NEWS On September 24, Digital Impact North celebrated its first anniversary as a European Digital Innovation Hub (EDIH) by hosting its first annual conference: Digital Impact North Summit 2024. The day was filled with inspiring lectures, engaging workshops and opportunities to network with like-minded individuals and industry leaders. Topics such as AI, Digital Transformation, Smart Communities, Sustainable Industry, and Future Health were in focus, creating a platform for networking and discussions.
Charlotte Stenlund participates at a workshop during Digital Impact North Summit 2024
Image Jenny KarlssonOne of the speakers was Camilla Sandström, Professor at the Department of Political Science at Umeå University, who spoke to around 80 participants about twin transition and the search for “the sweet spot.” In her lecture, Sandström highlighted how the green and digital transitions are expected to reinforce each other. For instance, digital twins can be used to model sustainable forestry or optimize traffic flow to reduce emissions. However, she also emphasized the risks of these transitions clashing, with digitalization’s demand for electricity and resources potentially leading to increased consumption and waste, along with surveillance that could threaten privacy.
To find "the sweet spot" where the two transitions work positively together, an integrated and proactive approach is needed, involving both the private sector and government engagement to manage the negative impacts and promote a green economy.
Lecture by Camilla Sandström, Department of Political Science
ImageJenny KarlssonAs part of the event, Ulf Hedestig and Mikael Söderström at the Department of Informatics at Umeå University, along with Henry Lopez Vega from the AI Policy Lab and the School of Economics at Umeå University, led a workshop focused on developing a regional AI strategy.
During the workshop, the participants discussed possible features of a future regional AI strategy for Västerbotten where they prioritized key components for AI-driven innovation and debated which actors that should have significant roles in such conversion work. The discussions resulted in a first draft for an action plan aimed at guiding municipalities and regions in managing AI and other disruptive technologies in the future.
Participants included representatives from Region Västerbotten, the County Administrative Board of Västerbotten, Umeå Municipality, Skellefteå Municipality, as well as representatives from a variety of different companies in the region. The outcomes of this workshop will contribute to ongoing dialogue and collaboration in the region.
Ulf Hedestig and Mikael Söderström, Department of Informatics
ImageJenny KarlssonDigital Impact North works to assist small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) and organizations in their digital and green transitions and is established to contribute to northern Sweden as one of Europe’s leading regions in IT, artificial intelligence, and digitalization.
The initiative is led by Umeå University and its IT departments, along with Region Västerbotten, Umeå Municipality, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, and RISE Umeå.
Read more about Digital Impact North here.
Participants during the lectures at the Digital Impact North Summit 2024
ImageJenny Karlsson