The Greenland Business Association was able to report in February that everything was sold out for the Future Greenland conference, which will take place on May 19-20 in Nuuk.
– We have reduced the waiting list and have over 500 registered participants for the conference. For the youth conference, we expect approximately 400 young people, says Director of Greenland Business Association Christian Keldsen and adds:
– There is still a waiting list, and unfortunately we will not be able to accommodate everyone. We are making it possible for conference participants to follow the presentations from the hall on a screen in the auditorium in Katuaq. This way, people do not have to be “seated” during the entire conference, but can move freely in the auditorium without missing any content. We know that this means a lot to many, as the networking part of such a conference is important.
Geopolitical situation
The Future Greenland conference has a strong hold on the business community both in Greenland, Denmark and abroad.
Thus, 17 nationalities have announced their arrival at the conference, which this year takes as its starting point the current geopolitical situation with a focus on Greenland's role and opportunities to take a strong place in both business development and the geopolitical situation that is unfolding around us - both with and without us.
Foreign speakers
Among the foreign speakers is the head of the NATO Strategic Communication Centre in Riga, Jānis Sārts, who will talk about disinformation and fake stories online. In addition, the French Minister of Trade Nicola Forissier is also participating in the conference.
Also worth noting is the feature "The Ambassadors' Lounge", where the two ambassadors to Denmark for France and Canada respectively: Christophe Parisot and Carolyn Bennett, together with the Head of the Greenlandic Representation in Denmark, Jens Heinrich, talk about their perspectives on business opportunities and potential for cooperation. The former US ambassador to Denmark, Rufus Gifford, is also among the speakers under the heading "What we need to understand about the US".
Local opinion leaders and business people
Several members of the Greenland Government are also on the big stage during the conference, including Múte B. Egede participating in a presentation together with Christian Keldsen under the title: "When business policy and foreign policy go hand in hand"
In addition, there are presentations from business leaders and opinion leaders in Greenland, including former chairman of IA, Aqqaluk Lynge, former member of the Folketing, Aaja Chemnitz, Arctic Ambassador Kenneth Høegh, business leader and chairman of the Greenland Business Association, Krissie Berthelsen Winberg, chairman of the board of Polar Seafood, Michael Binzer and board member of the Bank of Greenland Maliina Abelsen.
From Denmark, several members of the Greenland Committee in the Folketing have announced their arrival, and officials from the Ministry of Business, the Prime Minister's Office, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defense have also registered.
– Yes, there is increased interest on all sides. It is our experience that both flights and hotels are more or less sold out in the city. We have also done our part to spread the activities out a bit more, so that more of the business community can benefit from the conference, says Christian Keldsen.
This is the 10th time that Greenland Business is behind the business conference Future Greenland. In addition to the adults' conference, Greenland Business is also behind the youth conference "The Future of Greenland", which takes place on May 6th.
