G20 Summit 2009

The G20 Summit 2009 will be held on September 24th to the 25th in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This is a great opportunity for the world to see Pittsburgh in a new light rather than the “smoky city” image of the past. It’s unfortunate that even to this day many people from outside of Pittsburgh still have that image.

Pittsburgh Skyline by JCardinal18

For those of us who know, Pittsburgh has made an incredible transformation over the years. This summit is an opportunity for Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors from countries including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, United Kingdom and the United States to see how Pittsburgh has emerged to become the world class city it is today.

Of course the G20 members will be in Pittsburgh to discuss key issues in the global economy. On a personal level, many people can certainly relate to how their retirement plan was affected by the economy and the recession over the last two years.

While a recovery can certainly help to ease some of the pain, the fact of the matter is that someday it will happen again. Hopefully, some people will take action and determine what changes can be made in their retirement plan to protect their retirement savings from another market decline or bear market.

Pittsburgh is much different than it was decades ago. In much the same way, we as individuals are different after we make it through a time of difficult financial circumstances.

While a discussion about key issues in the global economy is necessary, it is not sufficient. Just like a discussion about key issues pertaining to retirement and retirement planning is necessary, it is not sufficient.

Will a discussion about relevant issues in our economy influence financial decision-making such that people actually begin to take action?