AEC Annual Report 2019
The AEC Annual Report for 2019, the fifth year of the AEC’s operations, is now published and available on the organization’s website.
The third transition of the AEC Chairmanship in the organization’s history took place in 2019. The Annual Meeting in Rovaniemi marked the end of the Finnish business community’s AEC Chairmanship and the transition of the AEC gavel to Icelandic businesses and Heidar Gudjonsson. Preparations for the transition shaped much of the organization’s activities that year. In addition, the AEC Working Groups on Maritime Transportation and Responsible Resource Development both launched their reports at the Rovaniemi Annual Meeting.
The Icelandic businesses’ two-year AEC Chairmanship started in May 2019. The Chairmanship builds upon the organization’s strategic plan and sets the following priorities:
- Securing Sustainable Development: Work on Arctic Investment Protocol
- An Ocean of Opportunities: Blue Economy
- International Collaboration: Strengthened Collaboration between the AEC and Arctic Council
Read more: Icelandic business community AEC Chairmanship Priorities
In May 2019, collaboration between the Arctic Council and the AEC was formalized as the two Councils signed a Memorandum of Understanding in the margins of the Arctic Council Rovaniemi Ministerial Meeting. Building upon the foundation laid by the Memorandum, the two Councils had their first-ever joint meeting in October 2019. Following the joint meeting in Reykjavik, both the Arctic Council and the AEC gathered to a reception graciously hosted by the President of Iceland, Guđni Th. Jóhannesson, to mark the fifth anniversary of the AEC.
Global outreach was an important part of the AEC’s year in 2019. In total, the organization conducted over 60 different outreach meetings and speaking engagements. To read more of the AEC’s activities in 2019, please see the 2019 Annual Report.
