AEC Governance Committee meets in Helsinki

Last week the AEC Governance Committee met in Helsinki, Finland. The meeting was the first AEC event taking place in Finland during the Finnish Business Community’s Chairmanship.

While in Helsinki the Governance Committee had the opportunity to meet with several representatives from Finnish Business, including meetings with Business Finland and ABB. In their discussions, business development in the Arctic and the removal of trade barriers was high on the agenda.

The City of Helsinki hosted an Arctic Chairmanship’s Dinner at the City Hall. Participants included the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, AEC Finland and invited guests. The group was welcomed by the Mayor of Helsinki, Jan Vapaavuori and speeches were given by Arctic Council Senior Arctic Official Chair Aleksi Härkönen and AEC Chair Tero Vauraste.

The formal Governance Committee meeting was hosted at Arctia Ltd.

FINNISH BUSINESSES’ CHAIRMANSHIP PRIORITIES 2017-2019

The Finnish Business Community’s Chairmanship of the AEC started in May 2017. They will advance the five overarching themes of the AEC and prioritize action towards:

Interconnected Arctic – supporting cooperation with major infrastructure projects, coverage, shared services, and synergies between the AEC and other Arctic actors

Competent Arctic – supporting public-private cooperation and shared services between business and academia, digital solutions and mobility of students, researchers and work force, mobilizing and promoting the Arcticknow-how with the help of high-level Arctic Ambassadors from different sectors of society

Safe Arctic – supporting prevention, preparedness, emergency services, occupational safety, predictable regulation, high environmental standards, and the identification and removal of barriers for sustainable Arctic business development

The AEC Governance Committee comprises of one business representative from each of the Arctic states and permanent participant organizations