Key Business Conferences in Europe 2022

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Now that coronavirus restrictions are being relaxed around the world, the prospect of traveling abroad to attend conferences that could provide key insights for your business to grow is once again becoming a possibility.

With that in mind, we’ve compiled a list of some of the biggest summits of business leaders and policy makers in Europe 2022. While many are hybrid online/physical events, some of them just beg for an in-person visit due to the fantastic networking opportunities they offer.  Increasingly, key business conferences in Europe are leveraging the power of live stream pre recorded video content to enrich their virtual sessions, making them more accessible and engaging for a global audience.

Note: If you are traveling to Europe from the US for a conference in 2022, you don’t need to obtain a travel authorization. But you should be aware that it will be necessary to have an ETIAS in 2023.

Reuters Event: Responsible Business Europe 2022

When: Wednesday June 8 to Thursday June 9

Where: Hilton London Tower Bridge, United Kingdom

This summit hosted by Reuters aims to encourage sustainability and responsibility in business practices. The main draw is a carefully curated speaker faculty that showcases senior-level leaders across numerous industries.

Some of the 2022 speakers will include:

• Alok Sharma – President, COP26
• Mark Versey – CEO, Aviva Investors
• Angela Cretu – CEO, Avon
• Emma Howard Boyd – Chair, Environment Agency
• Line Hestvik – Chief Sustainability Officer, Allianz
• Javier Echave – CFO, Heathrow
• Julia Barrett – Chief Sustainability Officer, Willmott Dixon
• Peter Harding – CEO, Suntory Beverage & Food Europe
• Santiago Gowland – CEO, Rainforest Alliance
• Yves Delmas – CEO, DDP group

Over 500+ CEOs and senior-level executives from business, finance and government are expected to attend in 2022, both in person and online.

POLITICO Live’s Competitive Europe Summit 2022

When: Wednesday June 15 to Thursday June 16

Where: Hotel de Merode, Brussels, Belgium

The Politico, the political journalism company based in Arlington County, Virginia, is hosting the third edition of its Competitive Europe summit in 20202, after two previous online conferences in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

The summit aims to address topics such as the disruption to the world economy following the outbreak of war in Ukraine and how this will affect Europe’s plans to become the first climate-neutral continent by 2050. EU plans to reign in Big Tech and promote a digital transition for Europe will also be discussed.

The 2022 Politico presenting partners are:

• European Round Table for Industry
• Generali
• Google
• Yara

This year’s event will be an in-person/online conference hybrid, based out of The Merode Hotel in Brussels. It is expected to offer over 40 speakers and bring together high-level policy-makers, industry experts, and civil society actors through interviews, panel discussions and roundtables.

Conference on Industrial Technologies IndTech 2022

When: Monday June 27 to Wednesday June 29

Where: Maison MINATEC, Grenoble, France

A flagship event in the European agenda, IndTech is organized every two years by the European Commission in a country that holds the EU presidency. The event aims to mobilize key players in Europe and internationally around the theme of industrial technologies of tomorrow.

Some of the topics to be addressed include:

• AI for manufacturing
• Circularity and sustainability
• Emerging breakthrough technologies
• Green and digital transition
• Human-centric technologies
• Youth in Science & Technology

Some of the main reasons you should consider attending the summit include the opportunity to:

• Attend parallel thematic sessions, workshops, and meetings
• Participate in interactive panel discussions
• Meet industry and innovation leaders, scientists, researchers and public decision-makers
• Get introduced to innovative companies and pilot line platforms through site visits
• Hear about successful R&I projects and leading science and research institutions
• Discuss the post-Covid challenges for European Industries and solutions towards better economical resilience

Participants in the 2022 event will be able to attend the conference in person in Grenoble France. Nevertheless, organizers advise booking refundable transportation and accommodation options due to the uncertain COVID-19 situation and possible rule changes.

European Business Summit

When: Wednesday November 16 to Thursday 17

Where: Brussels, Belgium

The European Business Summit has been uniquely positioned as a debating platform for policy, business, and academia for over 20 years. In 2022, it presents an ideal opportunity to discuss challenges in a pivotal year for Europe’s recovery following the pandemic.

The title for the European Business Summit 2022 is “Beyond recovery: Towards a sustainable and innovative Europe”. The event aims to highlight Europe’s ongoing digital and sustainability shifts and its renewed cooperation with long-standing partners.

The full line-up for the 2022 event have not yet been announced, but the impressive speakers at the 2021 edition included:

• Alexander De Croo – Prime Minister of Belgium
• Siada El Ramly – Director General of DOT Europe
• Oliver Bethell – Director, Google Competition
• Sir David Attenborough – Broadcaster and Natural Historian
• Javier Espinoza – Financial Times Correspondent
• Philippe Ducom – President, ExxonMobil Europe
• Lucilla Sioli – Director for Digital Industry at European Commission
• Maria Tadeo – Bloomberg Correspondent
• Dan Michaels – Brussels Bureau Chief of the Wall Street Journal

An in-person event with limited attendance will offer participants exclusive networking opportunities. However, those at home will be able to join in as all panel discussions and interviews will also be live-streamed.

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