Kick off meeting January 2024

In January 2024 the first meeting of the North Pole Fiber Project was held in Stockholm, Sweden. The NPF project team from the Swedish Research Council, the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat (SPRS) and NORDUnet came together to discuss and coordinate the work of the project.

Magnus Friberg, Senior Advisor and Research engagement at the Swedish Research Council, welcomed the meeting attendees and introduced the North Pole Fiber project, giving an overview of the project scope that aims to explore options for alternative routes, and deliver a fiber route from Kiruna to the Norwegian border.

The meeting agenda covered budget, agreements, reporting, project time-line including deliverables and milestones, and assigning work packages and task leaders.

Read more about each work package on the Project Activities page. 

Other items on the agenda were communication and how to spread knowledge about the project, potential threats and issues, and action points.

The kick off meeting in January was an important event to provide good conditions for the collaboration between all beneficiaries, and the very starting point for the ongoing work to execute all actions in the project.

Per Nihlén

Organisation: Sunet, Swedish Research Council
Title: Chair of the Polar Connect Advisory Board and Chief Technology Officer and Inventory

Per is the Chair of the Polar Connect Advisory Board . He serves as Head of Unit at  the Swedish Research Council, where he leads the development and operation of Sweden’s national infrastructure for research and education in networking and digital communication. With over three decades of experience in digital infrastructure and public-sector innovation, Per leadership has been instrumental in advancing high-capacity networks that support research collaboration, data-intensive science, and education across the Nordic region. Per is also Chair of the Board of the Foundation for the Development of Telematics, a grant-making foundation that supports the advancement of high-performance digital infrastructure in Sweden. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Netnod, representing the foundation as owner and contributing to the governance of Sweden’s critical internet infrastructure. Per has been a trusted advisor to government agencies, research institutions, and international collaborations.

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