Joint venture between the Confederation of Danish Industries, CBS and Roskilde Festival on live R&D

By Mikael Koldby
How can Danish companies and researchers contribute to solving some of the environmental challenges faced by the world – including a mini-society such as Roskilde Festival? Find the answers at the conference “From Rio to Roskilde”, which takes place at the House of Industry in Copenhagen. Danish companies and researchers develop global, sustainable solutions within handling of food, waste, and innovative types of construction. DI, CBS and a number of companies have therefore established collaboration with Roskilde Festival to make the festival even greener.

Next to the music and the party, the show yard in Roskilde will become a laboratory for Danish companies, which will test and develop sustainable products further, and to university researchers, who will analyse business procedures and guest behaviour and point out potential ideas.

With the Rio Summit in mind
During the 10 festival days, more than 120,000 people are gathered in an area the size of 215 football fields. The turnover of the festival and its hundreds of small businesses is millions of kroner. The festival creates business opportunities, but also a number of environmental and social challenges, which in many ways are similar to the sustainability challenges that were discussed at the Rio Summit in June 2012.

Harvard, the minister of the environment, and German BDI
On 20 January, a number of keynote speakers will share their ideas on how Danish companies can help solve the environmental problems of the world based on the actual challenges faced by Roskilde Festival. The speakers include Ida Auken, Danish Minister of the Environment, Henrik Rasmussen, CEO of Roskilde Festival, Markus Kerber, CEO of the German business organisation BDI, Steen Lindby, VP of Rockwool, and Tine Roed, Deputy Director General of DI. Research from the last festival will also be presented.

The collaboration was established in 2013 between CBS and Roskilde Festival. It was based on analysis and observation of current initiatives in selected areas of the festival, as well as an assessment of potential. The project was the beginning of a larger and long-term collaboration, in which the results from the 2013 analysis point at concrete ideas to be implemented at future festivals and in a larger forum.

For more information, please contact Kathrine Læsøe Engberg, Press Coordinator at DI, mobile + 4529 89 13 81 – or Mikael Koldby, Media Relations at CBS, mobile: +45 40 20 44 54 – or Christina Bilde, Spokesperson, Roskilde Festival, mobile: +45 30 10 82 81.