Thor is well known in Iceland and further afield as the founder of the pioneering Iceland Ocean Cluster and he was joined by the CEO of the Cluster, Dr Alexandra Leeping.
They were also joined by Árni Mathiesen, Former Minister of Fisheries and Finance, and current Special Advisor to the Iceland Ocean Cluster who addressed the delegates, beginning, ” I am proud to be a part of this community, standing in this full room. I often wonder what it is that makes fisheries so fascinating and one of the things that comes to my mind is the diversity in the sector.” He also offered a wonderful paraphrase of a Trump quote, “He who wins AI, wins the future. Those who win the oceans win the opportunities in the future.”
Dr Leeper then spoke, ” Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Iceland, USA, Norway, Sweden… Here today, we are setting the global context that is the stage for this conference!” She went on to say, ” The conversation on the ground is changing and it has been amazing to share the story of Iceland with the wider community…”
For the Keynote Panel Dr Alexandra was joined in person by David Naftzger, Executive Director of Great Lakes and in a pre-recorded message by Donna Fordyce, Director, Scottish Ocean Cluster.
Donna was sorry not to join in person but was able to update delegates on the exciting progress of the Scottish Cluster. She concluded by encouraging delegates to “take the time to talk to as many people as you can over the next couple of days; it is invaluable…”
Dr. Alexandra and David Naftzger discussed how international collaboration across industry, research, policy, and investment is essential to achieving 100% utilisation of seafood.
David spoke about the work of the Great Lakes, commentating, ” Spending time with the commercial fish processors was a really important part of our process, we came to understand that despite (the fact that) they compete against each other, they also have a shared challenge right now regarding waste. They lacked connectivity and solutions, this is what we are here to support with. We have raised $700,000 so far…”
Dr Alexandra updated on the Iceland Ocean Cluster’s work and concluded the Keynote panel on a high note, quoting a presenter from the previous day’s Aquaculture conference, “We hope to be the rising tide that lifts all boats…”
In the end delegates were treated to a very lively Keynote panel with impromptu speeches by Jennifer Bushman, Executive Director of Fed by Blue in the United States and representatives of the Fiji, Swedish and Netherlands Ocean Clusters.
