The world’s young tech and Web 2.0 guru’s have featured prominently in the World Economic Forum’s annual list of Young Global Leaders, announced Wednesday.
Each year between 200 and 300 outstanding young leaders from around the world are recognised for their professional accomplishments and contributions to society.
This year the World Economic Forum has nominated leaders from 71 countries, including seven Australians. Amongst celebrities like Coldplay’s Chris Martin and F1 veteran Michael Schumacher, the list includes many technology and Internet industry identities.
Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Digg founder Kevin Rose, co-founder and CEO of You Tube Chad Hurley and Skype CEO Josh Silverman, have all been honoured this year.
Locally, CEO of seek.com.au Paul Bassat and co-founder of Atlassian Software Systems Michael Cannon-Brooks were among those who received honours.
Twenty-nine-year-old Cannon-Brooks who co-founded Australian software company Atlassian seven years ago, said it was a big honour to be included in this year’s list.
“I’m looking forward to meeting the other leaders and having discussions about how we can make a real difference in the world,” he said.
Drawn from a list of around 5,000 candidates, the Young Global Leaders 2009 were chosen by a special selection committee.
The leaders convene at biannual summits, as well as World Economic Forum events and meetings, and collaborate on initiatives to tackle the challenges of their generation.
A full list of this year’s honourees can be found here.
