and taking care of human resources, as well as some specific experience and awareness of what entrepreneurship is all about. Last but not least, it is crucial that delegates share a common vision of GCBL’s path and development.”

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To what extent and to what end do you fit in the wake of the UN-declared Decade of Action?
“The 2030 Agenda is a global goal of the United Nations to eradicate poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all by 2030. At the Global Chamber of Business Leaders, we ensure that all of our work helps achieve these goals. As you know, GCBL’s core mission is to create strong business streams and networks through which to help direct investment and create jobs around the world, which certainly contributes to the UN’s fundamental goal of poverty reduction. Even we at the Global Chamber of Business Leaders are under no illusions that the goals set will be achieved, especially by 2030, as the latter timeframe has proven impossible. However, if we strive to achieve these goals and act as if we will achieve them by the deadline, we would certainly get very close to the goal. However, we must recognize that in a time of global pandemic, which has shown so much inequality and unethical functioning of health systems, we cannot even dream of achieving goal number three, ‘Good Health’, for example. The same goes for other goals set out in the 2030 Agenda. By creating large global networks of entrepreneurs, stimulating business activity in an ethical, corruption-free way, dealing with sustainable development, and, of course, creating and implementing products to combat climate change, or at least a reduction in it, we will get a lot closer to the goals of the 2030 Agenda. And that’s one of the main goals of the GCBL.”

You mentioned that GCBL, in its essence, also focuses on climate change awareness: can you tell us more about that?
“Since its inception, the Global Chamber of Business Leaders has focused on climate change as one of its most important goals. We’re aware that for decades people have been talking about action on climate change, but also that there has been substantially little done: there hasn’t been a systematic approach, to tell you the truth. Debates about fossil fuels and alternative energy sources have become a constant, yet very little is still being done. In all areas related to climate change, we are lagging behind, but nature is already showing us that it will become more and more implacable and that it will claim more and more victims from year to year among people: unfortunately, many people will lose their lives in floods, fires, earthquakes and other natural disasters. And, at the same time, we will lose more and more sources of livelihood, which will cause hunger and new suffering. Let me give just one example. Global carbon dioxide emissions have increased 60 percent since 1990, and this year, in 2021, we expect them to increase again after last year’s decline due to the Coronavirus. This shows that political leaders don’t understand, or won’t understand, that action is needed now. The world urgently needs a systemic shift, as we have essentially moved away from renewable energy sources around the world, increasing our use of fossil fuels again. Sometimes I just can’t get over how so many people still fail to understand that we only have one planet available to us to live on, and that we have a great responsibility to our children and grandchildren.”

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What differentiates this business community from other similar ones that exist around the world?
“Most likely the fact that we strongly promote cooperation and trade between countries, nations and people, and that we foster the creation of strong economic networks that are as independent as possible from day-to-day politics, including geopolitics; similarly, we are not only focused on the profits that business brings, but also on doing business in an ethically impeccable manner. As I have mentioned several times, we are pushing for sustainability and ‘green’ solutions, as it is our firm belief that this is the only way forward.”

How do you see the economy of the planet, and particularly that of Europe where you come from, in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic?
“Like anything, these pandemics will eventually end. The global economy is doing quite well even during the current spread of the virus, which is somewhat surprising, but there are also no signs of major upheavals for the future. The growth trend is likely to continue, with sectors currently on standby, such as tourism, set to strengthen. The changes of the past two years have also brought many opportunities that will only multiply as the epidemic ends. Europe is part of the global trends, fully involved in the globalization processes, so I don’t see any major deviations in this context even in the post-crisis period. Of course, there is awareness that economic crises are cyclical: it will therefore be very appropriate to start preparing for new challenges immediately after the pandemic, following the return to a ‘new normal’, including many natural disasters, which could also trigger a further economic downturn.”

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Are you planning thematic events or conferences around the world? If so, when and where, as well as on what topics?
“Global events organized by the Global Chamber of Business Leaders certainly bring tremendous opportunities for our members and partners, so we are planning several in the future. As you know, we were unfortunately forced to cancel the GCBL Annual Summit, which was supposed to be a truly spectacular happening held in an elite location in Washignton, USA. Like many things, the onset of the pandemic and subsequent resurgence of the virus completely prevented the event from taking place, but that didn’t stop us from planning it anyway: we just postponed it until 2022, when we hope the situation will have normalized. Next year, we plan to organize at least two more exceptional happenings, where we expect guests from all over the world: the first in the spring of 2022 in Europe, and the second in the middle of summer in Africa. In addition, as mentioned above, we plan to hold the annual GCBL summit in the fall of next year. It is destined to become a regular opportunity for discussion of the highest priority. It will be organized with the greatest possible economic and political participation, and each year in a different place on the planet…”.

Finally, a curiosity: we know that you personally as well as the other special consultants of the Global Chamber of Business Leaders help and provide ad hoc suggestions to some important global personalities. What can you tell us about this?
“At GCBL, we have also focused on advising political and business leaders. The fact is that if we want to achieve the goals of the UN Agenda 2030, we need solutions and systemic change, and only the highest-ranking political and business leaders hold the key to enabling these changes. With our team and my colleagues, we therefore also help the highest representatives of nation states, such as Presidents and Prime Ministers, in transitioning their countries’ social systems on the path to job creation and poverty reduction, creating a universe of opportunities and, most importantly, pursuing sustainable development.”

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