Announcing NBCC’s Aurora Business Awards & The Fridtjof Nansen Award
NBCC Newsletter | October 2021
Dear members and friends,
We are now entering the final quarter of 2021, and the start of winter. While this is traditionally a period of ‘slowing down’, I feel that as we put the last 18 months behind us there is also a feeling of new energy and hope as we anticipate, and work towards, a time of rejuvenation, rebuilding, and growth.
The NBCC has a number of exciting events to look forward to:
Our 115th Anniversary celebration will take place on 26th November, and I can promise you will not be disappointed. Our keynote speaker Andreas B Heide has received global recognition for his work as a marine biologist, expedition captain and conservationist, most recently as a planner and leader of the Arctic Sense expedition, of which NBCC is proud to be a collaborating partner.
The event will also serve as the official launch of NBCC’s Aurora Business Awards, a new initiative which aims to acknowledge some of the most innovative and forward-thinking businesses and individuals engaged in trade and commerce between the United Kingdom and Norway. They also celebrate the strong cultural, political and trade connections between our two nations as well as our mutual commitment to a cleaner, greener future. We would like to welcome NBCC’s Partner members Aker Offshore Wind and Wikborg Rein as the first two high-level supporters of the NBCC Aurora Business Awards.
The award categories are still being finalised, but will include The Fridtjof Nansen Award, in honour of renowned explorer and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Fridtjof Nansen who was also an honorary member of the Norwegian Chamber of Commerce (NCC). This award recognises the research, exploration and development of new ideas as well as the creative application of technologies to provide solutions to emerging problems.
For the unique and stunning trophies, which are based on the NBCC logo and all that our organisation represents, we have to thank Hadeland Glassverk, one of Norway’s oldest and most traditional companies, and its head of design Maud Gjeruldsen Brugge.
A very warm welcome to our newest members. Click the links to learn more about them.
Corporate Members:
- This Chapter Ltd
- The Maritime Execute
- Another World Adventures Ltd
- Barba AS
Network Partner
And lastly, don’t forget to get your tickets for our 115-year anniversary!
All the best,
Kyrre Haugen
General Manager
| NBCC’s Aurora Business Awards – The Fridtjof Nansen Award Nansen began his scientific career in marine zoology with extensive field work on the seal hunting vessel Viking off the East Greenland coast. After six years as a curator in the zoological department of the Bergen Museum (later the University of Bergen), he submitted his doctoral thesis on the central nervous system of the hagfish. Before receiving the results of his dissertation, he joined an expedition that became the first to cross the Greenland ice cap on skis. This was an idea conceived during the long months of hunting seals in the pack ice east of Greenland, when he was unable to go ashore on the icecap. Nansen’s scientific interests shifted to physical oceanography – in those days a relatively unexplored field of science. Having read about the wreckage of Jeannette, discovered off the south-west coast of Greenland three years after the ship had been crushed by ice off the north coast of Siberia, and the theories of a transpolar ocean current, he developed a grand plan to deliberately allow a ship to freeze into the pack ice and use it as a platform to chart the Arctic Ocean while drifting across the polar basin. This led to a three-year expedition onboard the ship Fram and on skis. With the Norwegian word “fram” – meaning ‘forward’ – in mind, his pioneering work, expeditions and observations laid the foundation for research on the Arctic Ocean, which is today known to be a key component of the global climate system and of high international strategic importance. Nansen played a key role in Norway’s separation from Sweden in 1905 and in persuading Prince Carl of Denmark to accept the throne as King Haakon VII of Norway. He served as Norway’s representative to both Great Britain and the League of Nations and was empowered by 52 nations to issue the Nansen Passport to millions of prisoners of war and refugees in the aftermath of the First World War and the Russian Revolution, playing a major role in their feeding and repatriation. In 1922, Nansen was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his humanitarian work. Fridtjof Nansen became one of the honorary members of the Norwegian Chamber of Commerce (as it was then), during its foundation in 1906. In 1986, the Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Center in Bergen, was established in the spirit of the works of Fridtjof Nansen. In the legacy of the great Fridtjof Nansen the NBCC’s Aurora Business Award is given to a person who has:Shown ability to identify and realize unconventional methods to pursue her or his goals or ambitions.Made considerable contributions to our understanding of the ocean, either as a scientist or an administrator.Advanced the ocean sector in the combined fields of research, innovation and commerce. Promoted British Norwegian cooperation. The Fridtjof Nansen Award Committee:Director, Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Center Director, British Antarctic Survey (TBC)General manager, Norwegian British Chamber of CommerceAker Offshore WindTo be expanded |
EDITORIALS
| Andreas B Heide & Expedition Arctic Sense Andreas B. Heide is a Norwegian expedition sailor, marine biologist and conservationist working with and for the ocean. He is a former Navy diver and parachutist with experience in fisheries export, scientific work at the Institute of Marine Research and business development in the oil and gas industry. Andreas uses his boat S.V. BARBA as a platform and tool for ocean conservation. He’s perhaps best known for his extraordinary encounters while diving with whales in Arctic waters. He has received global attention for his work using whales as ocean ambassadors and this summer he led a collaborative four-month scientific and communications expedition, Arctic Sense, over 5,000 nautical miles between Norway and the UK via the pack ice of the North Pole. |
| Aker Offshore Wind supports NBCC’s Aurora Business Awards Aker Offshore Wind is proud to support the NBCC’s Aurora Business Awards and the Fridtjof Nansen Award, recognizing some of the most innovative and forward-thinking businesses and individuals engaged in trade and commerce between the United Kingdom and Norway. “As a Norwegian company with a long history and exciting future ahead of us in the UK, we are delighted to support an award that promotes British-Norwegian cooperation and improves our understanding of the oceans,” said Sian Lloyd-Rees, managing director of Aker Offshore Wind in the UK. |
| One-of-a-kind Fridtjof Nansen inspires a generation of researchers Dr. Fridtjof Nansen is one of the most well known Norwegians, and with good reason. He dedicated his early life to biological and ocean sciences and exploration, and his later life to humanitarianism and diplomacy. His adventurous spiritand discoveries have been inspiring generations ever since. |
| NBCC’s Aurora Business Awards: see the trophy by Hadeland Glassverk Founded in 1762, Hadeland Glassverk (Hadeland Glassworks) is one of Norway’s oldest industrial companies with continuous operations. The production today still bases on old traditions and practice. Some of the tools that are being used today haven’t been changed for 2000 years. The main productions on Hadeland Glassverk today are different types of glass for drinking, bowls, plates, toffees, lamps and artwork and special products for companies. |
| Be The Right Kind of Loud How many meetings are you attending this week? And let’s be honest for a moment – how many times do you go shopping in your head or start scrolling on your phone while someone else is speaking?It’s not because you are a bad person. With the fragmentation of multiple channels and messages streaming in and out, we are operating in an ongoing attention deficit. While everyone is available, no one is present.The shift that came with our work from home office requires a new skillset when we engage with clients and stakeholders. The core question that keeps echoing across platforms and industries is the same: How do we make it engaging? And: What are the best ways to reach clients and stakeholders remotely? |
| NEWS |
| 115th ANNIVERSARY: SPONSOR ANNOUNCEMENTS |
| EVENTS |
| NBCC 115th Anniversary: 1906-2021 26th November Download PDF here |
| UN Global Compact Network UK ‘Transitioning to Net Zero’ series 9th September – 27th October |
| ICC International Trade & Prosperity Week 18th-22nd October |
| Nordic Drinks 28th October |
| Invest in Art 5th November |
| Energy Transition – Future Supply Chain Opportunities 17th November |
