Washington, DC — February 3, 2026 — WGES Global™, a U.S.-founded, nonprofit NGO, today briefed media and industry leaders at the National Press Club on the upcoming WGES Global™ 2026 International Symposium, to be held May 19–21, 2026, in Athens, Greece.
The briefing highlighted an opportunity for U.S. and Greek businesses, academic institutions, investors, and technical experts to collaborate, exchange knowledge, and engage on real-world projects across sustainability, public health, advanced technologies, and economic systems.
The briefing followed Greece’s official announcement confirming Athens as host of the 2026 symposium and was designed to provide context and clarity regarding the purpose, structure, and international collaboration framework of the event.
Founded in the United States in 2009, WGES Global™ has convened for more than fifteen years. “WGES Global provides a structured space where U.S. and international partners can exchange information, align expertise, and explore collaboration on projects that are already taking shape.” stated Professor Robert Gallagher, President WGES Global, Inc.
"WGES Global™ is designed as a working convening — prioritizing dialogue, implementation pathways, collaboration and long-term relationships for outcome based resullts."
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The WGES Global Athens 2026 International Symposium venue will be hosted under the distinguished hospitality of the Holy Synod of Greece at the Cultural Center in Kolonaki, Athens, reflecting strong institutional support for international dialogue and education.
The University of West Attica, one of Greece’s largest public universities, serves as Academic Coordinator for WGES Global™ 2026, supporting the symposium’s academic framework, interdisciplinary research engagement, and knowledge exchange. Together, the U.S. and Greek teams reflect the symposium’s transatlantic structure and its emphasis on continuity, credibility, and practical collaboration.
WGES Global™ 2026 will convene discussions across five sectors where U.S. expertise and international collaboration intersect in practical ways:
These focus areas reflect a global emphasis on execution, systems integration, and measurable outcomes, rather than policy debate or advocacy.
WGES Global™ 2026 will focus on five strategic sectors where U.S. expertise is globally respected and increasingly sought after.
First, sustainable building technologies and infrastructure performance, including advanced materials, digital systems, efficiency, resilience, and modernization. Infrastructure is aging worldwide, and performance now matters as much as design.
Second, public health, biotechnology, and AI-enabled resilience. Sustainability is ultimately about people. Health security, diagnostics, bioscience innovation, applied AI, and food and agriculture — particularly urban sustainability — will all be featured as they directly connect public health and economic stability.
Third, clean and existing energy technologies focused on reliability and resilience. The global conversation has moved from ideology to systems — grid stability, storage, efficiency, hydrogen, and integrated solutions. WGES Global does not advocate specific technologies; we convene those who build dependable systems.
Fourth, investors and growth capital aligned with deployment. This is not about speculation. It is about capital moving toward infrastructure, scalability, and long-term value creation. WGES Global brings operators and investors together with shared expectations.
And fifth, blue economy technologies — including ports, shipping, water security, coastal infrastructure, logistics, and resilience. These are no longer niche issues; they are economic imperatives. Greece’s geographic and maritime position makes it a natural convening point for this discussion.
Top experts from the industry from U.S. and Greek will serve as participants and contributors, as well as academic leaders and government stakeholders who are engaged in health, energy, and infrastructure modernization. The names are listed on the WGES Global website which will continue to be announced on a rolling basis.
For U.S. participants, WGES Global™ 2026 offers a structured environment to:
What: WGES Global™ 2026 International Symposium
Where: Athens, Greece
When: May 19–21, 2026
Venue Hosted by: Holy Synod of Greece, Cultural Center – Kolonaki
Academic Coordinator: University of West Attica
About WGES Global™
Founded in 2009, WGES Global™ is a U.S.-founded, non-political, nonprofit international NGO that convenes leaders from academia, business, industry, and the public sector to exchange knowledge and collaborate on deployable solutions related to sustainability, public health, and economic vitality. The organization emphasizes education, integrity, and outcomes rather than advocacy or promotion.
For additional information and program updates, visit www.WGESGlobal.com.
Media Contact
WGES Global™, Inc.
Professor Robert J. Gallagher
Copyright © 2009 - 2030 All Rights Reserved. WGES Global™ is the original World Green Energy Symposium founded in 2009. It is an independent U.S. nonprofit and is not affiliated with any similarly named commercial events.
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