The only problem is that you have to register to attend, and you have three choices. You can register as a corporate participant for $1,000; as a member of a nonprofit, academic, or government organization for $500; or as a student for $250. I'm personally disappointed that there isn't a choice here to attend as a member of the blogging media. As a blogger, I consider myself a member of the media, which reports to the citizenry. I was told, however, that the only provision that could be made for me was to allow me to register and attend as a student. (I'm not sure if general press passes are available or not.)
Allen White, one of the organizers of the Summit, has written an engaging paper on the need at this time in history to “rewrite the social contract” between business, government, and the citizenry. The reason is that our problems, from global warming to the rising cost of health care, are so complex and pressing that neither one of these institutions can go it alone. All sectors of society need to come together in rethinking the contract, he writes.
I'm sure the entire event next month will be filled with high-minded discussions along the lines White has laid out. It seems a shame that a place hasn't been set aside for modern-day representatives of the citizenry to report about them.
