Swedish Chambers International Days in Stockholm 13-14 June 2024

The Swedish Australian Chamber of Commerce were for the first time represented at the Swedish Chambers International Days Conference in Stockholm in 13-14 June.

The Swedish Chambers International Days commenced with a site visit to Atlas Copco and Epiroc. We were welcomed by Thomas Dahlgren, Linnea Grönwall Atlas Copco and Nadim Penser Epiroc , who at their HQ mine 20 meters underground guided us through their impressive range of services and products. Thanks for hosting us very cool (literally) experience and great to hear that Australia is such an important market.

Swedish Chambers International (SCI) Chairman Andreas Hatzigeorgiou, PhD welcomed all to the second day of the SCI Days, which kicked off with the presentation of the Global Business Climate Survey conducted by Business Sweden and Swedish Chambers International. State Secretary to Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Johan Forssell, Håkan Jevrell held the opening remarks, followed by Business Sweden CEO Jan Larsson. The survey presented a positive business climate and the general consensus was “cautiously optimistic”. The rest of the day consisted of workshops and further presentations, in which Tamara Paravlic and Mandy Pieksma joined us from the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) Sweden, together with Kajsa Guterstam, Doug Washburn and Victoria Wikström from the Swedish Institute (Svenska Institutet). The SCI Days was a great success with insightful presentations, experience sharing and networking opportunities. From the Swedish Australian Chamber of Commerce we had a great delegation taking part this year with President Jan Gardberg, Board Member Carl Wallberg and General Manager Camilla Jennings. Huge thank you to all and especially SCI representatives Theresa Ryberg M. de F. and Louise Lee Hultberg for great organisation!

SACC Sustainability Committee – Circular Economy Forum in Canberra 18 June

Australia has committed to progressing towards a circular economy, with a target to achieve an 80 per cent resource recovery from all waste streams by 2030. This target will only be achieved through meaningful collaborations between businesses across multiple sectors and policy makers. 

On June 18 the Swedish Australian Chamber of Commerce Sustainability Committee organised a Circular Economy Forum in Canberra hosted by the Embassy of Sweden in Canberra. Member companies shared their circular initiatives, industry solutions and challenges followed by a discussion on potential ways to accelerate to a low-carbon circular economy and net-zero society.

HE Pontus Melander Ambassador of Sweden to Australia welcomed and opened the forum. Jo Clay MLA, ACT Greens spokesperson for Circular Economy, highlighted the ACT Government’s progressive measures that support circular economy thinking and the ACT Circular Economy Strategy and Action Plan in her keynote address.

SACC Vice President Teresia Fors, welcomed all on behalf of the SACC and SACC Sustainability Committee Chair Flavia Vaz outlined the committee’s vision and purpose to take a leadership role and be part of the conversation to advance Australia’s sustainability actions. The SACC Sustainability Committee was initiated two years ago in 2022 and the inaugural meeting was held at the Embassy of Sweden in Canberra. Since then, the Committee has gathered members of the Chamber with focus on sustainability, to share insights, knowhow as well as to jointly promote sustainability as a business model in the Australian industry.

Paul Klymenko, member of the Circular Economy Ministerial Advisory Group presented key findings of the CEMAG recommendations and work to provide expert advice to the Australian Government outlining strategic interventions to drive circular economy transformation forward. Linda Nordin, SACC Sustainability Committee member and Circular Economy Expert presented examples of key initiatives that Swedish companies are taking towards a circular economy. Linda highlighted the achievements and progress of member companies actively implementing circular practices in the business model. She also presented key concepts including circular thinking already in the design process of new products and services. Ms Nordin emphasized that the business strategy and vision need to include circularity to reflect core aspects of the business and that it is important to monetise long-term gains as financial benefits in a cross-functional context.

The afternoon concluded with a panel discussing industry solutions, challenges and opportunities to forward a circular economy and a net zero society. The panel was moderated by Nicole T Garofano, Head of Circular Economy Development at Planet Ark. On the panel we had Lauren Pulitano, Volvo Group Australia, Penny George, AstraZeneca, Boris Munster, Tetra Pak Oceania, Paul Klymenko, CEMAG and Linda Nordin, SMEC.

The panel discussion highlighted the role of technology and policy support in the implementation of circularity in every business and that it is very much a question of behavioural change. Lauren Pulitano, Volvo Group Australia, said “When people are thinking about circularity and see a problem, they also find a solution.”
It was stressed how important it is to already in the design phase of products and services, to take into account the circular aspects and work with your suppliers from the start. Boris Munster, Tetra Pak, exemplified how circular economy design is considered throughout the entire value chain at Tetra Pak. Penny George, Astra Zeneca, also drew attention to global considerations for multinationals and how this puts another layer, if not several, onto the planning and design process of circular implementation.
The question was asked about benchmarking and metrics when looking at progress in your circularity work, and Dr Nicole Garofano recommended everyone to seek out the ACE Hub, which is an educational portal provided by Planet Ark offering great resources. https://planetark.org/programs/australian-circular-economy-hub

The overall event offered engaging discussions on actions to accelerate to a circular economy and net-zero society through applied experiences, learnings from Europe and key principles that need to be embedded in organisations. Here is a summary of some of the key messages:

“Circular Economy must be embedded within a company’s vision.”

“For a circular economy to work, we need to make the unfamiliar, familiar.”

“It is important to get the culture and mindset right across every section of the business.”

“Can we grow while using less materials?”

“Circular Economy is about design and circularity aspects must be addressed in the design process of products and services.”

“Collaboration is needed from the beginning of the design process and circularity must be driven throughout the value chain.”

“When circular principles are integrated with the business operations and value chain, we can create complementary benefits for de-carbonisation, efficiencies, and preservation of resources.”

Presentations:

Flavia Vaz: SACC Sustainability Committee – Presentation of the committee and examples of circular economy initiatives.

Paul Klymenko: Circular Economy Ministerial Advisory Group

Linda Nordin: Key initiatives that Swedish companies are taking towards a circular economy.

 

The Swedish Australian Chamber of Commerce’s Sustainability Committee was set up in 2022 to bring together Swedish companies committed to the Sustainable Development Agenda through actions and contributions.

The SACC would like to thank all involved with a special thank you to the Embassy of Sweden for hosting the forum and the Sustainability Committee for brilliant content and organisation!

 

 

 

 

The SACC visit to the Australian Embassy in Stockholm in June

While in Stockholm in June we visited the Australian Embassy and were delighted to meet with HE Ms Frances Sagala Australian Ambassador to Sweden and Kerstin Toivesdotter Investment Director at the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) who gave us an update on the Australia-Sweden bilateral relationship. It was great to hear about the current collaboration and new opportunities between the two countries. Thank you for meeting us while in Stockholm!

The World of Volvo in Gothenburg – A meeting place in constant motion

April 14 was Volvo’s birthday – but this year, there was a double celebration as the World of Volvo also opened its doors to the public. 

World of Volvo is an experience centre based in Gothenburg, Sweden, with a focus on the human body and mind, how we all are connected, and the design thinking of yesterday, today and tomorrow. Temporary and permanent exhibitions, cultural events, talks, conferences, food and drinks with a Nordic touch, are all accommodated in the 22,000 m² building. World of Volvo is a joint venture between Volvo Group and Volvo Cars.

The SACC were delighted to visit the amazing state of art Scandinavian architecture and design building with its amazing museum, restaurant and meeting spaces and centrally located in the hometown of Volvo, Gothenburg in June.

Read more about World of Volvo at https://www.worldofvolvo.com/en/

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Discount for SACC Members on B2B Storytelling Training

SACC Member Berkeley Communications is organising B2B Storytelling Training as part of the Berkeley Storytelling Academy sub-brand, 6-7 times per year in the major cities around Australia. Since starting this about a year ago there has been a great response and Berkeley Communications is now offering SACC members a standing 30% discount on their Storytelling course, which means the price per SACC member is $385 (instead of the $550 list price).

The workshops are typically attended by senior decision makers in marketing/sales/PR/content/brand, or by C-suite/founders and executive decision makers who want to adopt storytelling more widely within their organisations and often for keynote presentations etc.

The Berkeley Academy’s Storytelling Training is CPD accredited Globally (incl. Australia) and each participant will receive a certificate upon completing the course: https://www.cpdstandards.com/resources/cpd-across-the-globe/

Dates for the next training tour, with three workshops scheduled in Brisbane, Sydney & Melbourne are taking place in July/August:

Why Storytelling?

Through storytelling, sales pitches become more successful. Social media posts more shareable. Content more colourful. You will be able to power-up your presentations so that they become more memorable. In fact, the intimacy created by storytelling, will improve your relationships, and even create lasting friendships with your clients.

Why? Because we all love a good storyteller. We all like listening to someone who can entertain us. Hold our attention. Not because of what they say or do, but because of how they make us feel.

What you’ll take away from the Workshop:

  • Lessons from the great storytellers of our time with relevant case studies
  • The business case for storytelling
  • Applying your new storytelling skills to internal and external stakeholders
  • Email and PowerPoint presentations – how to make them more memorable
  • Video examples and ideas to inspire your team
  • Understanding the six-part story formula used by the world of entertainment

Find more details about the Storytelling Academy here: https://www.berkeleypr.com/services/storytelling-academy/

Please contact Povel.Torudd@berkeleypr.com at Berkeley Communications for more information about the workshops and to receive the 30% discount code.