On behalf of Wonderful Copenhagen and Copenhagen Capacity, we are pleased to invite all members of Copenhagen Goodwill Ambassador Corps and spouses to attend the 2011 Copenhagen Goodwill Ambassador Corps Seminar. This year is a special occasion as it marks the 15th anniversary of the Corps. We look forward to celebrate this accomplishment as we present: COPENHAGEN INSIDE OUT AND OUTSIDE IN, AUGUST 22-23, 2011.

Event highlights include:

• Gala dinner at SEB Bank with His Royal Highness Prince Joachim of Denmark
• Trade Fair with key players from Copenhagen Capacity and Wonderful Copenhagen in order to identify business and goodwill opportunities
• Strategy session framing the future of Goodwill Ambassador Corps
• Panel debate with industry leaders, government officials, cultural front runners and university representatives discussing the future competitiveness of Copenhagen
• Copenhagen Goodwill Ambassador Award reception at the City Hall
 

Organizer
Copenhagen Goodwill Ambassador Corps

Deadline for registration
There will be a complete spouse program with a behind the scene look at Danish design, art and innovation.

We do need your online registration. Register here (For members only!)

Registrations should be done no later than August 1, 2011

The event is partnered by by SEB Denmark, City of Copenhagen, First Hotel Skt. Petri, Karl Pedersen & Hustrus Industrifond, IAK and KRAKS Fond.

Contact
Any event related questions please contact the Secretariat: Jiyan jdu@copcap.com or Morten mkg@copcap.com

Following the great efforts of goodwill ambassador Jens Olesen, Wonderful Copenhagen and Copenhagen Capacity, CNN has now launched the Copenhagen Future City program series.

Exploring the concept of Copenhagenization, the film looks at how Copenhagen established itself as a leading cycling city and is moving into a second phase of planning to accommodate its rapidly growing population of cyclists.

You can watch it online at www.cnn.com/futurecities

 
The remaining three films on Copenhagen will roll out each Monday throughout June, all within Quest Means Business.

Following the public announcement during this year’s goodwill ambassador seminar, it is our sincere pleasure to welcome Jens Kramer Mikkelsen as the new chairman of our advisory board.  The first official duty of Jens Kramer Mikkelsen will be the upcoming Copenhagen Youth Goodwill Ambassador Corps conference  on November 24,  where the 37 appointed youth ambassadors will meet with the government and leading Danish CEO’s. Recently, the Secretariat  interviewed Jens Kramer Mikkelsen and learned of his vision for the Corps and the city of Copenhagen.

- I find it truly inspiring to witness the dedication and love for a city as showcased by the goodwill ambassadors. In my former role as Lord Mayor of Copenhagen and in my current capacity as Managing Director of CPH City & Port Development, I have met the goodwill ambassadors on many occasions in different parts all over the world. Their engagement “on location” in global markets creates an enormous value to Copenhagen and Denmark. What started as a great idea back in the mid nineties, when the Corps was founded, has today become a well functioning and highly professional network. The Corps has managed to continuously renew itself cleverly staying true to its core values and mindset while learning from new experiences and external surroundings.

As recently appointed Chairman of the Advisory Board of Copenhagen Goodwill Ambassador Corps, what are your goals and milestones for the Corps?

- The world is forever changing and has become much smaller. From the cartoon crisis to Cop15 Copenhagen and Denmark has been at the forefront of international news coverage of late. The goodwill ambassadors have an important role to play in stakeholder relations both globally and domestically in Denmark.  In my capacity as Chairman, it is my goal to develop both the City and the Corps to even stronger brands. As successful as the Corps may be, we can and should not act alone. We are much stronger, when we build partnerships with key stakeholders of the region and global decision makers. I want to create win-win situations facilitated by the goodwill ambassadors between international enterprises or associations and Danish entities.

Looking at Copenhagen as a city brand and business opportunity, how would you define the assets of Copenhagen?

- The international competitive economy of today has become more of a city vs. city competition than a country vs. country perspective. And believe me when I state that the city competition is fierce. However, Copenhagen has a strong brand and a lot to offer. We have the seaway access to the Baltic region, the direct bridge to Sweden and an airport of international standards. We are very competitive in knowledge intensive and key future industries such as medico, life science and cleantech, where great growth opportunities exist. Of course not all of Denmark’s strongholds are found in Copenhagen, but that can be defined as a strength as well. With Copenhagen as an entry point, we can create business opportunity for the entire country.

What are the biggest challenges Copenhagen faces on the international scene as a region for business investments, event and conference host city as well as a tourist attraction?

- In a way the financial crisis has formed a platform, where we are forced to consider what we actually do well on an international scale. In Denmark we have the ability to come up with intelligent solutions in the business world and have created a society that mixes soft values with hard values with a high success rate. Sometimes we forget to be proud of what we actually have achieved as a small nation, which is impressive. But we have to be careful. The frontrunners of the world are moving fast and there is no time to rest on our laurels. I am not too worried about the speed of the others, as they will move at their pace regardless, but I do find it important that we are part of the developments rather than outside of it. When we consider events and congresses Copenhagen is known for a quality product. We can deliver at a very professional level that outsets the relatively high costs of the city. As for investments, we have a well educated workforce, a first class infrastructure and an open minded society that will win over many partners.

How can the goodwill ambassadors play an important role for Copenhagen?

- The goodwill ambassadors consist of individuals, who have succeeded in ventures across the globe and shown the dedication to develop solutions to business and cultural challenges repeatedly.  We can mirror our Copenhagen challenges in their knowledge and experiences. The goodwill ambassadors have direct access to decision makers in Denmark and all over the world. We want to engage in a continuous dialogue with the former to make sure we increase the return on investment on our economy utilizing the competencies of the goodwill ambassadors. As for the latter the goodwill ambassadors can make a difference reaching out to key decision makers across the globe, who the city otherwise would not have access to and guide them towards Copenhagen partnerships and business opportunities. 

What will your role be as Chairman of the Advisory Board?

- I see myself primarily as a facilitator and communicator. I will act as the eyes and ears of the Corps in the region and can spot, when an opportunity arises. I want to connect the dots so to speak putting the Corps in play when relevant in a regional initiative or connecting the Corps to potential collaborators, when we have our own projects. I want to make the Corps even more known to the regional actors and improve our great relations with government entities, Danish enterprises, the Confederation of Danish Industries and other relevant associations.

About Jens Kramer Mikkelsen:

Jens Kramer Mikkelsen serves as Managing Director of CPH City & Port Development, one of Denmark’s largest urban development corporations. The corporation was founded at the end of 2007 when Port of Copenhagen Ltd. and the Ørestad Development Corporation I/S merged. Jens Kramer Mikkelsen was Lord Major of Copenhagen from 1984 – 2004.

Foreign companies are between 50-100 per cent more productive than the Danish companies, and it is estimated that over the next decade foreign direct investment will account for 21 per cent of the Danish growth.

That is the result of a new survey from Copenhagen Capacity that encourages the government to include foreign direct investment as part of the solution to the Danish growth problem, while also taking a closer look at the conditions for these particular investments in Denmark.

The expected 21 per cent the foreign companies are expected to contribute to the overall Danish growth the next 10 years is almost a doubling compared to the previous 10 years. This figure underlines the need for foreign direct investment, especially after OECD earlier this year rated Denmark second-last in regards to the ability to create growth over the next ten years, just as the World Economic Forum has just downgraded Denmark from a fifth to a ninth place in its annual World Competitiveness Report.

- The government's growth forum has previously looked at the foreign direct investment, but these investments are also inextricably linked with the whole productivity agenda which is currently being discussed. It is essential for the value creation and productivity in Denmark that we begin to see foreign direct investment as a central part of the economic tools that can strengthen the Danish competitiveness. Foreign companies create jobs for the highly educated, new technologies and products, and are ultimately a decisive factor, if we are to create the necessary growth in the future, says Managing Director of Copenhagen Capacity, Steen Donner.

One of the keys to more growth is a national strategy, where the politicians dare to invest in selected industries such as cleantech, ICT and life science. Parallel to this, money should be spent on a targeted promotion of Denmark internationally as an investment country, because we, contrary to our own view, are not particularly well-known in countries such as China and India.

- Without foreign direct investments, we cannot join the growth curve, and therefore we must improve the conditions for foreign companies in Denmark. The aim must be to create world-class framework conditions in regards to personal and corporate tax levels, to the service to retain highly skilled employees and to the linkage with research and innovation pools as well as to a concerted effort for mergers and acquisitions for Danish SMEs with investment and growth potential, Steen Donner says.

The study has been prepared by Copenhagen Economics on behalf of Copenhagen Capacity.

The United Nations have elected Copenhagen Capacity the best regional investment promotion agency in the world in the category “excellence in the promotion of green investment”.

At the United Nations "World Investment Forum 2010" conference in China, investment promotion agencies and leaders from more than 100 countries discussed international trade, export, investment promotion and global growth trends.

- It is a very pleasant surprise, especially since many countries and investment promotion agencies like us have devoted many resources to the promotion of their cleantech activities, Managing Director of Copenhagen Capacity, Steen Donner, explains.

It is the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) that presents the award and it was awarded to Copenhagen Capacity based on their central role in the establishment of Copenhagen Cleantech Cluster. Copenhagen Capacity’s concentrated efforts to attract investment and businesses support and promote the Danish cleantech sector. This is achieved mainly through an intensive international promotion of Copenhagen and the Capital Region as leading within green technologies.

- In a global context, an award for being the best regional investment promotion agency in the world within the cleantech area is of great significance, because in an international context, we are very small. Therefore, we have to do things more intelligently and more focused to positively separate ourselves from the crowd, Steen Donner says.

Companies, regional actors and government agencies believe that investments are a deciding factor for growth nationally and internationally. Attracting foreign investments is considered very important in regards to internationalising countries while raising the level of innovation and competition. The message that the United Nations have delivered at this conference has clearly been that countries and regions should concentrate their efforts on investment promotion as a key part of their future growth strategies.

The objective of Copenhagen Capacity's participation in the United Nations conference in China has mainly been to meet with business partners from the investment promotion area which can help to strengthen investments to Denmark.

- Without international investments in Denmark, we cannot join the growth curve. Our mind-set is simply not global enough. Therefore, it is paramount that we improve the conditions for foreign companies in Denmark, especially in regards to the service to retain highly skilled employees and to the linkage with research and innovation pools as well as to a concerted effort for mergers and acquisitions for Danish SMEs with investment and growth potential. Unfortunately, in Denmark, resources to attract investments rank very low on the list of priorities compared to the countries and regions that we compete with, Steen Donner says.

The annual goodwill seminar will take place in Copenhagen on August 23-26, 2010. During the seminar the goodwill ambassadors will meet with the Danish The Minister for Economic and Business Affairs, the Lord mayor of Copenhagen and a range of stakeholders from academic institutions, "corporate" Denmark, public figures and cultural frontrunners. The mission at hand is to discuss and identify solutions to the challenges Copenhagen and Denmark face on the international scene. The 2010 seminar is planned in partnership with Conferedeation of Danish Industries, The Technical University of Denmark, Radiometer and Carlsberg.

Download the full program here.

Danish expats to meet worldwide to discuss Copenhagen May 5, 2010. Across North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Asia, Danish expats will meet to discuss business opportunities between their local region and Copenhagen seeking to create collaboration between the DABGO community of internationally located Danes and the 3 partner organizations: Copenhagen Goodwill Ambassador Corps, Copenhagen Capacity and Wonderful Copenhagen.

Participating cities include: London, Sao Paolo, Zug, Barcelona, Valencia, Boston, Dublin, Toronto, Cape Town, Helsingfors, Zurich, Bruxelles, Münich, Miami, Stockholm, Columbus, New York, Bangalore and Melbourne.

The event is highlighted by the increased global awareness of Copenhagen following  the city being the most discussed search topic on Google at the end of 2009. Recently New York Times ranked Copenhagen in their top 5 of places to go in 2010 and the Capital region of Copenhagen was awarded by Financial Times as winner in their European Cities and Regions of the Future category.

Copenhagen Goodwill Ambassador Cops in dialogue with organizing committee for April 2011 conference.

- Combined their portfolio funds have over $6 billion invested in start-ups worldwide. One is about to invest another billion.
- Together their websites serve tens of billions of pages every month. One of them is just 22.
- Their products are used by hundreds of millions of people every month. All are in their 20's.

Facilitated by Goodwill Ambassador Niels Jørgen Thøgersen, the corps is in close dialogue with the organizing committee behind Founders Forum positioning Copenhagen as a potential host city for the April 2011 conference. The organizing committee visited Copenhagen on April 9-10 on a site inspection to explore potential venues and discuss the overall framework.

New routes to and from Copenhagen and an increase in travelers creates significant progress for Copenhagen airport. A total of 1,443,453 passengers passed through Copenhagen Airport in February, which is 10.4 % more compared to the same month last year. The overall growth in the first two months has been at 8 %.

Alongside these developments, two new routes to and from Copenhagen has this week been announced. SAS reopens flights between Copenhagen and Shanghai, while Germanwings is to establish a new route between Copenhagen and Cologne.

On March 28 the German low-cost airline Germanwings opens a new route from Copenhagen to Cologne six times a week. As such, Copenhagen Airport Copenhagen Airport not only welcomes a new customer, but also a company which is ready to use CPH Swift when the airport's new low-cost terminal is completed in the end of 2010.

-We get an increasing number of business customers. 42 % of our passengers are business travelers today, and that level we also expect from the route from Copenhagen to Cologne, which is an important business destination, says press officer Angelika Schwaff from Germanwings.

Copenhagen ranks number five in the list of 31 travel destinations that the New York Times thinks you ought to visit this year. We are green and cool, say US travellers. This may be difficult to see in the present cold and slushy January weather, but Copenhagen is actually a cool and trendy destination for people who have their fingers on the pulse, writes the New York Times. The newspaper recently ranked 31 travel destinations which you just have to visit this year and Copenhagen placed fifth, surpassed only by Sri Lanka, the San Patricio del Chañar wine valley in Argentina, Seoul and the Indian yoga centre in Mysore.

“Copenhagen has developed into one of the world’s greenest – and perhaps also coolest – capitals,” writes the New York Times. The newspaper states that the Danes do not just talk about being green but also live by it, two examples being their fondness for cycling and harbour baths.

Marketing manager Susanne Nordenbæk at VisitDenmark North America believes that the COP15 conference, the IOC congress and the talk show hostess Oprah Winfrey’s visit to Copenhagen have made a good impression among US citizens. “It looks as if the Americans have become increasingly more aware of Denmark. We have quality of life, a unique society and social values which tourists are interested in seeing,” comments Susanne Nordenbæk.

The travel section of the New York Times is one of the trendsetting travel media in the world, with a circulation of 1.4 million and more than 15 million monthly visitors to its news website, writes Berlingske Tidende.