Brussels, 25 August 2020 — One Policy Place, a Belgian EU information start-up, today announced the lineup for their upcoming event IF2020, the virtual “Ideas Festival” which will take place on 8-9 September. The event is the first of its kind in Brussels and will bring together 2,000 policymakers, academics, entrepreneurs, industry and civil society representatives from across the globe in a virtual setting to both discuss societal challenges and present real-world solutions.

Luisa Frumenzi, Co-Founder of One Policy Place (OPP) says, "At OPP, we love to bring innovation to the world of policy so we’re really excited to be launching a virtual policy festival. Thanks to the enthusiasm of all our event partners, IF2020, which was originally planned as a one-day event, will now span two days and feature over 50 speakers! We’re so pleased to be hosting this Ideas Festival as we feel that creating a sense of community and a chance to reflect positively on the future is more important now than ever."

The festival is sponsored by PepsiCo and will feature household names such as Google and IBM. The diverse list of participating companies and organisations also includes Eurogas, European Copper Institute, Fourtold, Bitkom, Bellona, Climate Group, Chelsea Football Club, WindEurope, LafargeHolcim, ECPA and CISL. Euractiv and Allied for Startups join as Media Partner and Network Partner respectively.

The European Institutions will be well represented, with MEP Alice Kuhnke participating in the opening keynote on inclusivity along with a majority female panel consisting of speakers from diverse background and ethnicities. MEPs Peter Liese and Dita Charanzovà will also share their knowledge of topics ranging from the green recovery to artificial intelligence. Marius Vaščega, Head of Cabinet for Commissioner Sinkevičius, will participate in the closing keynote panel on biodiversity.

Festival organiser OPP was established in 2014, and they have been organising innovative policy events and providing a one-stop EU policy information platform to their users ever since. Anna Karklina, Chief Policy Officer at OPP, says of the event, “We have assembled an incredible line-up for the festival. With distinguished speakers from across the globe, I hope that the festival sessions will inspire the audience as well as make them think critically about the challenges and opportunities we are facing.”

The festival will also feature interactive elements, including virtual networking opportunities and virtual booths, which will allow high-level innovators, small businesses and early-stage start-ups to promote their ideas and solutions. OPP hopes that the booths will help to support SMEs in particular as they face challenges related to the COVID-19 crisis. Karklina says, “The virtual booths will showcase some amazing innovations in energy, fashion and tech as well as highlighting important projects across Europe.”

Being a start-up themselves, OPP will have a booth of their own to showcase their new EU information platform. The custom-built platform will allow OPP’s user base of industry associations, corporates, SMEs, start-ups, NGOs, think tanks, academics, and policymakers to keep their fingers on the pulse of EU policy by helping them to stay on top of key developments and follow legislation and MEPs. The service includes customised alerts, access to a planner of key meetings and events, and daily briefings which note essential developments and prepare clients for the day ahead.

Click here to register to attend IF2020 or to view more information on the event page

Contact

One Policy Place

Anna Karklina

Chief Policy Officer

anna.karklina@onepolicyplace.com

Luisa Frumenzi

Co-Founder

luisa.frumenzi@onepolicyplace.com

+32 488 968 319