English translation
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Reykjavik is internationally recognized as a community where creativity and entrepreneurship find fertile ground.
Living and working here is desirable, and Reykjavik is an exciting place to visit.
Creativity and imagination foster social, economic, and cultural wealth created in harmony with nature and the community.
We view innovation as the result of imaginative ideas implemented by entrepreneurial people all over Reykjavik.
Innovation tends to be discussed in the context of high-tech companies, but innovation is also the driving force in a wide range of activities concerning culture, artistic creation, volunteers, public administration, and various service providers.
Innovation is not a feather in someone’s cap. It is part of Reykjavik’s self-image and shapes the way people live and work in the city and how they approach their daily life. We are going to create fertile ground for new ideas to flourish.
Innovation is a common theme throughout the Reykjavik Economic and Innovation Policy. This is because innovation is a prerequisite for value creation in all areas of society and makes us better prepared to meet the challenges of the future.
Initiative, imagination, and creativity are the hallmarks of societies that enjoy the social, economic, and cultural qualities of life.
Reykjavik has all the means to provide an internationally competitive environment for creative industries, culture, and innovation.
New priorities in the Reykjavik Economic and Innovation Policy will help us create fertile ground where different currents combine to attract imaginative and entrepreneurial people.
A city that wants to be characterized by creativity is committed to creating a nurturing environment for thriving ideas.
Every part of policy and government will now work together to make Reykjavik an excellent venue for a vigorous economy and new initiatives.
A creative environment combines high-quality social and technological infrastructure, good access to green spaces, and a sound social structure.
Such an environment is characterized by trust, positivity, and cooperation. It revolves around a mutual understanding of the opportunities and challenges of the future.
The City of Reykjavik will make every effort to achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, with innovation being the key to reaching these goals.
The City of Reykjavik seeks to encourage the diversification of employment and thereby strengthen its role as Iceland’s capital and leading power. We want Reykjavik to be internationally recognized as a center of creativity, culture, and innovation.
1.1 More engaging dialogue and information sharing between the City of Reykjavik and the business community
2.1 Fostering a Culture of Innovation at the City of Reykjavik
2.2 Better Services from the City of Reykjavik
2.3 Sound and Efficient Infrastructure
3.1 Building Clusters of Innovation and Knowledge Work
3.2 Enhancing national and international collaboration on innovation and research
3.3 Ensuring human resources for good ideas
4.1 Domestic Marketing
4.2 International Marketing
5.1 Encouraging and Supporting Green Innovation Initiatives
5.2 Boosting the Circular Economy
5.3 Decreasing Greenhouse-Gas Emission
5.4 Expanding Opportunities Near Sustainable Transportation
6.1 Harnessing Everyone’s Talents
6.2 Celebrating Diversity
6.3 Safeguarding Human Rights in the Labor Market
The consultation process began with 18 thematic meetings with the business community. Dozens of companies and institutions—as well as every department of the City of Reykjavik—were asked by email to participate in the consultation. The public was given the opportunity to give feedback through the website of Better Reykjavik (betrireykjavik.is).
The Steering Committee met a total of 15 times and held an additional meeting entitled “Conversation on the Future.” During the policy-making, we decided to define challenges in line with the outcome of the consultations and to address them with concrete policy priorities. The draft policy went through the city’s internal consultation on December 3, 2021, and after considering feedback, the policy was submitted to external consultation.
A total of around 200 people were directly involved during the year it took to make the Reykjavik Economic and Innovation Policy to 2030.
The Reykjavik Economic and Innovation Policy serves as a guide for those of us who work for the city on how we can influence the future in a positive way.
A policy introducing creative thinking cannot be carved in stone. But this new policy gives us a framework and inspiration for getting started.
We are laying the path to spur the coming changes, and as time goes by, the Reykjavik Economic and Innovation Policy will grow and thrive.
The policy submission includes a two-year action plan which will be updated every two years while the policy is ongoing.
Economy refers to residents, staff, companies of all sizes and types, entrepreneurs, startups, research institutes, administrative bodies at all levels, and volunteers.
Creative industries refer to activities that grow from creativity, knowledge, and the talents of people and increases welfare and employment opportunities by creating and harnessing cognitive and cultural resources.
Innovation means creating or making something new or improving what already exists. This applies equally to a new or improved products, services, technology, methodologies, production methods, administrative infrastructure, or ways of selling and marketing. An idea or improvement needs to be implemented in order for it to be considered innovation.
Public innovation is a novel, or significantly changed, approach to improving operations and workplace performance. The innovation must include something novel for the workplace, but it may have been used elsewhere in the past or have been developed by others.
Infrastructure refers to the physical infrastructure, such as roads, ports, systems, and utilities, the social infrastructure, such as good schools, public spaces, art galleries, and green spaces, and the service infrastructure.
The aim of inclusive design is to plan and manufacture products, structures, and environments and design services so that the product benefits the greatest possible number of people to the greatest extent possible.
Inclusion means guaranteed access for people who might otherwise be marginalized or excluded from opportunities or resources.
Reykjavíkurborg fékk Deloitte til samstarfs til að vinna sviðsmyndagreiningu um framtíð Reykjavíkur árið 2035 með tilliti til umhverfisþátta, efnahagslegra þátta og samfélagslegra þátta, til að styðja við Græna planið.
Afrakstur sviðsmyndagreiningarinnar eru fjórar ólíkar en kraftmiklar sviðsmyndir. Sviðsmyndir eru gagnadrifnar sögur um framtíðina til að taka í dag betri ákvarðanir um framtíðina. Þetta er tilraun til að notast við skipulagða aðferð til að sjá fyrir sér mögulega framtíð og setja fram kenningar um framtíðarmöguleika. Sviðsmyndirnar eru ekki spá um líklegustu framtíðarborgina heldur tæki til þess að máta áætlanir og markmið okkar við aðstæður sem gætu komið upp. Með sviðsmyndirnar í huga getum við gert áform okkar traustari og okkur tilbúnari til að ná okkar markmiðum.