We proudly present the Region Stavanger ambassadors for 2018/2019

Bettina Alstadsæther & Anne Hovda - Stavanger Karate Club, Nordic Championship Karate 2020

The Nordic Karate Championship was to be held in Stavanger in 2020 with over 300 athletes from 8 nations. The driving forces behind the application for the Nordic championship are Bettina Alstadsæther, a top martial artist, and the board of the Stavanger Karate Club. Bettina Alstadsæther is a top performer in karate. As an athlete in the world elite, she has achieved many good positions in both the European Championship and the World Cup. She reached the bronze final in the European Championships in 2018 and has been selected for the EC squad 2019, a step closer to the big goal of competing in the Olympics in Tokyo in 2020.

Espen Knoph – General Manager, Vipe Productions AS & Utopia Festival, Utopia

Espen Knoph is the general manager of Vipe Productions AS & Utopia Festival. In the past, Svendsen has worked both with artist management, festivals and venues, including as music manager at Tou Scene and festival manager for Numusic Festival. Utopia has become the region's biggest music festival right in the heart of Stavanger city centre! Utopia is the first festival to cultivate a pop profile in Stavanger aimed at the urban younger target group. The city festival attracts over 20,000 visitors over two days, and the biggest artists from Norway and the world in pop, EDM and urban music.

Maren Skjelde – General Manager, Gladmat AS, Gladmat Food Festival

Gladmatfestivalen is Norway's largest food festival with up to 250,000 visitors over four days and aims to promote the public's interest in food and food culture. The Gladmat Festival is an important showcase for food production, gastronomy and food culture in Rogaland, and was held in 2019 for the 21st time. The festival is held in the heart of Stavanger, where over 100 exhibitors give a taste of new products and trends as well as traditional food. Maren Skjelde is the general manager of Gladmat AS, a non-profit organisation whose main activity is the Gladmat Festival. Skjelde has a Master of Science in hotel and tourism management from the University of Stavanger and Otago University in New Zealand and has extensive experience in hotels and tourism.

Paal Refsland – General Manager, Trolljeger, Trolljegerprøven Obstacle race

The Trolljegerprøven is Norway's roughest off-road obstacle race, which takes place in raw Norwegian nature at Foss-Eikeland, in Sandnes. The competition has 30-40 obstacles spread over 8 km. The Trollhunter Trial sold out with 2,500 registered participants. The driving force behind the Trollhunter Trial is Paal Refsland. In recent years, he has also developed the Trolljegerprøven in Bergen, Trolljeger Junior as well as developed a year-round training offer on his premises. New this year (2019) is Trolljeger Winter in Sirdal. Paal Refsland is a trained hairdresser, long-time chairman of the Ganddal Atlete Club, and active in strength sports. Refsland is the general manager of Trolljeger and is the initiator of the Trolljeger test. He is committed to getting people moving, whether you are well-trained or happy on the couch.

Sigve Valentinsen. General Manager, Sandnes Athletic Club and Janne Gunn Gaard. General Secretary, Powerlifting Association, WC Powerlifting 2020

The Norwegian Powerlifting Association and Sandnes Athletic Club organised the WC in powerlifting in 2021 (after being postponed due to covid), in Stavanger Sports Hall. The WC in Powerlifting was an open championship for women and men with up to 300 - 350 participants. The initiator of the WC in Powerlifting 2020 is Jane Gunn Gaard, general secretary of the Norwegian Powerlifting Federation and Sigve Valentinsen, general manager of Sandnes Athletics Club who is part of the "Clean sports team", and is active in anti-doping work and preventive attitudes against doping abuse. Valentinsen is active in sports, one of the all-time winningest Norwegian athletes in powerlifting and has won several honorary awards, including Lifter of the Year in 2010. Valentinsen is also an elected leader of the Control Committee in the association. Gaard is the general secretary of the association, a board member of Sandnes Athletics Club and a driving force and resource for the powerlifting community both locally and nationally.

Morten Tønnessen -  Professor, Social Sciences faculty, University of Stavanger.  The 11th conference of the Nordic Association for Semiotic Studies, 2019

The 11th conference of the Nordic Association for Semiotic Studies (NASS XI) was organised by the University of Stavanger in 2019. The conference brought together leading researchers in the field from all over Scandinavia. Professor Morten Tønnessen, from the Faculty of Social Sciences, UiS, has been the driving force behind bringing this professional conference to Stavanger. Morten Tønnessen has a PhD in semiotics from The University of Tartu, Estonia, and currently works as a professor at the University of Stavanger. He has been the project manager for the international research project "Animals in changing landscapes". Morten Tønnessen has several positions in international networks, among other things he is a board member of the International Society of Code Biology and secretary of the Nordic Association for Semiotic Studies.

Rune Dahl Fitjar - Professor, Business School, University of Stavanger, 5th Geography of Innovation Conference, 2020

The 5th Geography of Innovation Conference 2020 - GEOINNO 2020 is organised by the Business School at the University of Stavanger. The conference brings together leading researchers in the field from all over the world. The initiator of the conference is Professor Rune Dahl Fitjar at the Business School at UiS. Rune Dahl Fitjar has a PhD from the London School of Economics and Political Science. He is employed as a professor in innovation studies at the Business School at UiS and at the IRIS research centre.

Sissel Haugdal Jore, Professor and centre leader SEROS, University of Stavanger, 4th Society for Risk Analysis (SRA) Nordic Conference /RISK 2018

The 4th Society of Risk Analysis Nordic Conference - RISK2018 was organised at the University of Stavanger on 8 and 9 November 2018, on behalf of the Society for Risk Analysis (SRA). SEROS at UiS welcomed over 100 international researchers to the conference on risk, security, and vulnerability. Sissel Haugdal Jore has her PhD degree from the University of Stavanger, she currently works as an associate professor and is head of the research centre SEROS at UiS.

Krisztian Balog. Professor, The Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Stavanger, The ACM SIGIR International Conference on the Theory of Information Retrieval (ICTIR, 2020

The ACM SIGIR International Conference on the Theory of Information Retrieval (ICTIR) was held at the University of Stavanger in 2020. ICTIR 2020 will draw researchers from all over the world to Stavanger. Krisztian Balog has his doctorate in computer science from the University of Amsterdam and currently works as a professor in computer science at the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences at UiS. Balog is currently associated with Google in London, on a sabbatical.

Aina Hauge – Department head, Stavanger University Hospital, EORNA Congress, 2021

EORNA Congress 2021 is organised by the European Operating Room Nurses Association (EORNA) in collaboration with the Norwegian Nurses Association's National Group for Operating Room Nurses (NSFLOS). The congress was held in Stavanger in 2021 for up to 1,500 nurses to the region from all over Europe. Aina Hauge is head of the surgery department at the Surgical Division at Stavanger University Hospital. Aina Hauge is secretary of EORNA, she also leads the Norwegian professional group for operating room nurses, NSFLOS.

Jone Schanche Olsen - Doctor, Head of Transcultural Center, SUS, 21st Nordic Conference for therapists working with traumatised refugees, 2019

The 21st Nordic Conference for therapists working with traumatized refugees will be held in Stavanger at the Atlantic Hotel on 6-7 June 2019 under the theme "From Powerlessness to Strength". The driving forces behind the conference are the transcultural centre in Stavanger and the Foundation for Psychiatric Information. Jone Schanche Olsen is head of the transcultural centre in Stavanger. This is the first centre to open in Norway, which treats asylum seekers and refugees. Schanche Olsen has broad experience in the field, having worked for 25 years in the refugee field in various contexts, both at home and abroad.

Målfrid Snørteland, Museum Director, Jærmuseet + Finn Krogh, Museum Director, Norsk Oljemuseum - Ecsite 2021

Ecsite 2021 is a European conference for knowledge centres with participants from all over Europe. The conference gathers around 1,000 participants from 50 countries in the Stavanger region in June 2021. The conference is organised by Ecsite in collaboration with the Norwegian Oil Museum and the Jærmuseet. Målfrid Snørteland has been in the Jærmuseet for more than 30 years. She has solid experience in museum management and communication and has the ability to think innovatively. Finn Krogh, museum director at the Norwegian Petroleum Museum since its opening in 1999, has solid knowledge of the petroleum business in Stavanger and will be a good partner when Ecsite 2021 is organised under the theme of "energy".

Pål Thjømøe. General Manager, Magma UNESCO Global Geopark, Ruritage General Assembly Meeting 2019

RURITAGE is a four-year project (start 2018) financed by the European Commission Horizon 2020 Programme. The project focuses on strengthening cultural heritage as a driving force for sustainable growth by establishing laboratories in the village. The project includes 40 partners from 14 EU countries, Norway, Iceland, Turkey and 3 South American countries (Brazil, Colombia, and Chile). RURITAGE is led by the University of Bologna and has 6 focus areas: pilgrimage, local food production, migration, resilience, arts and festivals and integrated landscape management. Magma will act as one of six lighthouses in the project within the area of interest in local food production. Pål Thjømøe, general manager of Magma UNESCO Global Geopark, has a leading role in getting the RURITAGE general assembly to the Stavanger region. The meeting will attract around 80 participants from EU countries and South America to the region. Thjømøe is a qualified geologist from Aarhus University and leads a number of international development projects through his role in the geopark.

Hilde Kraggerud. Researcher, Tine BA, Sensometrics 2020

Sensometrics 2020 in Stavanger from 21 - 25 April attracts researchers in Sensometrics from all over the world to the Food County of Rogaland. Hilde Kraggerud has a PhD in food science from the Norwegian University of Environmental and Life Sciences. She is employed as a researcher in Tine, where she conducts daily research on the sensory aspects (taste experiences) of the company's products. Kraggerud also has a Master's in Innovation Management from the BI School of Business, is politically active and is a committed promoter with a broad professional background in the food industry.