Are you part of a board, association, industry organization, or perhaps a scientific group that holds regular meetings around the country or abroad? Do you think the next meeting should take place here in Umeå? We have spoken with individuals who have stepped up to become local meeting hosts — bringing the world to Umeå.
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Jonas Hansson
Jonas Hansson is a researcher and teacher at Umeå University’s Police Education Program. This year, he will serve as the local host for the Global Law Enforcement and Public Health Association (GLEPHA) conference, which will take place in Umeå.
– I am a member of GLEPHA and have thus built personal relationships with those involved through various forms of collaboration. After the pandemic, I contacted Professor Nick Crofts at GLEPHA to find out where the next conference would be held. He asked if I had any suggestions in Scandinavia, and I mentioned Umeå University. It didn’t take long to reach an agreement, and planning began about a year ago.
Being a local host means ensuring that everything runs smoothly and establishing connections with both local and national stakeholders who may be involved in various ways. This includes everything from venues and catering to contacts with the university, as in Jonas' case. To assist him, Jonas has enlisted Jesslyn Rose from Umeå Congress.
– They are professionals at this, and without Jesslyn's help, it wouldn’t work. She has experience with this type of event and is invaluable to me. We also have a number of partners involved who, in various ways, make it possible to organize LEPH2023.
Organizing a large meeting or conference on your own is impossible, as school counselor Caroline Bergh has learned while working on the Competence Days for the Swedish School Counselors' Association, which will be held in Umeå.
– The list of people who have helped is long, but the two who have really opened up their contact lists and shared their networks and expertise are Ulrika Hed at Visit Umeå and Emil Åreng at Facit Bar. Additionally, Tinna at Coeo has helped in a highly professional manner with our digital platform, as we will also have digital participants," she says.
Caroline Bergh
– Our annual School Counselor Days are unique in that they are the only conference specifically aimed at school counselors. By holding it in Umeå this year, with an incredibly tight budget in advance, we’ve shown that it’s possible to organize a conference with limited resources while still maintaining high quality. This is all thanks to how helpful key people in the city have been and how many have ensured that this event would truly be a success. This is a model to carry forward for our association and for future conference planning.
Johan Svensson
Collaboration was also behind the Meeting Place Biosphere – the first national biosphere conference aimed at strengthening the link between knowledge development, practice, and policy. It was co-organized at two locations – Kristianstad and Umeå – with two Umeå residents involved in bringing it to our latitudes: Johan Svensson at SLU and Lena Maria Nilsson at the Arctic Centre at Umeå University.
– It worked very well to have a meeting split between Umeå and Kristianstad. One can certainly imagine many more such hybrid meetings in the future. Less travel saves a lot of time, money, and environmental impact," says Johan Svensson.
When Lena Maria Nilsson became involved, Johan Svensson at SLU had already raised his hand. She came in later but believes that an event like Meeting Place Biosphere benefits Umeå – and, in the long run, the entire world.
– It is important to create meeting places between researchers and practitioners, entrepreneurs and politicians. The major societal challenges require interdisciplinary research and societal dialogue. That is why we need to meet at conferences," she says, continuing;
– I believe many became aware of the local forces along the river, which should benefit Umeå. It also benefits Umeå that we invite people from outside to participate in the dialogue about how we can build a sustainable society.
Lena Maria Nilsson
A sustainable society includes secure access to clean water. Anna-Lena Fomin at Vakin is hosting the Water Summit 2023, which attracts around 500 participants from all over Sweden. She believes that large meetings and conferences are unique opportunities to be seen and stand alongside other interesting actors from Norrland.
– Out of habit, many meetings are held in larger cities in southern Sweden. We need to turn the map around and show that Umeå is a fantastic conference city with great transportation, excellent hotels, and amazing food, not to mention that Umeå has some of the best tap water in Sweden," she says, continuing by highlighting the benefits of organizing meetings like these;
– We see many benefits. We work in a hidden, partially invisible field that suddenly takes center stage at a major meeting arena. It sparks interest in water issues and Vakins' unique conditions and expertise as a northern Swedish actor. In addition to strengthening our brand, we also hope to attract more people to choose our industry.
Anna-Lena Fomin
Finally, Anna-Lena sees other advantages to having over 500 participants travel to Umeå in her case.
– Many people believe that the distances up north are long, but everything is actually very close in Umeå. The more people who visit Umeå, the more will want to return and perhaps work here or recommend Umeå University to their relatives or children.