A rarefied air: a dispatch from Davos

Hey, Ryan Reynolds here for Mint Mobile. You know, one of the perks about having four kids that you know about is actually getting a direct line to the big man up north. And this year he wants you to know the best gift that you can give someone is the gift of Mint Mobile's unlimited wireless for $15 a month. Now you don't even need to wrap it. Give it a try@mintmobile.com Switch upfront payment.

Of $45 for a three month plan equivalent to $15 per month. Required new customer offer for first three months only. Speed slow after 35 gigabytes. If network's busy, taxes and fees extra. See mintmobile.com.

Hello and welcome to the Intelligence from the Economist. In New York, I'm John Fastman.

And in London, I'm Jason Palmer. Every weekday we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

Noma, one of the world's most innovative restaurants, recently announced that it would close at the end of next year, sparking questions about the future and sustainability of high end fine dining.

And there aren't many stories in which an expert forger is a hero. But as our obituary's editor explains, Adolfo Kaminski was exactly that. A teen prodigy in the art of faking documents that saved thousands of Jews in Nazi occupied France. But first, This week, the rich and powerful have made their annual pilgrimage to Davos. The World Economic Forum's jamboree of free market thought leaders has plenty to wrestle with. Conflict in Ukraine, inflation wobbling energy markets spreading economic protectionism. For both politicians and business leaders, it's a fraught time. So Zanny Minton Beddoes, our editor in chief, trekked up to take part in perhaps the world's fanciest talking shop.

I've spent the past few days in Davos, which is most of the year, a Swiss mountain resort to which thousands of the world's movers and shakers come for one week. When I arrived, it was snowing, it was cold, and the town itself is really built along one main road, the Promenade. And, and in the middle of the promenade is a large congress center, which is where all of the official action of the World Economic Forum takes place. But along both ends of the Promenade, the what I assume are usually, you know, hairdressing salons, bakers, shops are taken over by all manner of governments and big companies. So when I walk from my hotel, which is a lovely little ski hotel, along the promenade, I pass the India Inclusivity Lounge, the Malaysia House, the Ukraine House, and I get tons of exercise because I spend my dive walking between meetings. You know, this is a cliche now, but it really is a very small place into which thousands of people who I think would not ordinarily be wandering around in snow boots walk along this road. So inside all of these meetings is a sort of generalized buzz of a lot of people from all over the world coming together and meeting each other, trying to grab seats to have a quick conversation. It's like sort of adult speed dating and it feels a bit over caffeinated and a little bit of are you in the right place at the right time? There is so much going on here. I think there's a lot of FOMO amongst a lot of people wondering about whether they're in the right place at the right time.

So in this scene of over caffeinated speed dating, what was the mood like?

So one of the things that struck me this week is I was expecting a sense of gloom and pessimism. This divorce was taking place when the world economy had just been hit by huge shocks, right? The invasion of Ukraine, obviously the energy price shock, high inflation. Lots and lots of economists forecast in the last three weeks or so saying that inflation was very likely in many parts of the world this year. But actually there is, I think among the business people there's a surprising sense of optimism that actually maybe Europe can dodge a recession, that the US may dodge a recession. And particularly because of China's opening. The Chinese Vice Premier Liu, he arrived for I think 23 hours with a considerable contingent of Chinese officials and gave a very upbeat speech about China being open for business, clearly a charm offensive. And I think that combination of the sense that China is going to bounce back this year, plus given the shops, maybe more countries might dodge recession, has given amongst the business people, I think a sense of surprising optimism.

So those are the kind of emergent themes, but what's formally on the agenda? What are people actually here to talk about?

So the official theme this year was cooperation in a fragmented world, which is a pretty broad phrase but actually quite accurate because I think everybody realizes that the new post pandemic era is quite different to the world that we had before the pandemic. It's different because of the growing strategic rivalry between the US and China. It's different because countries are focusing much more on industrial industrial policy. It's much more of a zero sum world and it's a different world actually because there are now accelerated new technologies. There was a lot of talk here about how things like ChatGPT could be harnessed. What that meant for the future of work. And so overlaying all of this, I think people realize we're in a new world. They're not quite sure what it is. There isn't yet an anodyne Davos phrase for it. But underlying it was a lot of this short term optimism that we talked about, Jason, but a sense of disquiet about what does this new world really look like? And is it a world in which the kind of cooperation that Davos espouses can really continue?

And amid all of those different topics, was there anything that sort of bubbled to the top? A single issue in particular?

You know, one of the striking things about this gathering is actually most of the real work, most of the real impact takes place away from the cameras, away from these big, slightly staged discussions in the Congress center, and between individuals, at meetings, behind closed doors, cocktail parties, at the private events. That's where people really have their conversations. And I think those conversations are on a huge number of topics. But there was an awful lot of discussion about what China's reopening means, a lot of discussion about the whole energy market, where that is going, and of course, what is happening in Ukraine. And I think amongst the political leaders who were here, and Olaf Scholz was the only G7 leader here, a lot of conversation about, and actually a lot of questioning of Germany's reluctance to supply tanks.

So this is all timely, useful conversation. Those of us down at sea level understand Davos to be just a sort of talking shop for the elites, without much relevance to the wider world.

Look, that's a widely held and frankly, somewhat reasonable criticism. And I think if you listen to the public statements from Davos, it is full of platitudes. And it is kind of ridiculous that a bunch of rich people trek up to this fancy resort and make big, sweeping remarks about how to make the world a better place. But that said, I'm sort of reluctant to be too cynical about this, because I do think there is a usefulness in having people come together to talk. And all of these conversations that take place, they are conversations that are useful to have, particularly given the fragmented state of the world today. And if you didn't have something like Davos, you would probably want to invent it, because more talking is better than less talking right now.

Okay, clearly talking is better than not talking. But must all of this happen at a snazzy Swiss ski resort?

I completely take your point. It's a ridiculous place to have it, particularly at a time when the economy is in such a tough position. You have very rich people trekking to a ski resort. It's absurd in lots of ways. But underpinning it, this notion that you have people talking to each other is actually really important. And it's quite hard to replicate this network effect.

So that is to say that Davos is the important, the high star power event that it always was and needs to be.

I think the challenge that Davos faces is not just a PR challenge. It's that it clearly is not the place where politicians, where global leaders feel they have to come and where actually big political breakthroughs are made. In years past, that used to be the case, but this time, Joe Biden is not here, Xi Jinping is not here, Macron is not here, Rishi Sunak's not here. And I think that's partly because it is really faintly toxic for political leaders to come here. And so I think that does raise a question. If you don't have the politicians, for how long can this place continue to attract all of the CEOs? If it basically just becomes a business leaders gathering, that's somewhat different to the kind of pretensions that it has. And so I do think its star maybe well be fading. That doesn't mean that what happens here is not useful.

So with that, what will you be thinking about as you get ready to leave?

So I spend most of my time here having interviews and meetings with people who I would have to go on a very long plane ride to go and see. So it's just incredibly efficient. And what I hope to come away with is a lot of ideas. I hope to come away much better informed with what's going on in lots of different parts of the world and ideas about what people are thinking, what we ought to be writing about. Jason, what you ought to be having on the intelligence, what are the kinds of big questions that we ought to try and help our readers and listeners answer? So there are three of my colleagues here with me. We have a big sit down and we say, okay, what are the big ideas that we've learned here? And, and hopefully they will inform and improve our coverage over the next few months.

Zanny, thanks very much for joining us.

You are very welcome, Jason. Look forward to seeing you on Sea Level next week.

To hear more about some of these big ideas, like the shifting trends in globalization, be sure to listen to this week's episode of Money Talks, our sister show on business, finance and economics. It's available wherever you find your podcasts.

Noma is a restaurant in Copenhagen, one of the most celebrated in the world. Some say it's the best ever. The restaurant at number one, the best restaurant in Europe and also the world's best restaurant 2012 is Noma. Rene Recife and the team, congratulations once again.

Barclay Bram is an assistant producer on the Intelligence and he's also a trained chef.

Nomu was rated the top restaurant in the world by World's 50 Best five times, and it was granted the coveted three Michelin stars. But after two decades, it's now set to close its doors to the public.

Tell me more about it. Tell me more about Noma.

Noma pioneered a type of cooking which is called New Nordic. Reni Redzepi, the head chef, is Danish Italian. And part of the mythology of Noma, which he has talked about a lot, is that he didn't think fine dining had to be tied into this really French gastronomic tradition. He wanted to build a restaurant that spoke to the part of the world that he grew up in, Scandinavia. And this translated into a $500 tasting menu that served dishes like Scandinavian beetle made of berry leathers and black garlic and seared reindeer served on pine needles. The restaurant did away with ingredients like tomatoes, as they weren't local to Copenhagen.

But you say it's shutting its doors.

That's right. The restaurant is turning itself into a giant lab, becoming, as they describe, a pioneering test kitchen dedicated to the work of food innovation and the development of new flavors. In essence, it's going to become a restaurant without customers. And this decision really tells us a lot about the future of fine dining.

How do you mean?

Well, to find out more, I went to meet with Dr. Johnny Drain. Dr. Johnny Drain is a chef with a PhD in material sciences from Oxford University.

In front of us, we have a chocolate melanger which is grinding the fats and the sugars and the mass that you would find in chocolate down to a grain size of between 20 to 25 microns. And that's so that we create this incredibly smooth, silky mouthfeel. Anything above 30 microns would be perceived as gritty. We are making an alternative to chocolate, a cacao free chocolate. And the reason we're doing that is that there are some very grave and severe problems within the chocolate and cocoa supply chains. There's lots of slave labor, child labor, and deforestation, which is causing problems for biodiversity. And we want to shake up the world of chocolate and provide an alternative that will compel large chocolate companies that are responsible in part for some of these devastating effects to shift their behavior. And we want to raise consumer awareness around these Issues in the chocolate supply chain.

You did a PhD and then you worked in some of the top restaurants in the world. What did that experience teach you?

I came out of a science lab and into kitchens, working sometimes even as a pot wash through to being a chef, and then working in these R and D kitchens in some of the world's best restaurants, places with 1, 2, 3 Michelin stars. They are very different worlds. When you're a chef or you're in a kitchen, you don't have much time time, you don't have much space. And there is an awful lot of pressure that you don't have in a, in a lab. And I think there is an intensity that those sorts of kitchens provide, which drive innovation. They drive people to sometimes find quick hacks to solve problems, but also to just burrow down these rabbit holes of flavor to find these things that will impress diners out front.

And what are some of the innovations that have come out of fine dining restaurants?

If we look at the last 15 to 20 years, you know, you might look at a restaurant like El Buli, which definitely popularized the use of these things we called hydrocolloids, so lots of xanthan gum that they would make foams and gels with. Large scale food producers were already using those, but that definitely brought those sorts of ingredients in. So then less fine dining kitchens and now into people's homes. In more recent years, many more people doing things like making vinegars, lacto fermenting, growing fungus, making their own cheese, sourdough. And all of these things have trickled down from finding dining restaurants in many ways into people's homes. Although of course, all of those things I've just described were rooted in very sort of folk culinary traditions.

So, Barclay, tell me what NOMA did with these traditions that's so special in cooking.

It's rare that there is such a thing as true innovation. Fermentation, for example, has existed almost as long as there have been human beings. But what NOMA did was build a huge fermentation lab, having some of the world's top chefs and culinary scientists working full time on pushing this technique. So it became less about the simple act of preserving food and instead a vehicle for creating new flavors.

This sounds more like the direction that NOMA is heading in now that it's closing its doors. Is it the only restaurant of its kind that's closing?

No, it's not just NOMA that's closing. David Kinch just closed his three star Michelin restaurant, Manresa in California, saying that the gilded age of Fine dining is over.

What does he mean by the Gilded Age?

The culture of fine dining has long been seen as toxic. There have been plenty of scandals. NOMA alumni Blaine Wetzel's Willows Inn is a great example of this. It was subject last year to a scathing profile in the New York Times alleging bullying and sexual abuse of staff, amongst other issues. And at the time, Mr. Wetzel denied the substance of most of the allegations. He said they had saddened him and that he worked to be a kind and caring employer. But the restaurant ultimately closed, mired in lawsuits. And an investigation last year by the Financial Times claimed that Noma's kitchen was almost 50% unpaid interns, or stagieres, as they are called in the industry. NOMA has disputed the characterization of their stage program, saying that for 20 years Noma's interns have gained valuable experience, and for many it has served as a giant stepping stone in their career. But the reality is, when NOMA decided to start paying their interns last year, their costs shot up by $50,000 a month. And it's unclear how many of the top restaurants in the world would have to close if they also started to pay all of their unpaid stagiers, which tells you a lot about the precarious nature of the industry. Redzepi alluded to this in his announcement, saying that the whole industry had become unsustainable.

And Barclay have you eaten at noma?

No, actually, I haven't. Unfortunately, the Economist was not willing to expense flights and a $500 meal for the sake of this piece. But I was a chef in London for a number of years, even though I haven't been to Copenhagen and I haven't eaten at noma, in many ways, the kind of cooking that is done at NOMA has highly influenced many of the top kitchens in the world, including those in London. So even though I've never been to noma, in some senses, I have definitely touched dishes that have come from Noma, including, for example, Dr. Johnny Drain's cacao free chocolate. And so maybe the way of thinking about these restaurants is similar to, say, driving a Formula One car. You and I may never drive a Formula One car, and we probably couldn't actually drive a Formula One car even if we wanted to. But we drive around in normal cars made safe because of ABS brakes. And in the same way, you can see with maybe pioneering fashions that are on the runways that you and I probably would never wear, but that slowly trickle down into the things that we find fashionable and cool, there is a place for these pinnacles, these ultimate expressions of a form. And so maybe that is actually what the role of fine dining is in the end, that pursuit of perfection, that ultimate expression of craft that are not necessarily how normal people need to enjoy or engage with that thing.

All right, Barclay, thanks so much for joining us today.

Thank you very much.

In occupied France in 1944, as in many other countries, Jews were being rounded up to be sent to the death camps.

Ann Roe is the Economist's obituaries editor.

The only way to avoid death was to have forged papers proving that you were not a Jew, but a Gentile. And the very best maker of such forged papers is in Paris. Then was Adolfo Kaminski. He was only 18, but he was working with a group called La Cesiem in an attic. They were all together mixing chemicals and trying to reduce the number of Jewish references on identity cards, on food ration cards, baptismal certificates, marriage certificates. Most of the time they were making them brand new. He could press paper and layer it. He could do the photo engraving to give the impression of watermarks. He could also remove very carefully the handwriting of an official, because he had learned that the best thing to get rid of Waterman's indelible blue ink was actually lactic acid. He'd learned that when he was working in a dairy, if he needed to make perforations, say in the bottom of a passport, he did that with a sewing machine. And then if the documents needed to look well aged, he'd invented a centrifuge, which he would fill with his special dust, as he called it. And then he'd whirl the centrifuge around and that would make the documents look just a bit battered. He had stumbled into forgery pretty much by accident. He had not done very well at school. He'd left when he was 13 and immediately had to find work because the family was poor. So he went to a clothes dyer, and there he learned, first of all the miracle of color, how color was produced by various chemicals and then how these same chemicals could remove stains from clothing. He was especially keen on bleaching out ink stains and once had to try and get them out of a wedding dress. He always refused to take any money for his services. That meant he could decide whether to take a customer or not. If he didn't approve of the customer, then he felt he didn't have to. The main work he had to do on these documents was just to give all these Jews gentile names. And the difficulty there was that the word Jew in big red capital letters was stamped across these documents. And that proved extremely difficult to remove, which was why he and his group had to go through all the long and tedious process of actually making documents from scratch. The very worst commission they had to take on was for 900 new documents to be made for 300 children. This was so tricky to do that, in fact, he forced himself to stay awake for two whole days to keep working, because the responsibility fell very heavily on him that he was giving them identities which would save their lives. He made a rough calculation that if he could do 30 documents in an hour, then if he decided instead to sleep for an hour, 30 people would die. And this was such an awful calculation for him. He couldn't bear the very thought that his sleeping would make people die. So he worked until he passed out. As soon as he'd recovered from passing out, he resumed his work and got them all done. Somehow, After the war finished, he could very well have stopped doing his forgeries, because obviously the moral imperative had gone and also the need to do it in France had gone. But his attention turned then to other struggles that were going on in the world which needed some help with false documents, for example, for guerrilla fighters, for leftists who were wanted by the authorities, and so on. So he found himself making false documents, first for agents of military intelligence in France who were needing to cross Germany to find out about the death camps. Then in the 1960s, he began to work for the FLN Guerrillas in Algeria who were fighting against the French colonial power. Then he moved to anywhere there was a leftist group rising against the right wing or fascist authorities. So in Chile, in Nicaragua, in guinea and Guinea Bissau, in Angola, in place after place, actually in apartheid South Africa too. He lent his services to all these groups, and he even helped Americans who were hoping to avoid the draft to go and fight in Vietnam, and kept on doing this work until he was in his 70s, when at last he retired, not having told anybody what he had been doing. His family didn't know why, every so often he would just disappear. And in fact, he left them once for two whole years, again not explaining anything. It all had to be kept extremely secret, this work that he was doing. In order to keep the secret, he had always had a cover, and the COVID for him was to be a photographer. He was actually an extremely good photographer. He started doing it in the war and he went on afterwards. It is photography of people in the street or scenes in France, particularly in Paris, when he was dealing with awful inhumanity and death and evil in the work that he had to do in his forgers work he could find some respite and some freedom going out into the streets and finding instead humanity and beauty, the whole spectrum of humanity that he found in Paris and that warmed his heart as opposed to depressing him. And in a sense these lives too he was rescuing from oblivion just as he had rescued lives from oblivion and death with his forger's equipment.

Anne Row on Adolfo Kaminski, who's died at the age of 97. That's all for this episode of the Intelligence. The show's editors are Chris Impey and Jack Gill and our deputy editor is John Jo Devlin. Our senior producers are Sam Westrin and Rory Galloway. Our creative producer is William Warren. Our producers are Alize Jean Baptiste and Kevin Kaynors and assistant producer Barkley Bram with extra production help this week from Emily Elias and Sarah Laurinock. And our sound engineer is Will Rowe. We'll all see you back here on Monday. Sam.