On June 24, 2014, on the grounds of Gdańsk International Fair, during the opening of the exhibition BALT-MILITARY-EXPO, there was a ceremony of presenting Exhibition Ambassador 2013 statuettes. This honorary award is presented by Polish Chamber of Exhibition Industry. The latest edition had a special character since for the first time in history the honorary title of the Exhibition Ambassador was presented to two persons: Mr. Mieczysław Struk, the Marshal of Pomerania Voivodship, and Mr. Paweł Adamowicz, the Mayor of Gdańsk. The statuettes were presented by the Chairperson of Chapter of the Exhibition Ambassador, the President of PCEI, Mr. Andrzej Byrt to Marshal Mieczysław Struk and, on behalf of Mayor Adamowicz, to Deputy Mayor of Gdańsk, Mr. Andrzej Bojanowski. – International activities of Gdańsk Fair are the reason why thousands of people from around the world come here to participate in such important events like the exhibition BALT-MILITARY-EXPO. Polish Chamber of Exhibition Industry presents the honorary title of the Exhibition Ambassador to persons not directly connected with the exhibition sector but whose actions and engagement support the development of Polish exhibiting. The year the board of PCEI, at the motion of Gdańsk International Fair, decided to present the title to two persons. Mr.Paweł Adamowicz, the Mayor of Gdańsk, and Mr. Mieczysław Struk, the Marshal of Pomerania Voivodship. We are really glad that we can welcome the two new Ambassadors, two personalities of the regional and city authorities. People who undertook to build something from nothing. We are on the premises of the modern exhibition infrastructure in Gdańsk, which did not exist just several years back. Thanks to the vision, good choices, and tremendous managing skills in accumulating resources, today Gdańsk Fair is the third largest exhibition center in Poland – said Mr. Andrzej Byrt, the President of PCEI and Chairperson of the Chapter of the Exhibition Ambassador during the presentation ceremony. Two Ambassadors of the exhibition industry The nomination of two persons has been triggered by the spectacular development of exhibition activities in Gdańsk and in Pomerania, in which the two laureates played significant roles. – The development of Gdańsk International Fair, so dynamic in the recent years, would not have been possible without the support of our owners, i.e. the city of Gdańsk and the Pomerania Voivodship Self-Government. Therefore we have agreed that the worthy Exhibition Ambassadors are the representatives of these institutions, the Marshal of the Pomerania Voivodship Mr. Mieczysław Struk and the Mayor of Gdańsk Mr. Paweł Adamowicz – summarizes Maciej Glamowski, the Vice-President of the Board of Gdańsk International Fair, member of PCEI, who proposed this year’s nominations. Gdańsk Commune and the Self-Government of Pomerania, the major shareholders of Gdańsk International Fair, took the decision to build the modern AmberExpo center . Not only was the new center built very quickly but it was also financed exclusively from the own resources of GIF. Both laureates were proud of the nominations by PCEI and stressed that the title crowns the works connected with the development of AmberExpo. – I am really proud that Polish Chamber of Exhibition Industry presented me and Marshal Mieczysław Struk with the title of the Exhibition Ambassador. This is one of the most important awards I have. We have received this title for our engagement in creating exhibition infrastructure competitive to European centers with the highest standards. So – to put it briefly – for the Exhibition and Congress Center AmberExpo – said the Mayor of Gdańsk, Mr. Paweł Adamowicz. – Receiving the title of the Exhibition Ambassador is a great honor for me. From the very beginning I believed that the Exhibition and Congress Center AmberExpo in Gdansk will become a place which will actively work for the benefit of the company and will allow for promoting the Pomerania Voivodship as a progressive and creative region. Thanks to the new infrastructure the Voivodship can face up to even greatest challenges in the scope much exceeding the organization of exhibitions and congresses and beyond the standards of modern exhibiting – commented Mr. Mieczysław Struk, the Marshal of Pomerania Voivodship, after receiving the statuette. Source: Polish Chamber of Exhibition Industry; photo by Gdańsk International Fair; UM archive in Gdańsk