Norway’s $1.3 trillion sovereign wealth fund will ask many of the companies in its portfolio to take more specific action on climate change, its head of governance and compliance said.
Companies faced calls at the United Nations COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland this month to lay out plans to achieve net zero carbon emissions to help combat global warming.
USA arrangerer et internasjonalt digitalt toppmøte om demokrati 9. og 10. desember. Styrking av demokratiet og menneskerettighetene, beskyttelse mot autoritær utvikling og kampen mot korrupsjon er blant temaene som blir diskutert.
President Joe Biden har invitert 110 land til det digitale toppmøtet om demokrati. Biden har vært tydelig på at han vil bidra til å styrke demokratiet både i USA og i resten av verden.
Med toppmøtet ønsker USA blant annet å etablere en agenda for demokratisk fornyelse og diskutere hvordan land sammen kan håndtere trusler mot demokratier. USA har også bedt deltakerlandene om å spille inn internasjonale og nasjonale forpliktelser som bidrar til å styrke demokratiet.
The Biden administration announced Wednesday it aims to buy its way to a cleaner, cooler planet, spending billions to create a federal fleet of electric vehicles, upgrade federal buildings and change how the government buys electricity.
The executive order President Biden signed leverages Washington’s buying power to cut the government’s carbon emissions 65 percent by the end of the decade. It lays out goals that would put the federal government on a path to net-zero emissions by 2050 and would add at least 10 gigawatts worth of clean electricity to the grid.
First launched in 2013, The US Chamber of Commerce’s Coalition for the Rule of Law in Global Markets published its Global Rule of Law and Business Dashboard in Q4 2021. The report samples 113 economies globally, analyzing how business, government and civil society can promote the rule of law as a foundation for economic recovery. For the first time, Norway, Denmark and Finland were included in the rankings, joining Sweden atop the Dashboard. The data clearly demonstrates the region’s significant role in strengthening the rule of law and combatting corruption to support commercial activity and enhance economic growth, as defined by the world’s largest business organization.
The first edition of the Dashboard, and every edition since, has been underpinned by five pillars considered deciding factors for foreign investment and operations in any market: transparency, predictability, stability, accountability, and due process. These five pillars provide investors with confidence that laws and regulations will be upheld and applied in a logical and consistent manner – and when disputes arise, they will be resolved fairly and transparently.
Nordic AmChams will continue to firmly support policies and activities that comply with the global rule of law and thank The U.S. Chamber of Commerce for including the Nordics’ notable performance within the report.
AmCham Denmark, AmCham Finland, AmCham Norway, and AmCham Sweden
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business organization. Members range from the small businesses and chambers of commerce across the country that support their communities, to the leading industry associations and global corporations that innovate and solve for the world’s challenges, to the emerging and fast-growing industries that are shaping the future.
The Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency has signed a contract with US company Draken International to sell up to 12 F-16 combat aircraft. The aircraft will be used as part of Draken’s training services in the United States.
For decades the F-16s have been the backbone of the Royal Norwegian Air Force and of the defence of Norway, protecting Norwegian sovereignty and participating in several national and international operations and exercises. With the F-16 now approaching the end of its service, the Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency was tasked by the Ministry of Defence in September 2019 to begin preparations to retire the remaining aircraft by the end of 2021, and potentially selling them to another user.
The Financial Times ranks BI as Norway’s best business school for the 6th year running in its European Business School Ranking 2021. BI ranks number 50 out of the 95 schools who make it onto the list.
“This is one of the most prestigious rankings throughout the year because it demonstrates the quality and breadth of our programmes. It is a recognition of impressive work across the entire organization to ensure that BI has attractive programmes that are research based, learning oriented and connected to practice. At the same time, I would like to thank all our alumni who contributed in what is one of the most comprehensive assessments of European business education,” says Inge Jan Henjesand, President at BI Norwegian Business School.
KONGSBERG has celebrated a world first by testing and verifying a full-scale, full-size, zero-emissions drivetrain powered by hydrogen fuel cells designed for ships and ferries. The project demonstrates that the technology is now mature for using hydrogen (H2) as an energy carrier.
The program is the third and final part of the EU funded project “HySeas” which has been running since 2013 to prepare and demonstrate a scalable hydrogen system for ships and ferries. KONGSBERG has been the technical lead of the project, which has involved participants from Scotland, Denmark, France, Germany, Sweden and England.
Grønn omstilling er øverst på agendaen når næringsminister Jan Christian Vestre møter næringslivet og har politiske samtaler i New York og Washington D.C. denne uken.
– USA og Norge har et langt og solid forhold, og nå vil vi forene krefter for å nå de globale klimamålene. Selv om Norge er et lite land, har vi verdensledende teknologi og kompetanse å bidra med, sier næringsminister Jan Christian Vestre.
Denne uken reiser han til New York og Washington for å ledsage kronprinsen, sammen med utenriksministeren og olje- og energiministeren. På agendaen står møter med norsk næringsliv med virksomhet i USA, og politiske møter om hvordan næringslivssamarbeidet kan brukes for å nå klimamålene.
(Reuters) – Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co on Wednesday said it will supply a supercomputer to the U.S. government for renewable energy and energy efficiency research.
The “Kestrel” supercomputer will be housed at a U.S. Department of Energy National Renewable Energy Laboratory facility in Golden, Colorado and will use “Sapphire Rapids” chips from Intel Corp and accelerator chips from Nvidia Corp, as well as multiple technologies from HPE’s supercomputing unit.
Hosted at Hotel Bristol in their grand Bristol Hall, event sponsors 3M, KPMG and Merck, along with AmCham members, international leaders and government representatives gathered to celebrate Thanksgiving. In theme with the night, and in keeping with AmCham’s tradition, the evening concluded with a raffle and auction consisting of generous prizes from member companies, with all proceeds going to charitable partner CARE Norway.
Hotel Bristol’s Executive Chef, Johan Laursen, mastered the traditional turkey dinner with all the trimmings, as both Norwegian and American guests agreed it tasted sublime. The dinner was accompanied by Washington’s Charles Smith Wines from Anora followed by pecan, pumpkin and apple pies.
The dinner featured a keynote speech by newly appointed Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre. Minister Vestre highlighted the essential transatlantic cooperation between our nations to accelerate the green transition, stating that “Norwegian companies are well equipped to deliver on high ambitions and strict environmental demands in cooperation with American partners,” recognizing that companies – in both Norway and the US – are putting forth best efforts to develop new green technologies. He also announced proudly that his first trip overseas in capacity as Minister will be together with Crown Prince Haakon on his visit to New York and Washington D.C. Vestre cited the trip as being of special importance, not only due to his American heritage, but also because of the strong ties Norway shares with the US as its largest trading partner outside of Europe.
To follow, US Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Sharon Hudson-Dean thanked AmCham members for their support of US and Norwegian joint prosperity and investment, and for maintaining the highest standards of international business practice. Hudson-Dean also directed attention to the role of businesses in the green transition, before expertly carving the ceremonial first slice of turkey.
Peter Skovholt Gitmark, Chair of CARE Norway, presented a charity that places special focus on empowering women and girls by promoting gender equality and women’s rights. Gitmark explained that equipped with the proper resources, such as VSLAs (Village Savings and Loan Associations), women have the capacity to lift families and communities out of poverty. Founded in the US in 1945, CARE assisted many families in post-WWII Norway.
A highlight of the evening, the lively charity raffle drawing and auction began after dinner. Attendees eagerly bid on and won a broad selection of coveted prizes – ranging from VR headsets from PortalOne to a 10kg Jarlsberg cheese wheel from Tine AS.
With the raffle and auction complete, AmCham Managing Director Jason Turflinger announced that this year’s auction and raffle had raised a record-breaking 100 000 NOK for CARE Norway. In response to the donation, Kaj-Martin Georgsen, National Director of CARE Norway, remarked “thank you so much for granting CARE Norway with your generous gift in relation to your annual Thanksgiving Celebration. CARE, together with our partners, will support women to access financial services, participate in dignified work, and thrive as entrepreneurs and small-scale producers, whilst also adapting our approach to fragile contexts. The generous support from AmCham will contribute to CARE’s work with women’s economic justice, and I want to thank you for your support.” To read the full letter, please click on the letter below.
