As Greenland attracts growing international attention, one question keeps moving to the center of the country’s economic conversation: how can local people and local businesses take part in the growth ahead?
For Christian Vintergaard, CEO of Fonden for Entreprenørskab (Foundation for Entrepreneurship), entrepreneurship education is part of that answer.
Are young Greenlanders prepared to help shape opportunities from inside Greenland?
Fonden for Entreprenørskab will participate in Future Greenland 2026 with a focus on entrepreneurship, education, and local capacity building. Through its Greenlandic branch, Fonden for Entreprenørskab Kalaallit Nunaat, the organization works with schools, educators, students, businesses, and local communities to strengthen entrepreneurial competences across education. The Greenlandic branch was established in 2019.
Entrepreneurship Beyond Starting Companies
Vintergaard said entrepreneurship education should be understood broadly.
“We see entrepreneurship education as much more than starting companies,” he said. “It is about helping young people develop initiative, creativity, problem-solving skills, collaboration, and the confidence to create opportunities for themselves and their communities.”
That framing fits directly into Greenland’s wider development debate. Mining, energy, infrastructure, tourism, logistics, and Arctic services may all bring new opportunities. The long-term question is whether young Greenlanders are prepared to help shape those opportunities from inside Greenland.
Vintergaard said entrepreneurship education can prepare young people for employment, innovation, business creation, and local value creation. He also pointed to Greenland’s traditions of adaptability, resilience, and community-oriented thinking as entrepreneurial strengths in their own right.
“We are already seeing exciting ideas from students and young entrepreneurs,” he said. “Many young people are highly motivated to contribute to Greenland’s future while building on local identity and knowledge.”
Building Confidence Early
A major part of the work is building confidence early. Vintergaard said young people who experience that their ideas matter during school or education are more likely to take initiative later in life, whether as entrepreneurs, employees, innovators, or community leaders.
He also emphasized partnerships. Schools alone cannot carry the full responsibility. Government, businesses, municipalities, larger companies, and educational institutions all have a role in creating practical learning experiences, mentoring, internships, and collaboration opportunities.
In Greenland, where geography, language, local culture, and community realities shape daily life, Vintergaard said entrepreneurship education must be locally rooted.
“I believe there are lessons from Greenland that are highly relevant to other Arctic communities,” he said. “Greenland demonstrates the importance of adapting entrepreneurship education to local culture, geography, language, and community realities.”
Local Capacity as Long-Term Investment
For Future Greenland attendees, his message is direct: local capacity building and entrepreneurship should be treated as long-term investments in Greenland’s resilience and self-determination.
Economic development will be stronger when young people, local businesses, and Greenlandic communities are included in shaping it from the beginning.
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