Leaders newsletter December 15, 2023
It is now time to round off an eventful year and look forward to the next. I am very proud of what our regional economy has achieved in 2023 - even though the global situation has of course affected us here too.
Dalarna Science Park has just launched this year's Innovation Report, which aims to summarize and share the highlights of the past year. The report is based on the ongoing digital Innovation Panels that we regularly conduct. The report can and should be seen as a temperature gauge of what we who work in Dalarna have for thoughts on innovation, sustainability and internationalization. The Innovation Report also summarizes initiatives that we at Dalarna Science Park have taken and implemented - on our own or in collaboration with others.
Something special I want to highlight is that our business incubator has officially broken the billion barrier! This means that the companies that have passed through our incubator since its inception almost 20 years ago, together generated an annual turnover of over one billion Swedish kronor in 2022. It also means that these 196 companies have contributed over SEK 200 million to the Swedish treasury through taxes and fees. The companies have also generated almost 600 jobs in Dalarna. We know that the regional promotion system makes a big difference in the early stages of start-ups.
The situation in Sweden and the rest of the world is difficult and there is widespread concern both in our country and in other parts of the world. It therefore feels very positive that we operate in a region where there is currently enormous potential - despite the economic and world situation. We see how our industries are "accelerating in the curve" and taking subcontractors and other sectors with them. During the year, Hitachi won Sweden's largest industrial order of all time and needs to recruit 2,000 people while building a new factory in Smedjebacken. Lyko is expanding rapidly and has already started recruiting 1,000 people for its operations in Vansbro. These are just a few examples of how our region creates opportunities for the whole of Dalarna and all of us who live here.
I have chosen 2024 as the year of opportunities. Among other things, I look forward to the continued collaboration between Dalarna Science Park and Dalarna University. There is great potential in our now deepened relationship with academia.
I am also looking forward to our newly launched Industry Accelerator. I am very hopeful that through that business program we will be able to solve several of our regional challenges. The primary task of the Accelerator is to find effective solutions to manage our regional industries' residual waste. This will be done by searching for start-up companies around Sweden and the world that have the technology to recycle these residual streams into new products on site here in Dalarna. The hope is that we will attract new companies here that generate attractiveness and jobs while utilizing and generating new benefits for what would otherwise be treated as waste.
I would like to thank you for showing interest in what Dalarna Science Park has been working on during the year. My fantastic colleagues and I look forward to welcoming you to many interesting seminars, trainings, events and gatherings next year. It is together that we create the unexpected and the successful. It is together that we will secure the continued growth of Dalarna.
See you in 2024 - the year of opportunity!
Angelica Ekholm, CEO
