With the world facing some of the toughest economic times in history, the 2008 G-20 Financial Summit will have a lasting impact on all of us going forward.

The Brookings Institute has outlined 7 key issues at stake for the 2008 G-20 Financial Summit:

1. Financial Regulation and Supervision
2. Stabilize Emerging Economies
3. Reform the Aid System to Fix the Slow-Burning Global Poverty Crisis
4. Beyond the G-20: Why the WTO Is More Important than Ever
5. Now Is the Time for Permanent Governance Changes
6. Keep the IMF at the Center
7. What the U.S. and Asia Should Do: Establish a Global Financial Crisis Secretariat and an Asian Financial Facility

Here’s to hoping it’s a very productive meeting for us all:

and here’s to saying good-bye to the past:

* Update: Assessing the Key Outcomes of the G-20 Summit – Heads of state unanimously rejected protectionism and asked their trade ministers the need to reach agreement, before the end of the year, on the critical issues for the conclusion of the WTO’s Doha Development Agenda. If adopted, this could be the most significant and tangible result of this first G-20 meeting.