San Diego Business Journal

Mayor Todd Gloria and World Trade Center San Diego lead mission to the Netherlands

TRADE: WTCSD Seeks to Strengthen Economic Ties With EU

■ By KAREN PEARLMAN

Focused on fostering vital global economic partnerships, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria and World Trade Center San Diego, an affiliate of San Diego Regional EDC, are leading a delegation to the Netherlands this week.

During the whirlwind trip of Sept. 26-29, the plan for the faction of business and civic leaders is to promote San Diego's key industries, establish and strengthen business relationships, and explore best practices in urban mobility, climate action and sustainability, and technology and science innovation.

Amid a backdrop of ongoing supply chain disruptions, shifting geopolitics governing the development of critical strategic technologies, and growing climate action and affordability mandates, San Diego leaders have made economic resilience through global competitiveness a top priority.

Gloria calls San Diego “an undeniable force in the global marketplace.”

“We must seize opportunities to tell our story and maximize investment from partners around the world,” the mayor said. “As we work to address our region's biggest challenges — affordability, urban mobility, climate change and more — I'm proud to join World Trade Center San Diego in the Netherlands to learn from like thriving, global cities.”

Europe's Biggest Port

The Netherlands is home to Europe's largest port – the Port of Rotterdam, also and the world's largest seaport outside of East Asia. Amsterdam, the country's capital and most populous city, has the fourth biggest port in Western Europe and is a hub for global trade and business.

With shared expertise in knowledge-intensive industries – which includes personalized medicine, wireless communications technology and artificial intelligence – as well as commitments to sustainability, climate action and social innovation, the Netherlands is among the top 10 countries for foreign direct investment into San Diego. From 2015-20, it was the sixth-most active.

According to the San Diego Regional EDC, Netherlands-based companies directly employ 5,000 San Diegans, predominately in the innovation economy at companies like ASML and Philips.

By deal count, the Netherlands is the No. 9 country investing venture capital into San Diego. It is in line with Denmark and falling closely behind Japan, France and India from 2015-20.

Dutch firms invested nearly $318 million into San Diego's economy in 2021, the EDC said.

Nikia Clarke, executive director of World Trade Center San Diego and senior vice president at San Diego Regional EDC, said that the group is looking to make some important headway during the trip.

‘Taking San Diego Global Again'

“On the heels of a pandemic that changed the world, WTCSD is grateful to be taking San Diego global once again,” Clarke said. “As the economy continues to transform around us, it is increasingly important for metro leaders to advance a compelling vision that keeps us ahead of the curve, and no one can tell the San Diego story better than Mayor Gloria and this cross-sector delegation.”

Over the three-day trade mission in cities Amsterdam,

The Hague, Rotterdam, Eindhoven, and Leiden, San Diego will look to bolster public-private partnerships and business expansion through various sessions with Dutch companies and institutions.

The trade mission is being organized by World Trade Center San Diego, an affiliate of the San Diego Regional EDC, with assistance and support provided by the U.S. Embassy in The Hague, the Consulate of the Netherlands, and sponsorship by ASML, Lufthansa and Qualcomm.

Consul General Dirk Janssen, who oversees the Consulate of the Netherlands in San Francisco, said that the trip “is one example of how we can work together across borders to remain competitive in a global economy.”

“With shared commitments to sustainability and innovation, more than 76,000 jobs in California are supported by U.S.-Netherlands trade,” Janssen said.

The EDC shared some of the agenda for the trip:

• The grand opening/ribbon cutting of Qualcomm's AI Research Lab, which has formalized a partnership with the University of Amsterdam to support engineering talent.

• A meeting and tour of ASML — the global leader in semiconductor manufacturing machines — at its Veldhoven headquarters to celebrate the 10th anniversary of its investment in its San Diego-based Cymer site.

• Local, minority-owned small businesses Trabus Technologies and Nano PharmaSolutions pitching to the Port of Rotterdam and Leiden University Medical Center, respectively.

• Mayor-to-Mayor meetings with Gloria and the Mayors of Amsterdam (Femke Halsema) and Rotterdam (Ahmed Aboutaleb) to strengthen relationships between the regions.

• Formal meetings and tours of several companies considering investment into San Diego and California.

Most of the local factions will participate in more than a dozen meetings over the course of the trade mission, sharing best practices and driving business connectivity across many verticals.

The two dozen San Diego delegates include representatives from Qualcomm, ASML, Mitsubishi Electric, Trabus Technologies, Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc., Gafcon and Townshend Venture Advisors.

Others on the trip include people from key San Diego agencies, universities and civic organizations, including the Port of San Diego, UC San Diego, San Diego State University and San Diego Association of Governments. ■

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