EMPOWERED - ICELANDIC SOLUTIONS FOR EUROPE

The conference held on 30 May 2018 at the Nordic Embassies in Berlin was a lively forum for cross sector discourse. In an almost tropical climate that day in Berlin, more than 100 participants gained access to the latest intelligence from the field and discussed about opportunities for cooperation, about success stories but also challenges and risks. The three panels with high ranking experts from Iceland and Germany outlined insight information and new perspectives, informing about solutions Iceland has to offer for the energy and mobility markets in Europe, and the successful international geothermal research cooperation and projects worldwide.

The key notes given by Thórdís Kólbrun R. Gylfadóttir, Minister for Tourism, Industry and Innovation of Iceland, and Thomas Bareiß, State Secretary of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, emphasized the importance of the political framework conditions to foster energy transition in balance with socio-economic development of the respective regions, and the need for long-term efforts to build up a sophisticated renewable energy infrastructure and know-how as in Iceland. There is a strong political will for further bilateral and international cooperation, and common efforts to ensure further progress in the field of climate change, sustainability, and competitiveness at international scale.

The networking was an important part of the event, and the participants used the opportunity to talk, mingle and discuss opportunities both for business and further exchange of information.

The conference was part of Icelands 100 years sovereignty festivities in Germany and of the European Sustainable Development Week 2018 in Berlin.