In September 2025, George and Joel travelled to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to attend the inaugural Cultural Investment Conference. Our first time in the kingdom, we were very impressed by the warm welcome and the organization of the conference. We met ministers, partners and an interesting crowd of people who are all doing their part in furthering culture across the globe. We did manage to see some sites in Riyadh and liked the strong ties to their cultural heritage, which comes back in architecture and a new found love for the arts. The scale of what this country is building is ambitious and should be seen as a force to be reckoned with in the future.
Below is George’s keynote speech for the plenary session.
