Dr Alfredo Sfeir-Younis,
Presidential Candidate of Chile,
Former Director of the World Bank,
Special Representative of the United Nations
WGF Men of Extraordinary Excellence
World Growth Forums Magazine May 2022
The Time is Now
By Dr Alfredo Sfeir-Younis
Presidential Candidate of Chile,
Former Director of the World Bank,
Special Representative of the United Nations
World Growth Forums brings to its readers an exclusive interview with Dr. Alfredo Sfeir-Younis, who is a world-renowned Chilean economist, spiritual leader and healer.
He was the candidate for President of the Republic of Chile in 2013.
He is the Founder and President of the Zambuling Institute for Human Transformation.
Before opening the Institute, Dr. Younis had a twenty-nine-year career at the World Bank where he was hired as the World Bank’s first environmental economist in 1976, and later was appointed Director of the World Bank Office in Geneva, Switzerland.
WGF: Please list your achievements.
Dr Younis: The mainstreaming of spirituality into economics, politics, business and public policy making. I have been a pioneer in issues having to do with environment, sustainable development, and human rights (including The Right to Development). My areas of expertise include: forestry, fisheries, land management, climate change, biodiversity, ethics, poverty, property rights. I have written many books and articles.
Become a co-builder of our future, and not a victim of change and transformation.
WGF: What specific have you done towards nation building?
Dr Younis: I was a candidate to the Presidency of Chile (2013), running on a Green Party Platform. I am a leader on public opinion and on issues of development at the national, regional and local levels.
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WGF: What is your vision of a new Chile?
Dr Younis: My vision of Chile is a society truly inclusive and just, with a participatory democracy at all levels. I believe that a sustainable society with an empowered citizenry is possible, where all contribute to peace and prosperity; both, material and spiritual prosperity.
Dr Alfredo Sfeir Younis
Dr Alfredo Juan Sfeir Younis was born in 1947. Alfredo Juan Sfeir-Younis is his Western name. His Eastern name is Dzambling Cho Tab Khen.
He holds a PhD in environmental economics from the University of Wisconsin, USA. He is a Chilean economist, a spiritual leader and a healer. He is also the President of the Zambuling Institute for Human Transformation, which he founded in 2005 (17 years ago) in Washington, DC.
Before opening the Institute, Dr. Younis had a three-decade career at the World Bank where he was hired as the World Bank’s first environmental economist in 1976, and later was appointed Director of the World Bank Office in Geneva, Switzerland.
He served as Special Representative to the United Nations and the World Trade Organization from 1996 to 1999. He regularly participated at the Commission of Human Rights as well as many international meetings on issues related to trade, globalization, indigenous rights, poverty, women and justice both in New York and Geneva.
In both United Nations and the World Trade Organization, Dr. Younis worked in the general fields of human rights, peace and social justice. Within this broader context, he initiated and promoted policy in such areas as poverty eradication, international trade and finance, financing of development, gender and women’s issues, trade and development, role of indigenous peoples, sustainable management of forestry and fisheries, water management and irrigation, desertification, biodiversity, culture and spirituality in sustainable development and alternative medicine.
He has received numerous awards from international organizations, including the Lifetime Ambassador of Peace (2001), Peace and Tolerance Award (2002), World Healer Award (2002), Messenger of Peace (2002), Peace, Mercy and Tolerance Award (2003), Supreme Advisor of the Buddhist Spiritual Forum Award, World Peace Mercy and Tolerance Award (2004), Diamond Peace Award (2005), Peace Ambassador Award (2006), and Planetary Healer Award ( 2020).
Dr Younis was a candidate for the 2013 Presidential election as the leader of the Green Ecologist Party, but lost the election with less than 3% of the total number of votes.
He retired after 29 years of service from the World Bank where he was the focal point for human rights. His last position was Senior Advisor to the Managing Directors, and the Institutional Focal Point on human rights. He developed a new paradigm based on the linkages between spirituality and economics, and on the role that values play in decision-making processes, both nationally and globally.
Recognized as a healer and spiritual authority by many masters from different faiths, Dr. Younis publishes and lectures worldwide on spirituality and global issues.
WGF: Please describe yourself as a person.
Dr Younis: Now, at 74 years of age, my purpose in life is to Heal the Planet, to share all my experiences, and to achieve my highest level of consciousness. A quiet and productive soul, dedicated to others. I’m systematic, love-driven and happy with inner peace and outer joy.
WGF: What is your inspiration in life?
Dr Younis: To construct a planetary society for the benefit of all future generations. A society that self-realizes its state of total interdependence. A society where the inner is like the outer, and the outer is like the inner.
WGF: What is your success story?
Dr Younis: To contribute with the smallest grain of salt to expand collective consciousness for the benefit of all forms of life. I believe what I did professionally at the World Bank, for nearly 30 years was a success story.
WGF: Please share some challenges you have faced in life.
Dr Younis: I was an environmentalist when nobody was. This implied a tremendous effort to ring the issue into the public domain. Starting from scratch is not easy, but it was extremely rewarding.
The spiritual path towards the self-realization of my individual and collective Dharma is my daily challenge; a happy and rewarding challenge.
WGF: What reforms do you think must be brought into your field of work?
Dr Younis: The reforms of all the multilateral institutions.
Clean all the oceans of the world, establish a feasible and sustainable style of life on the planet, for the benefit of future generations.
WGF: What reforms would make a new Chile?
Dr Younis: • A new Constitution
• Ecosystem management
• Clean all our waters and protect the glaciers
• Mayor reforms to become a more equal and just society
• Total decentralization
• Empower all citizens
WGF: What message would you like to give to people in general as a nation builder?
Dr Younis: The time is now! Become a co-builder of our future, and not a victim of change and transformation.
