The city of Los Angeles (approx. 3.8 million residents in city, and 10.2 million in county, with an LA county GDP of $707 billion) continues to pioneer climate change action planning. The Los Angeles Green New Deal documents a timeline and measurable path towards reducing emissions overall. The city of Los Angeles is seeking innovative solutions globally that can help the city reach specific emission targets faster and has allocated funding to do so.
Team Finland players have been working with the city of LA to identify areas where Finnish solutions can solve immediate needs that are not currently met by local players. After completing market research and verification of opportunities around the Los Angeles Green New Deal, Team Finland aims to expand the cooperation with LA by bringing a group of Finnish companies to meet key city stakeholders, from agencies to private incumbents. From Business Finland, Decarbonized Cities program supported by Low Carbon Built Environment program invite Finnish organizations to the delegation.
This delegation aims to workshop with relevant LA stakeholders and potential end customers to explore areas for further innovation collaboration and pilots around three key areas:
- mobility and transit,
- renewable energy, and
- built environment.
The visit program will be formed around the same three sectors. As LA is hosting the summer Olympics in 2028 (among several other large events), the city is actively investing in new pilots to explore paths towards reaching emission targets.
Ms. Nina Kopola, CEO of Business Finland and Mr. Okko-Pekka Salmimies, Finnish Consulate General in Los Angeles, will lead a Team Finland business delegation on May 9-11, 2023.
Finland aims to expand collaboration with LA over the next several years, starting with this visit, with plans for additional activities to follow beyond 2023.
Read more about the possibilities
Market research in all three areas is available by request, and a webinar to share more fiscal insights on mobility/transit and renewable energy will be held on Wed. March 29, 16-17 EEST. Kindly read more.
Additionally, but not part of this delegation visit, there is an option for companies to continue to Seattle for the Nordic Innovation Summit tech day on May 12. Please note that the exhibition registration fee is not included in the delegation fee.
Who should attend?
This Team Finland visit is tailored for Finnish companies looking to expand into the LA county via a pilot and/or commercial partnerships. Meetings are geared towards specific project implementations and solving current challenges, with an emphasis on proposing future pilots in LA. Companies should be ready to pitch their solutions to potential end customers, which includes both city agencies and private incumbents.
The participating companies should have products/solutions/services for;
- in mobility/transit track solutions related to electrification of public transit, EV, and AV solutions.
- in renewable energy track solutions related to grid resiliency and energy storage.
- in built environment track solutions suited for new green commercial &/or residential construction.
Pre-work before the visit is highly encouraged and will include a briefing session and virtual introductions with the end customers before the delegation.
Practicalities
The visit is organized if at least 5 companies per track sign up. Delegation size is limited to 30 companies, and a company may have more than one representative attending.
To cover the expenses of arranging the program in LA, Business Finland will charge a participation fee of:
- Major companies: EUR 2400 + 24% VAT per person
- SME's and Micro businesses: EUR 2050 + 24% VAT per person
Business Finland will invoice the participation fee after the visit based on the actual costs. The invoiced fee will not exceed the amounts mentioned above.
Kindly note that the participation fee does not include flights, accommodation, meals and transportation outside the business delegation program.
Coaching for the participants
Senior advisors in Business Finland internationalization services, are offering the participants of the delegation extended coaching and support in building necessary sales pitches, that is to be presented during the delegation visit. The duration of the coaching session is one (1) hour per company. The session include sales pitching coaching, coaching on the presentation and content, and insight on how the presentation could be improved. The coaching is preferably organized face-to-face in Ruoholahti, Helsinki but can also be arranged in Teams.
When you have completed your registration for the visit you will be contacted by the BF advisers.
