2,000 participants from 80 countries at the G-STIC Conference of 2019
Against a backdrop of growing urgency, 2,000 participants and 150 speakers from 80 countries attended the third G-STIC conference in 2019. Entrepreneurs, researchers, innovation experts, technology suppliers, investors, captains of industry and policymakers discussed clusters of market-ready technological solutions that contribute to delivering a safe climate, appropriate education, affordable energy, healthy lives, sustainable ocean resources and water for all.
Together, they helped start the process of crafting an SDG assessment framework against which technological solutions can be benchmarked. Moreover, they participated in deal-making and business development events in support of implementing market-ready solutions for climate and sustainability challenges.
Spearheading technological innovation for the SDGs
The G-STIC Conference of 2019 marked the launch of a second G-STIC cycle focused on making real change happen. This cycle involves a deliberate transition from raising awareness on the need of transformative technologies to achieve the SDGs towards exploring and identifying clusters of market-ready innovative technological solutions that can make a major contribution to the achievement of the SDGs, and discussing the critical levers of change or transformation that need to take place to deploy these technological innovations at scale, under different socio-economic and geopolitical conditions around the world.
Clusters of market-ready integrated technological solutions were discussed that contribute to six major societal challenges: safe climate for all, education for all, energy for all, health for all, sustainable ocean resources and water for all.
Turning climate change challenges into business opportunities
The Industry Night offered plenty of networking opportunities with influential policymakers, investors, and captains of industry.
Keynote speakers Chad Frischmann (Project Drawdown), Sophie Souied-Soussan (Unilever), Alain Bernard (DEME), Richard White (AB InBev) and Sonja Willems (Janssen Pharmaceutica) highlighted emerging and rising trends in the industry and testified how businesses can drive growth and productivity while contributing to achieving the SDGs.
Main messages of the third G-STIC Conference
The Chairperson Summary outlines the discussions and findings of the G-STIC conference from the perspective of Dirk Fransaer (Founder G-STIC and Managing Director VITO), Veerle Vandeweerd (Co-founder and Policy Director G-STIC) and Dietrich Van der Weken (General Manager, G-STIC).
In brief, the Chairperson Summary discusses the outcomes of the conference in 3 major areas: a framework to assess the SDG potential of innovative technologies, an action forum and a partnership platform.
Scaling up businesses in support of implementing the SDGs
A series of deal-making and business development events took place in support of how we can live the change, and to forward the implementation of what G-STIC stands for. These events, including various matchmaking & pitching events, the Youth Challenge, the Copernicus Hackathon as well as masterclasses and workshops, were co-organised by G-STIC.
Together, all strands of activities made the G-STIC conference into a vibrant place full of positive energy towards a more sustainable future.
Photos of the conference
