After a tumultuous year that was heavily affected by the Global Pandemic of COVID-19, the World Geothermal Congress that was due to take place in Reykjavik, Iceland in May 2020, got cancelled and postponed indefinitely. After lots of deliberation and planning around global shutdowns, WGC2020 became WGC2020+1, an online and on-site event that would be conducted at the Harpa Events Centre in Reykjavik on 24-27 October 2021.
The New Zealand Geothermal Association (NZGA) in collaboration with the International Geothermal Association (IGA) decided New Zealand would be represented at WGC2020+1 in Reykjavik. After a Friday morning Zoom discussion with senior members of the IGA Executive Team and Directors of the NZGA, it was discovered that background printing onto 3m x 2.5m light-box panels was available for free. Given the area allocation to the New Zealand contingent, it was agreed that two of these panels would be the foundation for the background design.