Enforcing Free Trade Agreements
Officials spend considerable time and effort crafting trade agreements. Comprehensive trade deals increasingly run to hundreds of pages of legal rules accompanied by thousands of pages of country-specific commitments. But once a deal is done, signed and enters into force, what happens? The agreement is available for savvy companies in member countries to use. They […]
Strength in Numbers
For Norwegian businesses looking to enter Asia, a wide range of support, including the Foreign Service, is there to help companies take the first step. Expanding into Asia is the logical decision for most businesses. It’s the most populous continent on earth and will only keep growing. On the other hand, the region is complex […]
Big in Japan
Japanese restaurants worldwide proudly serve Norwegian salmon these days. That wouldn’t have happened without some innovative marketing 35 years earlier. The Norwegian government and the country’s seafood industry launched Project Japan in 1986, focusing on doubling exports to Japan over a three-year period. It would be easy to assume these efforts were a rousing success […]
Sexy, Sustainable Seafood
Securing the world’s future food chain will be no easy task but Norwegian aquaculture may have answers. The task starts with changing how people perceive seafood. Seafood has an image problem. There are countless vegan champions insisting a plant-based diet is the only way to secure the world’s food chain. Meanwhile, beef, pork and other […]
Carbon Capture Conundrum
The world is racing against time to capture the carbon needed to meet global targets. The most pressing need is developing the CCS value chain. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is both possible and needed should the world have any chance of reaching the temperature targets set out in the Paris Agreement. It’s estimated that […]
Refreshing Boardroom Composition
When Norway introduced a 40 percent gender quota on the boards of listed companies in 2006, it was seen as a much-needed step toward equality. Now private firms are on the agenda. The Norwegian government submitted a proposal earlier this year that would require large- and mid-size private firms in the country to have women […]
Transition Decision
LNG is being used as a transitional fuel, but other options are gaining traction. As the shipping industry steps up greenhouse gas emission targets, a decision looms. Fuel was put in the spotlight once more when the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) announced a revised strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) created by shipping in […]
Here’s How Tech is Reshaping Medicine
Technology and innovation are improving the overall health experience. In Thailand, Samitivej Hospital continues to lead these efforts by focusing on preventive care. Disruption is synonymous with technology. Numerous industries over the past decade were upended almost overnight due to innovation. That approach doesn’t necessarily work for medicine, though. Patients and doctors are wary of […]
Guiding Maritime’s Path To Net Zero
In 2021, the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation launched in Singapore with the aim of helping international shipping decarbonise along a trajectory that meets key targets including Net Zero. At the Marine Environment Protection Committee meeting (MEPC 80) in July 2023, member countries pledged to reduce shipping emissions by 20-30 percent in 2030 and 70-80 […]