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Norway's Foreign Minister Opens High North Dialogue in Bodø
Norway's Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide (Labour Party) delivers the opening speech when High North Dialogue 2026 gathers politicians, researchers, and business leaders in the Norwegian Arctic on 22-23 April.
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" The fact that the foreign minister is coming to Bodø to open the conference shows that the Arctic is high on the political agenda, says the director of the High North Center for Business and Governance, Andreas Raspotnik, in a press release.
High North Dialogue is an annual conference organised by the High North Center at the Business School, Nord University. This year it is being held in the centre of Bodø, Northern Norway.
This year's theme is 'Our North, Our Future', and the conference poses the question: How can the Nordic Arctic assert its own agenda in an increasingly complex geopolitical reality?
Four main panels
The programme spans two days with four main panels on governance, business, preparedness, and people in the north. In addition, there are several side events, the High North Young Entrepreneur competition, and the awarding of the High North Hero prize.
Norway 's foreign minister opens the conference's first panel on Arctic governance and then participates in a panel discussion with, among others, the EU's ambassador to Norway, Nicolas de La Grandville, and Canada's ambassador, Amy Baker.
On Thursday, Norway's Minister of District and Digitalisation, Bjørnar Skjæran (Labour), opens the discussion on people in the north.
Open pubinar
The evening before the conference, Tuesday 21 April, the people of Bodø as well as anyone interested, are invited to an open pubinar at a local brewery.
On stage are, among others, Bodø's mayor Odd Emil Ingebrigtsen (Conservatives), Major General Gjert Lage Dyndal from the Armed Forces' operational headquarters, and regional director for the north, Siv Dagny Aasvik from Offshore Norway. Eide is also participating here. The event is free and open to everyone.
"The High North are more important than ever, and this year's programme reflects that. We have gathered strong voices from politics, defence, and research, and look forward to having the discussions here in Bodø, says Raspotnik.
High North News is an independent newspaper published by the High North Center at the Nord university. High North News follows the Norwegian Press Code of Ethics and is edited according to the Association of Norwegian Editors – Rights and Duties of the Editor.
