The second edition of Barcelona New Economy Week (BNEW), organized by the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona (CZFB), has surpassed last year's participation figure with 12,000 registered users so far and is positioned as an international benchmark among high-level professionals, according to registration data, which also show that there will be more than 1,000 startups.
One week before its celebration, between October 5 and 8, BNEW maintains its commitment to a hybrid multisectoral B2B event, a benchmark for the new economy, with content presented by 800 speakers who will develop 200 analysis sessions across 10 debate areas. The transversal themes will be Sustainability, Science, Mobility, Talent, City, Logistics, Real Estate, E-commerce, Digital Industry, and Economic Zones.
"The new economy has shown how important the connection between different economic sectors is to address the future, as was evident in the most extreme situation of the coronavirus pandemic," highlighted the general director of the CZFB, Blanca Sorigué, at a press conference. In this regard, she emphasized that many participants have been looking for business opportunities within BNEW's digital platform since early September, when registration opened.
In this second edition, BNEW reaches 50% internationality, as it will have attendees from 145 different countries. The largest participation comes from Spain, Venezuela, and Colombia, thus reinforcing the strong positioning of the CZFB and the events it organizes in Latin America. Furthermore, 50% of BNEW's speakers will be women, achieving real parity.
Navarro: "New technologies and digitalization give us the opportunity to create new business spaces from Barcelona"For his part, the special delegate of the State in the CZFB, Pere Navarro, has highlighted the role played by BNEW to transform Barcelona into the world capital of the new economy"New technologies and digitalization give us the opportunity to create new business spaces from Barcelona, an attractive, dynamic city that offers many opportunities but that must be nurtured day by day; you cannot live only on inheritances," he stated.
Navarro pointed out that "the new economy evolves at a dizzying pace, and with BNEW we want not only to analyze the challenges it presents for each sector but also to anticipate them to be prepared for the opportunities that will arise from this transformation. In this event, we have incorporated such innovative topics as air mobility in our cities or how to offer an omnichannel and hyper-personalized experience through augmented and virtual reality." Navarro also wanted to emphasize that "after the Mercè festivities, BNEW is the event held in the most emblematic spaces of the city of Barcelona." In fact, in this edition, the BNEW program sessions will take place at Estación de Francia, La Pedrera, Movistar Center, Casa Seat, Roca Barcelona Gallery, and La Boquería.
With the celebration of BNEW, in addition to helping Barcelona position itself as a world capital of the new economy, the CZFB generates 200 direct and 700 indirect jobs, contributing at the same time to the local economy.