The 2019 World Economic Forum began today with the release of the 19th annual Edelman Trust Barometer. The survey is a popular longitudinal gauge on the state of global leadership across government, corporations, NGOs and media.

If you want to understand the rise of populism around the world, this index is a good place to start.

Edelman’s own headline from the report is the growing trust inequality (16 points) between informed citizens and the wider public (you can read Edelman’s methodology here).

This inequality is leading to impatience.

From the report:

“Despite the divergence in trust between the informed public and mass population the world is united on one front—all share an urgent desire for change. Only one in five feels that the system is working for them, with nearly half of the mass population believing that the system is failing them.”

Other numbers that jumped out at me:

Women trust institutions “to do what is right” less than men.
The findings were consistent across business, NGOs, government and media.

There is a 20-point gap in trust between the informed public and general population in Canada, the highest-ever in the index’s history. And, something that could present a challenge for Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party in the federal election.

Over three fourths (76 per cent) of respondents say CEOs should take the lead on change rather than wait for government to impose it, up 11 per cent from last year. The majority think these CEOs can create change in issues like equal pay, prejudice and discrimination, training for the jobs of tomorrow and the environment.

They also think (71 per cent) it’s critically important for their CEOs to respond to challenges, like industry issues (how automation will change jobs), political events (how elections will impact companies) and national crises.

I immediately thought of Marc Benioff, the founder and co-CEO of Salesforce, as an example of this after he campaigned for a tax on businesses to fight homelessness in San Francisco last November.

Trust in media is up globally, but it remains the least-trusted institution. There is a notable increase in Americans’ trust in media, but that mostly comes from self-identified Democrats, with increasing distrust coming from Republicans.

In the culminating days of Brexit, U.K. citizens are increasingly placing their trust in the European Union (EU). However, “remainers” shouldn’t expect a referendum to be a cakewalk, with the majority of Brits still not trusting the EU.   

Edelman’s Canadian Trust Barometer—which takes a deep dive on the country’s own index—will be released February 14.