Reykjavík Honors Three MICE Ambassadors

(Pictured above: From left, Reykjavík ambassadors Eyþór Ívar Jónsson, Eliza Reid and Rósbjörg Jónsdóttir)

Meet in Reykjavík—Reykjavík Convention Bureau, in partnership with the Icelandic Travel Industry Association, hosted an annual event on Sept. 5 for stakeholders in the Icelandic MICE industry. At the conference, which took place at the Hilton Reykjavík Nordica hotel, three of the convention bureau’s ambassadors were honored for their role in securing the arrival of important events to the Icelandic capital.

The 2019 honorary ambassadors are:

• Eliza Reid, historian and Iceland’s First Lady, for co-founding the Iceland Writers Retreat. Iceland Writers Retreat has taken place every year since 2014 and is a series of workshops and panels led by an esteemed team of international writers. The event has attracted more than 600 foreign visitors since it was founded, and the number is expected to grow in years to come.
• Rósbjörg Jónsdóttir, Founder of Cognitio & local partner for Social Progress Imperative in Iceland, for playing a pivotal role in organizing multiple events in Reykjavík. Her portfolio includes the “What Works Summit” that was held in Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre in 2016, 2017 and 2019 and which attracted more than 600 international delegates from all continents. The summit is three days of powerful learning about advancing social progress to achieve the sustainable development goals. The fourth “What Works Summit” is scheduled in 2020. Rósbjörg was also at the frontline of the “Iceland Geothermal Conference”, which offers an in-depth discussion of the barriers that hinder the development of the geothermal sector and how to overcome them. The summit took place in Reykjavík in 2010, 2013 and 2016. This conference was held in Iceland four times and attracted more than 1,500 guests. Rósbjörg led the bidding process for the “World Geothermal Congress” that will be held in Reykjavík in April 2020, with an estimate of 3,500 international attendees.
• Eyþór Ívar Jónsson, Founder of “Vidskipta Akademian”, Director of the Centre for Corporate Governance in Iceland and Director of the A-Board at Copenhagen Business School. Eyþór was the conference chair for EURAM (European Academy of Management) 2018 and led the bidding for the University of Iceland where the 2018 conference was held. A record 1,700 members of EURAM attended around 400 events in Iceland. Eythor was part of the EURAM executive committee 2017–2018 and the first national representative and board member for EURAM from Iceland.

The three ambassadors were added to a list of 11 ambassadors who have been honored by Meet in Reykjavík—Reykjavík Convention Bureau in recent years.