Iceland’s capital’s star rises

08 Sep Iceland’s capital’s star rises

Dagur Eggertsson, mayor, Reykjavik, has led his city through a phenomenal recovery over the last six years, has kept Covid under control, and is now seeking to turn Iceland’s capital into a sustainable and convenient tourist destination.

You were elected on June 16th 2014 as Mayor of Reykjavik, coming from a very interesting background in medicine and international human rights law. What have been some of biggest successes and achievements over these past 6 years?

My first term was focused on the housing market and on getting the economy going. That went quite well, as Reykjavik experienced large growth. We systematically tried to learn from the crash of 2008 to develop and build a sustainable economy. Reykjavík has been focusing on green industry, knowledge-based industries, creative industries and on tourism. We try to support the stabilization of the economy, and the last six years have been quite good for Reykjavik.

This spring 2020 has however been one of the strangest I ever witnessed not only has mayor but as a person. Before entering politics I was actually going to specialize in infectious diseases and pandemics, with the idea of combining international law and human rights perspectives, and public health response to pandemics. That field has always interested me, however I could not imagine experiencing a pandemic of this scale, with this extreme effect not only on people’s lives but also on the economy, on cities, on travel and flights.

Iceland had seen a real tourism boom these past few years, welcoming over 2 million tourists a year prior to the COVID-19 crisis. How has this tourism boom impacted and benefited Reykjavik? What are some of the major changes that you have seen in the city over the past couple of years?

Reykjavik identified tourism as one of the sectors that could lead to full employment after the economic crash of 2008. That was a successful move. The growth in that sector was actually so fast that infrastructure development lagged behind for a number of years, which put a pressure on the housing market because a number of apartments went for rent on Airbnb and similar platforms. We had a lack of housing which has only been addressed recently.

One of the things we did after the 2008 crisis was open up the doors of our schools and universities free of charge to encourage people to upgrade this skills and backgrounds. People with unemployment benefits could go back to school and gets extra trainings in degrees. This was a very Icelandic way to deal with the crisis. As a result, a lot of the professionals who entered the tourism industry in the subsequent years have that kind of background.

Today, in this post COVID-19 environment, we are working to build again our tourism, and to make it sustainable and green. The city of Reykjavik has decided to have a green strategy, a Reykjavik Green deal if you like. We are focusing on different fields such as the creative industries, the film industry and innovation-related industries to spur new growth. Reykjavik is one of the places where Netflix is shooting a lot of series. We are seeing lots of opportunities also in the knowledge-based industries, where we work very closely with universities.

Having kept the pandemic under control will definitely serve us. In Iceland, private and public knowledge institutions worked hand in hand during the pandemic, they were extremely fast, testing very extensively, doing things very efficiently with the highest standards. We are always one phone call away from other people in the society, which enables us to take quick decisions, move fast, and deliver very good works. We see that in the field of health research, but also in other fields.

As the Iceland government has just launched a new campaign to promote tourism post COVID-19, how is Reykjavik city planning to take advantage of that and what are your plans to reignite tourism post crisis?

For the last years Reykjavik has been one of the safest places to travel. Of course Reykjavik doesn’t compare with the big cities of the world like London, New York or Paris, but its makes an ideal city break destination. We promote it that way, as a very different place: small, cute, safe, convenient, close to nature. For those people who want to experience the Northern lights, bathe in the blue lagoon, be close to nature, do some excursions as well as eat well and live the city life, Reykjavik is on the top of their bucket list.

Over 95% of our guests say they would recommend Reykjavik to their closest friends. We don’t have the marketing muscles bigger cities have, so we mostly depend on our guests and word-of-mouth. Instagram pictures and our fresh air are some of our best assets. We also have lots of festivals and events ongoing. We provide all the quality of life a big city can provide, but also safety, short distances and convenience.

Sustainability is a constant concern that you have. In fact, Reykjavik stands out as a champion of sustainability, the world’s most sustainable city. All electricity in the city is produced with hydroelectric power, houses are geothermally heated. Can you tell us how the Municipality has achieved this, and tell us about the unique cooperation that you have with Reykjavík Energy? What are some of the other most remarkable green initiatives that have seen the day in Reykjavik city, such as waste management or climate change adaptation?

It was in our crisis time that we took the biggest steps to become more green and sustainable. In the 70s, Reykjavik decided, through our subsidiary Reykjavik Energy which is almost 100% owned by the city, to connect every house to central heating and geothermal energy. We have been one of the leading cities when it comes to climate change and to adopting a low carbon footprint. Coming out of this crisis we now think that we need to have a very green focus on the future: from the way we manage our waste, for example to look at it as a resource and not just something to throw away, to how we can make transportation greener using domestically, 100% green electricity as energy instead of fossil fuel’s. The same applies to all our economic sectors we want to develop. Reykjavik’s past has been quite green, but my ambition is that our future is even greener.

Transport is currently the main source for green house gas emissions and is a challenge the municipality is tackling at the moment. Your have a very ambitious goal to make Reykjavik a carbon neutral municipality by 2040. What are your plans to achieve this, boost public transport, develop an EV fleet?

20 years ago, everybody had forgotten how to bike in Reykjavik, so we had to re-develop a lot of bike infrastructure. Now we are increasing our focus on public transport, adding a bus transit system that will run on electricity in the street within two or three years. In the 60s the city was planned for cars, however this is not sustainable anymore, so we have been taking a huge turn when it comes to planning, focusing on our green spaces and green areas, focusing on shifting traffic from private cars to public transport, walking and biking. We took inspiration in the oil crisis in the 70s, when Iceland went 100% renewable when it comes to energy for house heating. We think we can do that faster than other cities because we have the luxury of producing 100% renewable electricity. That’s for green transport, but we also have ambitions for waste management where we are taking huge steps. All of this comes together as part of our vision for a healthy city, because when it comes to transports and how you move around you’re not only affecting yourself but you are affecting people all around with better or worse air quality. Medical research has shown increasing physical activities and exercise in turn affects your mental health and well-being. We believe in an evidence-based approach to policy- and decision-making. That is actually what got us through the pandemic in such away. We looked at the evidence, we looked at the public health playbook and followed it.

To what extend do you feel a responsibility to share your example, and stand out as role model for other cities to follow, to show that this is possible?

We approach this with humility. I don’t think we necessarily have all the solutions, or the smartest solutions, although we try. We are a small country and small city, so most of the solutions and ideas that we use are in fact learnt from others. Without international cooperation we would be nowhere. We have to be brave enough ourselves to pick the best solutions and then inform and debate with the public the steps necessary for the future when it comes to climate change or green issues. We have to be bold and take risks sometimes when it comes to economic development. If you think in terms of tourism or foreign direct investment, what you need to remember as a mayor is that a good city for your citizens is also a city that is interesting to visit as a guest, interesting to bet on for investment. These things go hand-in-hand. We need to remember the people who live here and do as much as we can for them.

The city of Reykjavik is going to develop a Creative Industry District. What’s your vision to foster more innovation, establish Reykjavik as a growing R&D center and innovation hub?

I believe immensely in innovation and in bringing added value. Cities can only compete in two different ways: by offering the lowest prices or by bringing an added value that attracts people customers and leads to higher pay. I think that the way forward for Reykjavik is to focus on innovation, knowledge-based and creative industries, where you have higher paychecks. To ensure the welfare and well-being of citizens, I believe that you have to create an environment that is great for people to live in and for companies to operate from.

There is a very good collaboration between the city and the universities, as well as with research and R&D firms. We have a whole area close to universities where we intend to host knowledge-based industries. The city bought an old fertilizer plants some years ago that we want to turn into one of the most interesting centers for film production and shooting, competing with other similar centers. Reykjavik Studios is already there as well as a lot of other film-makers in the country that have been catering to big international and Icelandic productions. We are quite a young city with lots of students and we like it that way.

To conclude what’s your final word to our readers?

I encourage people to make a trip to Reykjavik to get a first impression, and next time they can stay longer. We like to think that people are welcome and safe here. They should also try our public swimming pools, as this is where people meet in Iceland, in hot tubs. That’s what one of the hidden gems of Iceland.