Swedish Press Mar 2018 Vol 89:02

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Swedish Press N Y A

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March 2018 Vol 89:02 $5.95

The Benefits of Cultural Awareness

02 2018

Interview with Dr Fons Trompenaars Ambassador Olofsdotter Northvolt

Svenska Kulturföreningen Swedish Cultural Society

Movie Night Eat in a new culture.

Swim in a new language.

Play and learn

Sunday March 18 6:00 pm

at a Minnesota summer camp!

Register now for Swedish language programs!

Youth • Adult • Family • Day Camp Scholarships available. For more details visit www.ConcordiaLanguageVillages.org/scholarships.

www.SwedishLanguageVillage.org

Scandinavian Centre

6540 Thomas St Burnaby BC RSVP: SwedishCulturalSociety.ca@gmail.com www.swedishculturalsociety.ca

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4 Letters to the Editor

5 From the Editor’s Desk Swedish Headlines 6 Headline News: Sweden’s Image in the US and Canada 7 Swedes in the News 8 Landskapsnyheterna Business 9 Business News: Ingvar Kamprad 10 Company File: Northvolt

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Lifestyle 18 Top Sju 19 Book: Xenophobe’s Guide to the Swedes 20 Travel: Småland – Horisaki 21 Culture: Art and Artifacts Hemma Hos 22 Design: Proposed Ethiopian Church in Stockholm Attracts Attention at the World Architecture Festival 23 Treats à la Charlotte Danielsson Swedish Press Connects 24 SCA – Swedish Council of America 25 Nobel Center

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CONTENTS ( March 2018 )

EDITOR Peter Berlin Peter@swedishpress.com

ADVISORY COMMITTEE Björn Bayley, Peter Ladner, Brian Antonson, Christer Garell, Anders & Hamida Neumuller

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Swedish Press

Easter feathers and twigs. © Kennerth Kullman

Heritage 11 Good Friday Feature 12 Surviving and Thriving Abroad: The Benefits of Cross-Cultural Awareness Interview 14 Dr. Fons Trompenaars and Sean Williams – Riding the Waves of Culture Global Swedes 16 Karin Olofsdotter – Sveriges ambassadör i Washington (USA)

The exterior of the church is influenced by the ancient rock churches in Ethiopia. Photo © Belatchew Arkitekter

Road to 2045 26 Greening Mobility – Can Sweden Take the Lead?

In the Loop 27 Canada, Us & Beyond 28 Calendar and Events 29 Ads and Info 30 Sista Ordet Inter-Cultural Conflict: Inspired by a True Story Cover image: 123RF.com

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Letters to the Editor Dear Peter, The idea of the Xenophobe’s Guides first came to me with the realisation that something needed to be made available to give Britons a better understanding of other nations. Being an island people, they tended to think of the rest of Europe as being “over there” (meaning the Continent) – an attitude I was to later learn they share with the Canadians, except that the latter use the term to mean the rest of the world.

Joining the European Community (as it was then) had made no difference to their insular attitude: they still referred to “Britain and Europe” as if the nation was not part of it. So the question was how to bring about greater awareness of the other member states.

I knew that their cultural quirks and character needed to be encapsulated in an amusing way. The books I envisaged would be informative and entertaining; they would confirm and deny the stereotypical views of nations.

Anne Tauté Director and Series Editor Xenophobe’s Guides, London, England

Dear Peter: My name is Karin M. Hayes, and I have subscribed to your great magazine for several years.

I became quite depressed when I read your editorial in the Dec/Jan issue. Is the same thing happening in Sweden as here in the US – sloppy writing and a very limited vocabulary?

I wonder if you would have found the same situation in Lund and Uppsala and perhaps Tekniska Högskolan in Stockholm.

My husband once ran for the school board in Jefferson County outside Denver. He received a note from a high school student with very poor English, and my husband made corrections and returned it to the student!

I came over to this country with the Swedish Foreign Service many years ago. I read and speak Swedish, and I do love the English language with its abundance of words. I am tempted to write a satire about the overuse of the word awesome.

I wish you good luck with the Magazine, and I enclose a donation.

Karin M. Hayes Grand Junction, Colorado

“Buzz” Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, is a Swedish American.

The Swedish American Museum in Chicago created a permanent exhibit five years ago in recognition of Aldrin’s achievements. It is located in our thirdfloor Brunk Children’s Museum of Immigration, where a Moon Monday program is given monthly.

FYI, I have been a subscriber to Swedish Press since back when it was published on newsprint. For each issue of Swedish Press, I also have submitted a monthly calendar to Joan and Claes.

We appreciate very much the space your publication has provided for our activities. Collegially, Stephen Anderson Chicago, Illinois

Editor’s comments: Dear Karin, I am glad that you share my passion about language. Although we have to accept that languages evolve with time, it is also true that evolution is not the same as impoverishment. And thank you for your very generous donation!

Peter Berlin

Editor’s comments: Dear Stephen, Your contributions are always much appreciated, and thank you for reminding me about Buzz Aldrin and his Swedish ancestry. We will definitely include a piece about him in the May edition of Swedish Press, to go with the main theme of Space Exploration.

With warm regards, Peter Berlin

Dear Peter: In your piece “From the Editor’s Desk” in the February issue, I noted your intent to cover Space Exploration in one of the monthly issues this year.

I’m sure I don’t need to point out that

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The spaceship exhibit honoring the SwedishAmerican astronaut Buzz Aldrin at the Swedish American Museum. Photo: Beyond The Park

Enjoy reading Swedish Press? Email us your pictures along with your name and comments to info@swedishpress.com and we’ll be happy to publish them.

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from the Editor’s Desk

Culture, Like Love, is a Many-Splendored Thing We need your support!

Swedish Press strives to create a high quality magazine for you, but the costs are considerable and ever-increasing.

Given that the subscription rates have remained unchanged since 2014, we are compelled from 2018 to increase the various rates by 13 percent.

Please consider making a generous donation to help keep your publication, and Swedish heritage, alive. You’ll find a form on page 29. Tack!

H

aving watched the Canadians beat the Swedes on TV during the January 6th Ice Hockey World Junior Championship finals, I am reminded of an episode half a century ago. After a year in Seattle, I was on my way back to Sweden by way of California, Hawaii, Japan, the USSR and Finland.

No sooner had I embarked on the s/s Canberra in Vancouver than I met this pretty guitar-carrying Canadian girl who was on her way to Australia on the same ship.

To cut a long story short, I proposed to her as we crossed the dateline somewhere between Hawaii and Japan. In Tokyo we went to a travel agent and traded in her cruise ticket to Australia for a new ticket to Sweden. A train ticket. Through Siberia.

In mid-winter. With me.

At some remote town in Siberia we got off the train, checked in at a hotel and sat down in the lounge to watch Canada versus Sweden during the 1969 World Ice Hockey Championship finals. Behind us in the lounge there were also a dozen Russians intent on watching the game – except the word had gone around that we were a CanadianSwedish item, and they spent most of the time studying us rather than the game. We could feel their expectant eyes following our every move; perhaps they were hoping that we would get into a fist-fight each time one or the other of the teams scored a goal.

To their disappointment, we remained politely stone-faced throughout. After all, we were still courting.

The main theme for the March issue is Cross-Cultural Awareness in recognition of the cosmopolitan backgrounds and lifestyles of our readers. Many of you have left your country of birth in order to seek a new life abroad, while others are descendants of immigrants. Our readership also includes movers and shakers who travel the world on business. All of you are likely to have been confounded by cultural differences at some point. Our articles on this theme are designed to facilitate cultural adaptation and integration.

Still on the subject of culture, we announce some upcoming art and heritage exhibitions in Sweden. In an interview, Karin Olofsdotter, the new Swedish Ambassador to the United States, describes her background and her plans for the future (page 16).

Dr Fons Trompenaars, author of Riding the Waves of Culture, answers a series of cross-cultural questions in another interview (page 14). The second instalment in the series Road to 2045 reports on Sweden’s far-reaching ambition to become an international ground-breaker on the path to a fossil-free society (page 26). Elsewhere in the magazine we continue to turn the spotlight on the Province of Småland and its hardy, entrepreneurial inhabitants (page 20). That, and much more!

Peter Berlin Editor Peter@Swedishpress.com March 2018

A mosaic map of the world.

Illustration © Serg99

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What do North Americans think about Sweden?

Sweden’s Image in the US and Canada

By Peter Berlin

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uring 2017, the Swedish Institute (SI) undertook a survey to gauge how Americans and Canadians perceive Sweden. SI is a government agency promoting interest and confidence in Sweden around the world, and the activities of the Institute are occasionally featured in Swedish Press under Swedish Press Connects. SI’s aim is to establish cooperation and lasting relations between Sweden and other countries through strategic communication and exchange in the fields of culture, education, science and business.

The survey focused on the following questions: 1. How is Sweden seen in the US and in Canada? Do age, gender, region and education level play a role?

2. Has the media coverage of Sweden had an impact on the image of Sweden in the US and Canada?

3. Has the image of Sweden changed recently and, if so, among which demographics?

4. What issues do the people in the US and Canada associate Sweden with?

Without going into detailed statistics, the perceptions in both the US and Canada were very favourable, and had indeed improved over the past year. More than half of the respondents had a very positive image of Sweden.

They quoted human rights, education, research, sustainable development and innovation as the main reasons.

Design, art, music and manufacturing were also high on the list. In a comparison with the Netherlands, Germany and the other Nordic countries, Sweden ranked highest in terms of how well the country is seen.

However, about one in twenty respondents were highly critical of Sweden, most citing an apparently failing Swedish immigration policy with an attendant increase in domestic violence and criminality.

The age and education among the responders played a role in their assessments, as did their place of residence. Highly educated young people in large cities rated Sweden higher than older people with a relatively low level of education in smaller communities. Along with first-

On a scale from 1 to 10, how positive or negative is your image of Sweden? (Source: SI)

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hand impressions, opinions were influenced by media coverage, including inaccurate reports on migration-related crime that appeared on TV, in some newspapers and in social media.

The statistical sample was relatively small – nearly 3,700 responders in the USA and just over 2,700 in Canada – leaving the question of how many Americans and Canadians might be completely ignorant about any and all aspects of Sweden. After all, some North Americans think that Sweden is famous for its very fine and expensive watches, and that its capital city is Oslo!

Aggression Old and New Swedish government departments agree that there is a probability of foreign aggression against the country, but they disagree about the actual magnitude of the risk. During the annual Folk och Försvar (People and Defence) conference held in January this year at the ski resort of Sälen, the top military commander maintained that the risk of armed aggression has increased since last year’s conference, while the Foreign Office considered it to be negligible, now as before. The disagreement has led to a public spat between the Ministers of Defence and Foreign Affairs. As always, the military are angling for more money, while the diplomats don’t want to wake up sleeping dogs – or bears, more likely.

In parallel, the government is bracing itself against the prospect of cyber attacks by you-know-who during the upcoming national election campaign – attacks that might distort the outcome of the September election and erode the democratic process.

Additional data protection measures are planned, along with a campaign to make voters more discerning in their interpretation of online news reports.

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Swedes in the News

Swedish Police and Entertainment Updates New Head of Swedish Police

Anders Thornberg. Photo: Claudio Bresciani/TT

Anders Thornberg, 58, was appointed National Police Commissioner by the Swedish government on February 1. He replaces Swedish lawyer and civil servant Dan Eliasson, who held the position for three years but has come under fire of late. Thornberg finished his studies at the Swedish Police Academy in 1981 and has since been part of the Swedish police, most recently as Director General and Head of the Swedish Security Service (Säpo), a post he has held since 2012.

Thornberg assumes his new role on February 15. “I am humbled to take up the post as National Police Commissioner, and while I know that it is a demanding position, it is a challenge I feel equipped to take on,” he said in a statement to the media.

Jihde moves on After 18 years, Swedish television host and sports reporter Peter Jihde is leaving Swedish television

network TV4. He has joined digital entertainment company MTG and TV3. “It’s a bit like the Godfather,” said Jihde to Aftonbladet.

“I was made an offer I couldn’t refuse.” Jihde, who has worked with MTG in the past mainly hosting the Diabetes Gala, will focus on sports programs at MTG. Jihde is popular for hosting TV4’s popular morning show “Nyhetsmorgon” along with Swedish TV host Tilde de Paula. De Paula expressed on Instagram that she cried when she heard the news, but is happy for Jihde’s sake and congratulates MTG.

Thomas Di Leva. Photo: Mattias Edwall/Ricky Tildblad

and arranged by Di Leva, and accompanied by some of Sweden’s finest musicians on stage. Popular Bowie hits, performed by Di Leva during his show, include Ziggy Stardust, Space Oddity, Heroes, Fame, Let’s Dance, Under Pressure, Rebel Rebel, Life On Mars, and Changes.

streets should be named after singers Monica Zetterlund, Etta Cameron and Grethe Ingmann.

All three women have a connection with Denmark.

Monica Zetterlund started her career in Copenhagen as a singer in Ib Glindemanns orchestra. Monica Zetterlunds Vej (Monica Zetterlund’s Road) opens on March 1.

The Role of Gabriella

Zetterlund’s Street

Peter Jihde. Photo: Eric Josjö/TV4

Di Leva does Bowie Swedish singer/songwriter Thomas Di Leva’s show “Changes,” a tribute to superstar David Bowie, premieres on March 9 at Hamburger Börs in Stockholm. Di Leva takes his audience through time and space, while interpreting his primary musical inspiration – the late David Bowie. Di Leva promises a great array of Bowie’s hits, interpreted

A street located in a new residential area in Sluseholmen in the south of Copenhagen, has been named after Swedish jazz legend Monica Zetterlund.

All streets in the area, except one, have been named after men. The Technology and Environmental Committee in Copenhagen therefore decided that three new

Monica Zellerlund. Photo: Lars Falk

Malena Ernman, mezzosopran.

Photo: Elisabeth Frang

Opera singer Malena Ernman has been selected to take on the musical role of Gabriella in Helen Sjöholm’s Så som i himmelen (“As It Is in Heaven”).

Based on the Swedish movie of the same title, fans of Ernman will hear her perform several songs from the film, including “Gabriella’s Song.” Ernman plans to make her own musical interpretation of “Gabriella’s Song” by raising the score two notes to suit her voice.

“As It Is in Heaven” the musical premieres at the Oscar Theater in Stockholm on September 13.

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[Landskapsnyheterna] BLEKINGE Till följd av regelskärpningen kring installationer av vedspisar som börjar gälla i sommar har 13 vedträn skickats till Boverket i Karlskrona i protest.

– Jag är inte förvånad, men protesterna kommer knappast att leda till en förändring. Vi kommer att hjälpa kommunerna att tolka de nya reglerna på alla sätt vi kan, men i övrigt blir det inga förändringar, säger Peter Fransson, avdelningschef på Boverket, till SR Blekinge.

Alla de vedträn som tagits emot av Boverket har scannats och registrerats.

De som bifogat en fråga kommer att få svar snarast möjligt.

gen en akvarelltavla för 25 200 kronor.

Tavlan såldes när konstverken från Rådhuskalendern i Örebro auktionerades ut till företag och privatpersoner.

Konstnärerna fick själva välja vad de ville måla.

– Det är en tavla från ett vintermotiv från min fantasi som jag har fritt målat och fått till vinterkänslan och mörkret. Det är en av de största tavlorna jag gjort, säger Maximilian.

Maximilian Svensson var den yngsta konstnären bland deltagarna och sålde sin tavla för det högsta priset.

– Det är sjukt kul, att sälja en tavla för så mycket pengar, säger Maximilian. Tio procent av pengarna gick till välgörenhet.

BOHUSLÄN Medborgarförslaget från Djurens rätt om att stoppa inköpet av pyntfjädrar till påskris i Göteborgs stad har gått igenom.

På grund av att man inte kan säkra att fåglarnas livsvillkor är tillräckligt goda under uppfödningen tas fjädrarna bort från Göteborgs stads hobbymaterial.

– Vi har inte kunnat få våra krav på spårbarhet tillgodosedda från uppfödare när det gäller fjädrar, mycket beroende på att det är en biprodukt, säger Elin Berg Mannebo, handläggare på Inköp och upphandling.

Information om alternativ till påskfjädrar kommer att skickas till Göteborgs skolor och fritidsverksamheter.

– Vi kommer att skicka ut ett nyhetsbrev närmare påsk och där tipsa om alternativa sätt att pynta påskriset med. Andra kommuner som tagit bort fjädrar ur sitt sortiment har till exempel tipsat om ullbollar och textilier.

Syntetiska fjädrar, som finns handeln, har i dagsläget inte undersökts av kommunen, säger Elin Berg Mannebo.

NÄRKE 13-åriga Stockholmskillen och konstnären Maximilian Svensson sålde nyli-

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LAPPLAND NORRBOTTEN

VÄSTERBOTTEN

JÄMTLAND

HÄRJEDALEN

ÅNGERMANLAND

MEDELPAD HÄLSINGLAND

DALARNA GÄSTRIKLAND VÄSTMANLAND VÄRMLAND

NÄRKE

UPPLAND

SÖDERMANLAND

DALSLAND ÖSTERGÖTLAND BOHUSLAND VÄSTERGöteborg GÖTLAND SMÅLAND HALLAND SKÅNE

Stockholm

GOTLAND ÖLAND

BLEKINGE

Malmö

13-åring konstnären Maximilian ”Maxi” Svensson.

Foto: Carina Lindqvist

JÄMTLAND Ett gäng privatpersoner lyckades hålla kvar en 25-årig man som brutit sig in i en ICA-butik i Ljungdalen.

Privatpersonerna hörde när 25-åringen krossade en ruta till butiken och lyckades därefter få ut honom. Polisen larmades omgående men var inte på plats förrän en och en halv timme senare, då de bilat från Sveg och Östersund. Väl på plats kunde polisen gripa mannen som påträffades med narkotika. Han är känd av polisen sedan tidigare.

NORRBOTTEN Polisen i Boden fick nyligen larm om att en gris hade rymt och var på flykt. Den 150 kilo tunga galten, som fått namnet Babe, hade lämnat sin

bondgård i Sävastnäs och återfanns på väg 97.

“Han är inte särskilt snabb i vanliga fall, så han måste ha blivit rädd”, säger grisbonden Katarina Brandt.

Lyckligtvis kunde Babe snart fångas in.

– Han är väldigt lugn och snäll, så det var aldrig någon fara. Men det är förstås inte så bra med en stor galt i trafiken, säger Katarina Brandt.

Hon funderar över vad som kan ha bidragit till att Babe rymde.

– Han har bara varit hos oss i några dagar, och jag tror inte han känner sig riktigt hemma än. Det verkar också ha blivit någon form av bråk med suggorna, säger hon.

Babe kördes senare tillbaka hem till gården.

– Jag tror det är bäst att han inte är hos suggorna på ett tag. Vi får nog ha honom i en box tills allt lugnat ned sig, så att han inte rymmer igen, säger Katarina Brandt.

[Business] News ‘IKEA brought the world to Sweden...’

Ingvar Kamprad: The Farmer’s Son Who Changed the World

By Peter Berlin

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ngvar Kamprad, the founder of IKEA, passed away on 27 January 2018 at the age of 91. He was the Swedish embodiment of the American dream, starting out as a farmer’s boy in the isolated province of Småland and ending up as one of the world’s wealthiest entrepreneurs.

He was born in Pjätteryd and died in Liatorp – prosaic names which make urban Swedes smile with a mixture of affection and condescension. The names also disguise the fact that he spent 40 years living in his exclusive mansion overlooking Lake of Geneva in Switzerland.

His business acumen manifested itself early on, when at the age of 5 he bought matches in bulk and retailed the individual match boxes in the neighbourhood. He went on to peddle fish, Christmas decorations, fountain pens and a motley assortment of other articles locally. Buoyed by his early successes, he started a mail-order business, whereby the cart that picked up the milk from the farm every morning also delivered his merchandise to the nearest train station for onward distribution to his customers. The next step was a small department store in the town of Älmhult. He named it IKEA using the initials of his name and address: Ingvar Kamprad, Elmtaryd, Agunnaryd. More department stores followed, the earliest ones in Stockholm and Oslo. Today there are 412 stores in 49 countries, and the chain is steadily growing.

Kamprad’s youthful endeavours grew into a vision of making home

Ingvar Kamprad, the founder of IKEA. © IKEA

furnishings more attractive and more affordable for “average Swedes” than had so far been the case. To bring down costs, he came up with a modular approach whereby customers would themselves assemble the furniture, and he contracted out the manufacturing of the modules to cottage industries across Sweden’s southern provinces.

The success of Kamprad’s concept was the result of circumstance as much as vision, because the massive post-war construction of family housing and growing car ownership were prerequisites for the demand. When competitors tried to obstruct the expansion of

IKEA’s network in Sweden, Kamprad farmed out the work to manufacturers in Eastern Europe where the cost of production was significantly lower than in the West. This was the beginning of a trend where IKEA brought the world to Sweden as much as Sweden brought its merchandise to the world.

IKEA likes to portray itself as an archetypical Swedish success story, underscored by its stark blue and yellow livery and still closely associated with the name Ingvar Kamprad. In reality, the introduction in post-war Sweden of prohibitive taxation of inheritance and capital as well as revenue prompted the company to move abroad. Its ownership is now split into a maze of international corporations, foundations and holding companies located primarily in The Netherlands and Luxemburg. The conglomerate is still controlled by the Kamprad family, but Ingvar Kamprad himself withdrew from its day-to-day management in 1988. Two years after his wife died in 2011, he left his Swiss mansion and moved back to his roots in Småland, the cradle of so much Swedish entrepreneurship.

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Company File

A Massive Swedish Enterprise in Support of the Fossil-Free Society

By Peter Berlin

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uclear and hydroelectric power stations produce fossil-free electric energy continuously and reliably, but their ecofriendliness is debatable. To satisfy the world’s ever-growing hunger for uninterrupted supply of electric energy, the most obvious solution is to store peak energy flows from solar panels, wind turbines and underwater tidal generators in electricity “reservoirs”, i.e. batteries.

But batteries have long been too expensive to fulfil the purpose in an affordable manner; their operational lifetimes have been limited, and producing them is often an ecologically unfriendly process. If we are to achieve a viable fossil-free society anytime soon, battery performance, cost and manufacturing techniques have to be improved urgently.

This is where Northvolt, an ambitious Swedish startup company, enters the world stage. The plan is to build a gargantuan factory near the northern Swedish city of Skellefteå. It will mass-produce lithium-ion batteries, a technology which is nowadays standard in cell phones, aircraft, spacecraft, electric cars and electric bicycles.

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Northvolt factory sketch. Photos: Northvolt

The installation is projected to cost up to SEK 40 bn ($5 bn) and will employ around 2,500 staff, with construction set to begin in late 2018. This is a huge venture and somewhat risky for a small country like Sweden, firstly because not all the funding is yet in place and, secondly, Northvolt is not the only such enterprise around. The largest of these belongs to the American electric car factory Tesla, and others are in various stages of planning in Japan, Korea, Germany, Poland and Hungary.

However, while these potential competitors rely on external suppliers for raw materials, Northvolt differs by aspiring to be in charge of the whole production chain, all the way from mining the core minerals (lithium, graphite, and oxides of nickel, cobalt and manganese) to manufacturing and delivering

complete batteries. Moreover, the company asserts that the minerals can be mined in and around Sweden.

By adopting this vertical approach, the company hopes to bring down production costs, while at the same time making the availability of core supplies independent of any political and economic turmoil abroad.

Proponents of batteries as an alternative to fossil fuels are sometimes accused of misleading the general public. Battery manufacturing is not exactly eco-friendly, because it consumes a lot of electric power, often generated using coal, oil or gas. One of the reasons why Northvolt has chosen northern Sweden for its plant is that there is an ample supply of hydro-electric power, thereby reducing the emission of greenhouse gases to a minimum.

The global market for affordable, high-capacity electric batteries is vast in both the transportation and the power generation sectors.

Northvolt is the brainchild of Peter Carlsson, a 45-year-old Swedish entrepreneur whose c.v. includes 6 years at Tesla as Director of Supply Chain Management and Logistics.

In that capacity he worked closely with the legendary Elon Musk, founder of Tesla as well as Space-X. With these and other impressive credentials, Carlsson is in a good position to make the Northvolt venture a success. www.northvolt.com

H E RI TAG E

Good Friday became a holiday in the 1770s...

Good Friday

By Sofie Kinefors

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owadays in Sweden, Good Friday is like any other holiday when shops stay open late and people can enjoy a night out on the town. Fun choices include indulging in a fancy dinner with a glass of wine at their favorite restaurant, singing or dancing at their favorite bar, or checking out the latest comedy flick at the cinema. But it wasn’t always that way – Good Friday used to be a long, boring and uneventful day.

In Sweden, Good Friday (långfredagen in Swedish) is a holiday which falls on Friday before Easter and follows the Christian tradition of dedicating the day to the memory of Jesus’ suffering and death.

Good Friday became a holiday in the 1770s, and well into the 20th century it remained a day of great sorrow characterized by darkness, silence and waiting.

Stained glass in the St. Gertrude’s church in Stockholm. Photo: Jorisvo

Remembering the pain Jesus had endured on Good Friday was important to most families.

During the early 1700s twigs/ branches/brushwood whipping (rispiskning) was sometimes practiced as a reminder of his suffering.

The whipping usually occurred in the morning or at night, and there were many ways of going about the practice. The person who woke up first could, for example,

start whipping the ones who were still in bed.

The father of the house could also whip his children and servants.

Fortunately for those with low pain thresholds, the practice later became a bit more lighthearted, whereby the children would whip their parents.

Sometimes referred to as the “longest day of the year”, Good Friday was a day of minimal exertion. The faithful were urged not to carry out any unnecessary tasks. Only essential jobs were performed. Good Friday was therefore filled with strict rules about what one could and could not do. Ideally, people stayed at home, avoiding chores or fun activities.

Children were asked to stay calm and were not allowed to play. Food served on Good Friday was simple, and the radio (and later TV) would most likely be turned off.

Public events were forbidden during Good Friday. Cinemas, shops and restaurants were closed.

The ban on public entertainment wasn’t lifted until 1969.

Well into the 20th century people would dress up in black on Good Friday as a way of honoring Jesus’ suffering on the cross.

Children usually wore formal dress.

When Easter finally arrived the day after Good Friday, people were ready and eager to celebrate with good food, sweet treats, bonfires, decorations, fun and games.

Today, not so good Friday is a distant memory. More joyous (and less painful) celebrations of Easter start on Easter morning. Good Friday has become a joyous occasion for all to relish – if they so choose.

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Swedish Press | March 2018 11

Surviving and Thriving Abroad: The Benefits of Cross-Cultural Awareness

By Peter Berlin

H

ere is a curious paradox: As travellers on the international stage we are encouraged to explore cultural differences and even to celebrate them; but at the same time we are taught not to generalize about nationalities, because that would be simplistic and potentially offensive.

Surely the French cannot all be rude and the Japanese are not all pathologically secretive. Yet these are opinions often heard from foreign visitors.

So why do we continue to paint foreigners with such a wide brush?

Because by using stereotypes we are subconsciously trying to come to grips with this sprawling, intangible phenomenon known as Culture. To make things even more complicated, culture comes in several layers, like an onion. The top layer consists of outward expressions such as art, music, architecture, and cuisine. Not much controversy about this layer, for whether we like or dislike these manifestations, they do make for stimulating conversation. The next layer has to do with customs and traditions. Not a lot of argument here either, for although we are expected to adapt to local customs and traditions when we visit or move to a new country, it is not an insurmountable task. There is a lot of literature on the subject.

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Swedish Press | March 2018 12

It is the third layer of culture that causes us problems when we move abroad. It consists of Norms and Values, and underpins the other two layers. By “norms” we mean a nation’s definition of what is right and wrong in a moral or legal sense – i.e. what is allowed and what is prohibited. By “values” we mean people’s perception of what is good and bad. So isn’t right the same as good, and wrong the same as bad? No, not necessarily. For example, there is a growing consensus that assisted suicide is “good”, yet in most countries it is still “wrong” (i.e. illegal). The same was true regarding abortion not so long ago – and there are many other examples where the norms and values in a given culture are in conflict with each other.

By questioning people’s norms and values, we are in fact criticizing their behaviour, which is of course dangerous territory in any conversation. If we plan to move or work abroad, it facilitates our mental and emotional survival if we try to at least understand the prevailing norms and values in the host country. To start us on our way, there is a book called Riding the Waves of Culture by Dr Fons Trompenaars. He has come up with seven independent cultural dimensions, into which every culture can be subdivided. How is this possible? Well, think of culture

as white light comprised of a complex mix of optical wavelengths. Let the light pass through a prism, and it will emerge at the other end as the discrete colours of the rainbow, i.e. as pure and independent spectral waveforms.

Here, the prism is a metaphor for cross-cultural awareness.

Dr Trompenaars describes each cultural dimension by pitting the extremes against each other: 1) Universalist versus Particularist – i.e. how we relate to rules.

Example: Americans believe that set rules apply universally, i.e. equally to everybody. A deal is a deal, and legal contracts are binding. For an Italian, it is also important to take human relations and particular circumstances into account; hence rules should be viewed in a given context, and deals may be renegotiated if conditions change. Swedes lean towards the American position while allowing for some flexibility.

2) Individualist versus Collectivist – i.e. how we relate to groups.

Example: Americans act as individuals.

They admire quick decisions and will say “My position is that …” In contrast,

Italians are likely to seek internal consensus and will conclude with a collectivist statement that “Our position is that…” Swedes are more inclined to identify with the Italian approach.

person’s achievements, while an Italian is prone to link his respect to the other person’s rank. Consequently, American decision-makers can be men or women, young or old, whereas in Italy they are more likely to be male veterans. Here the Swedes are closer to the American viewpoint.

3) Affective versus Neutral cultures – i.e. how we express emotions.

Example: For once, Swedes are more extreme than either the Americans or the Italians, in the sense that selfcontrol is seen as a virtue. Effusive gestures and physical contact are rare among strangers. At the other end of the dimension we find the Italians who amplify their viewpoints with vigorous gestures and emotional outbursts. By the same token they distrust anyone who plays his cards close to his chest. Americans are no strangers to heated debate, but usually within the bounds of a “controlled adversarial relationship”.

6) Serial versus Parallel cultures – i.e. how we perceive time.

Example: Americans tend to favour doing one thing at a time, and doing it properly before moving on to the next task. Time is a straight line with regular tick marks, and going backwards in time is impossible. Italians, on the other hand, are experts at improvising.

Time is cyclical like the seasons, meaning that lost opportunities will always return at a later date. Swedes, even more than the Americans, are sequential and punctual to a fault.

4) Specific versus Diffuse cultures – i.e. how we engage ourselves.

Example: Americans like to be specific, up front, and get straight to the point.

Italians adopt a more diffuse approach by taking time to explore the ramifications first. This may include becoming acquainted with the other party over a meal before getting down to business.

Another example: In America, business relationships depend on the quality of work previously performed. In Italy, the quality of the work performed depends on the business relationship.

Swedes find themselves somewhere in between these extremes.

7) Control versus Subordination in Nature – i.e. how we treat our environment.

Example: Here “environment” is taken to mean both the ecology and the people around us. In America it is defensible to exploit Nature e.g. by extracting coal through mining and gas through fracking if it benefits the national economy. Americans also admire people who maintain strong convictions and know how to hold their ground in the face of opposing views. Here we find the Swedes at the opposite end of the dimension with their yearning for harmony, peace, compromise and preserving Nature at almost any cost. The Italians will happily argue against their own convictions just for the pleasure of stimulating a debate.

5) Ascription versus Achievement – i.e. how we attribute status.

Example: An American’s respect for another person is conditional on that

The above examples are illustrated in the following dimensional “thermometers”.

One could well argue that the above examples are wild generalisations, since one can always find a large number of Americans, Swedes and Italians who operate at the other end of any particular cultural thermometer. Dr Trompenaars acknowledges this by stressing that the depicted behaviours are merely the most frequent ones within a normal distribution, i.e. we are dealing with averages rather than absolutes.

So how can we make the best use of these cross-cultural insights? We must recognize that a nation’s norms and values are the result of people having learned through the centuries how to survive in their particular environment – be it cold, heat, mountains or deserts – and with each other, whether in dense or sparse populations. Hence, even if we encounter French rudeness or Japanese inscrutability and don’t understand why, we can avoid negative knee-jerk reactions by accepting that the nation’s culture is both logical and legitimate. There is no need to fear unfamiliar behaviour if we accept that it exists for a good reason. Instead we can adapt our social and business strategies accordingly, so as to reach an agreement with a seemingly uncooperative person, or enjoy the socializing before a negotiation. And let us not forget that we ourselves are as exotic in the eyes of foreigners as they are in ours!

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Swedish Press | March 2018 13

E X C L U S I V E

I N T E R V I E W

W I T H

D R

F O N S

Riding the Waves of Culture Dr Fons Trompenaars is co-founder of the consultancy firm Trompenaars HampdenTurner, and is the author of the book Riding the Waves of Culture. This book, now in its third edition, has sold over 120,000 copies and has been translated into 16 languages.

Two central themes in the book are the definitions of cultural norms and values, and how they translate into seven cultural dimensions (please see the companion article on page 12 – 13). Swedish Press spoke to Dr Trompenaars and his Australian business partner Sean Williams, co-founder and Commercial Director of Mundus International. Sean is currently living in Sweden and advises foreign diplomats and business executives on how to interpret Swedish culture, traditions and institutions.

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Swedish Press | March 2018 14

Dr. Fons Trompenaars. Photo: Trompenaars Hampden-Turner Consulting

Swedish Press: Can you please summarize how Cross-Cultural Awareness in general, and understanding the 7 dimensions in particular, will benefit the readers of Swedish Press?

Fons Trompenaars: In a nutshell, we distinguish between four levels of cross-cultural competence: Recognition, Respect, Reconciliation, and Realization. The 7 cultural dimensions are particularly relevant for the recognition level. For example, an American may feel intuitively that Swedes are more reserved than his own compatriots. A Swede, on the other hand, may think of American culture as being rather superficial. We find that people often use the 7 dimensions as convenient labels merely to recognize why they don’t like people from different cultures, so we try to make them also respect those differences. Once people have learned to both recognize and respect, they are still left with a dilemma, namely how to make some-

T R O M P E N A A R S

thing useful out of the differences.

This is what we call reconciliation – the art of integrating opposites. So what specific action should one take to make all this happen? That is the realization part of the equation, and it is facilitated by understanding that there are scientific cross-cultural models underlying the 7 dimensions.

This is why I think the dimensions are helpful for people who travel across different cultures.

SP: Swedes who come to live in America sometimes observe that Americans are welcoming and extroverted, allowing the newcomer to build up a network of superficial acquaintances relatively quickly. On the other hand the Swedes often feel that they have very few real friends, and so they end up feeling lonely. Can this be explained through cultural differences between Swedes and Americans?

FT: I do recognize this phenomenon and like to illustrate it using the “peach versus coconut” analogy. It is a metaphor for the Neutral versus the Affective, in combination with the

04/Specific versus Diffuse. Source: Trompenaars Hampden-Turner Consulting

E X C L U S I V E

I N T E R V I E W

Specific versus the Diffuse (3rd and 4th dimensions, page 13). Americans tend to be Specific and Affective, which translates as enjoying other people, whereas Swedes are Diffuse and Neutral, which translates into esteem of other people. A specific culture is like a peach with lots of easily accessible flesh on the outside but a tough, almost impenetrable stone at the core. Culturally speaking, a typical American is a peach with a generous amount of flesh, or “public domain”.

An American may say to a casual acquaintance: “Help yourself to a beer in my fridge”, or “feel free to borrow my car”, because these belongings exist in his or her public domain.

Subjects like ill health, politics and religion reside in the private domain at the American’s core and are only shared with close friends.

SP: Conversely, North Americans in Sweden often find it difficult to establish contact with Swedes who are perceived as introverted and inaccessible, even in the absence of a language barrier since most Swedes speak good English. How can this sense of isolation be explained?

FT: This is because Swedes are more like the coconut, difficult to penetrate at first but all yours if and when you manage to drill your way through to their core. By the way, a little alcohol helps to lubricate the drill! The big problem arises if you try to overlay the peach and the coconut, which leads to

W I T H

S E A N

the feelings of isolation on both sides that you describe in your questions.

What is in an American’s public domain belongs to a Swede’s private domain, and vice versa – so don’t assume that you can just grab a beer from your host’s fridge or borrow his car when visiting Sweden, and don’t lecture Americans about politics or religion if you are a Swede. On the other hand, feel free to enjoy the hospitality of Americans, even if it seems superficial, and know that once you have penetrated that hard outer shell of a Swede, you have got a friend for life.

Sean Williams: The inaccessibility of Swedes is well documented in various international Sean Williams. Photo: benchmark Mundus International tests. In one such study involving 60 nationalities, Swedes obtained the lowest ranking when it came to establishing basic social relationships. During a typical fika pause at the office, people will eat pastries and exchange pleasantries.

Afterwards, everybody goes their separate ways, and there is no expectation to engage in further social contact. By the same token, it is well established that Swedes make very loyal friends, even if it takes a foreigner months or years to reach that point in the relationship.

W I L L I A M S

FT: Let me support what Sean just said by giving an example. Recently while I was giving a workshop in China, a very good Swedish friend of mine passed away. To my surprise, his friends and relatives were quite upset that I didn’t attend his funeral in Sweden. I had thought that they would show an understanding for my absence, given my situation at the time, but I was clearly mistaken. In Sweden, if a close friend dies, you drop everything and come to the funeral, because that is what true friendship is all about.

SW: How true. If Swedes are coconuts and Americans are peaches, then we Australians are mangoes – less flesh, bigger stone, and no hard shell!

FT: So far we have mostly talked about Dimensions 3 and 4, but let us not overlook the other ones, especially number 7 which has to do with dominating the environment versus subordinating oneself to the environment.

By “environment” I don’t just mean Nature, but also the world around us.

The Americans have a greater tendency to dominate the environment than the Swedes, for whom harmony with the environment is sacrosanct. You see this for example in the American build-up of the military, versus Sweden’s preference for conflict resolution through diplomacy in peacetime and neutrality in wartime.

Interviewed by Peter Berlin

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Swedish Press | March 2018 15

‘Jag hoppas att mina ansträngningar... ’

Global S

Karin Olofsdotter, Sveriges ambassadör i Washington (USA)

Karin Olofsdotter efterträdde Björn Lyrvall som Sveriges ambasssadör i USA den 1 september 2017 och är därmed vårt lands första kvinnliga ambassadör i Washington. Tidigare har hon bland annat tjänstgjort vid ambassaden i Washington, ambassaden i Moskva, vid NATO-delegationen och vid EU-representationen i Bryssel.

Hon har också varit ambassadör i Budapest och enhetschef för UD:s ministerkansli.

Berätta om din uppväxt.

Jag är uppvuxen i Halmstad. Jag var enda barnet och hade väldigt företagssamma föräldrar. Min mamma och pappa hade tre skoaffärer i bl.a. Halmstad och Jönköping.

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Swedish Press | March 2018 16

Jag tror att det är deras motivation och hårda arbete som har bidragit till min syn på arbete och hur man ska anstränga sig för andra. De var tidigt ute med att resa när charterresor blev till på 60-talet. Sådana resor blev mycket populära i Sverige – vi reste till Kanarieöarna varje vinter och andra utländska destinationer. Vi reste också omkring i Sverige ganska mycket. Föräldrarna ingav mig nyfikenheten att se och uppleva nya saker, och det har varit en viktig drivkraft för mig att intressera mig för andra länder och att resa.

Vilken form tog din reslust?

Det hela började egentligen när jag var 14 år och fick åka på ett läger i Jugoslavien. Då var vi i Sarajevo 1980 i fyra veckor och fick lära känna ungdomar från hela världen.

Sedan när jag var 17 år åkte jag som utbytesstudent till New Jersey i USA 1982 – 83. Jag har faktiskt fått kontakt med den familjen igen, och det är ju fantastiskt roligt efter alla dessa år. Sedan pluggade jag i Lund, jobbade i Stockholm och besökte Nya Zealand. I januari 1991 fick jag jobb som reseledare till Ryssland och åkte till Moskva där jag lärde mig ryska. Det fanns ingen mat där då, för det rådde tuffa förhållanden vilket ledde till Sovjetunionens fall.

Sedan studerade jag i USA igen, på UCLA. Jag tror att det var alla dessa upplevelser som skapade min nyfikenhet inför nya intryck.

Vad fick dig att eftersträva den diplomatiska banan?

Jag tänkte att jag skulle syssla med utländska företag som ville etablera sig i Ryssland, inom human resources området och med personalfrågor. Men så fick jag syn på en annons från UD om diplomatprogrammet. Man fick ju ansöka efter de jobb som fanns, så det gjorde jag, men det föresvävade mig inte att jag skulle bli antagen överhuvud taget, för där råder ju oerhörd konkurrens, med kanske 1500 personer som söker och endast 15 – 20 antas. Men jag skickade in min ansökan i alla fall. Sedan tror jag att kombinationen av mina kunskaper och min person gjorde att jag blev antagen. Jag måste säga att efter min man, mina barn och mina vänner är detta det bästa som hänt mig. Jag tycker att jag har världens bästa arbetsplats. Jag får naturligtvis möjlighet i mitt liv att uppleva väldigt många saker, träffa spännande människor och företräda ett land som jag är stolt över.

Jag är väldigt glad och nöjd och stolt över mitt yrke.

Under din mångåriga karriär som diplomat har du bl.a. tjänstgjort vid de svenska ambassaderna i Ungern, Ryssland och även i USA för bara några år sedan. Hur tycker du att USA har förändrats sedan din

[

Putting Sweden on the Map Abroad

l Swedes

föregående tjänstgöring i Washington?

Det är nog egentligen en gradvis förändring. Jag kom hit till ambassaden 2008. Vid det tillfället hade jag inte bott här sedan den gången i Los Angeles 1994, och då ser man ju inte saker på samma sätt. Jag tycker nog att den polarisering som vi ser nu, den ser vi ju i många länder förutom USA. Diskussionerna om jobbskapande och utanförskap har ju ökat, och den debatten äger även rum i Sverige och i övriga Europa. Men jag tycker nog att debattklimatet har hårdnat. År 2008 var det upptakten till valet då Barack Obama vann, alltså i november samma år. Man såg hur frustrationen på högerkanten fick uttryck genom Sarah Palin, som ju var running mate till presidentkandidaten John McCain. Frustrationen kanske hade funnits redan tidigare, men nu kom den alltså ut på nationell nivå. Det var den ekonomiska krisen 2007 som utlöste den här polariseringen på allvar.

Enligt statistiken är 85 procent av världens ambasadörer män, och i de s.k. ”tunga” länderna – dvs USA, Ryssland, Kina osv – är siffran närmare 100 procent. Genom din nya utnämning i Washington DC, kommer du som kvinna att bli en förebild för framtiden?

Jag hoppas att mitt kunnande och min personlighet ska ge goda resultat,

]

‘...ska inspirera andra kvinnor.’ och att mina ansträngningar ska inspirera andra kvinnor att också ta på sig den här typen av utmaningar och tjänster. Själv tycker jag att det bara är en fördel att vara kvinna, för i en samling av 100 procent män sticker man ju ut – då syns man! Är man då också skicklig och kunnig, så är det bara en tillgång. Vi har i Sverige länge arbetat med att få med kvinnor i det offentliga, och det är bara synd att vi har måst vänta tills 2017. Jag tänker leda genom att föregå som gott exempel helt enkelt.

Kvinnor kan minsann lika bra som män, om inte ännu bättre!

Vid intervjuer med utländska personligheter prisas Sverige ofta som varande föregångsland på olika sociala och ekonomiska områden. Kan du nämna områden där Sverige åtnjuter ett högt anseende just i USA? Klimatområdet är ett exempel. Det är intressant att notera den debatt som förekommer här. I Sverige sedan 90-talet har utsläppet av koldioxid reducerats med 25 procent, samtidigt som bruttonationalprodukten ökat med 69 procent. Så det går alltså att göra en klimatomställning som har en gynnsam ekonomisk utveckling. Det känns som om vi har ett klimatsmart sätt att se på saken. Jämställdheten mellan män och kvinnor är ju också känd.

Många gånger tror man kanske att det är bättre än vad det är i verkligheten. I det offentliga fungerar det relatgivt bra, men om man ser på kvinnliga chefer på börsnoterade bolag i Sverige, så är det lika illa

som i USA, dvs 5 – 6 procent kvinnliga. Men detta är något man börjat jobba med.

Hur har allt flyttet från land till land påverkat din familj?

Min man och min son, som fyller 16 i år, är kvar i Sverige, för han vill gärna gå ut 9:an där. Han ser nu mycket fram emot att börja på high school när han kommer hit. Då bestämde vi att ta hit dottern som är 14 år och går 8:e året i en lokal skola. Hon var 4 ½ år när vi först kom till USA och har växt upp till att bli en liten amerikanska. Hon anpassar sig oerhört väl. Men det är naturligtvis otroligt tråkigt att vara ifrån min man och sonen.

Vilka sociala frågor engagerar dig mest?

Nu i arbetet sysslar jag med alla frågor, men privat är jag väldigt upptagen av frågor kring barn och unga kvinnor. Jag tycker att det är helt förfärligt att världen fortsätter att vara så gräslig och hemsk vad gäller barns rättigheter och kvinnors möjligheter. Det är en skandal att vi inte kommit längre på så många områden. Vad är det för skillnad på män och kvinnor, och varför ska kvinnor inte ha samma möjligheter som män? Jag tål inte att se filmer där barn far illa. Jag blir oerhört illa berörd. Hade jag valt att arbeta med den typen av frågor, så hade nog barn- och kvinnofrågor engagerat mig mest.

Intervjuad av Peter Berlin

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Swedish Press | March 2018 17

[Lifestyle]

Top Sju

888

2018

New statistics from Statistics Sweden (Statistiska centralbyrån) shows that Alice and William were the most popular names of newborn children in 2017.

Parents chose the name Alice 888 times and 941 boys were named William.

The ten most popular names for girls in 2017 were: 1. Alice, 2. Alicia, 3. Olivia, 4. Ella, 5. Ebba, 6. Lilly, 7.

Astrid, 8. Saga, 9. Freja, 10. Wilma. The top ten names for boys born in 2017 were: 1. William, 2. Oscar, 3. Liam, 4. Lucas, 5. Oliver, 6. Alexander, 7. Elias, 8. Hugo, 9. Noah, 10. Adam.

A brand-new dining experience is coming to Gothenburg in March.

“The Concept,” located at Kungsportsplatsen in Gothenburg City, offers luxurious shared dining experiences (bring friends, family or colleagues), elaborate cocktails and an ever-changing menu of exquisite food from different parts of the world by awardwinning chef Jesper Bogren.

The nightclub and worldclass entertainment is part of the experience. Book an entire night or schedule an early or late dinner.

7 Swedish Hollywood actress Noomi Rapace has launched her own line of perfumes. NCP Olfactives consists of seven scents meant for layering, including Clementine & Violet flower, Apple & Driftwood, Jasmine & Sandalwood, Lavender & Juniper, Iris & Vanilla, Amber & Gaiac wood, and Leather & Vetiver. The fragrances were produced alongside Yann Vasnier, head perfumer at French perfume company Givaudan, and can be purchased as 10 ml or 50 ml eau de parfum.

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Swedish Press | March 2018 18

“…Har du sett världen” premieres at Malmö Live Concert House on March 10.

10 …Har du sett världen (…

Have you seen the world), a musical performance starring Swedish singer/ songwriter Mikael Wiehe, comedian Nour El Refai and singer Edda Magnason, premieres at Malmö Live Concert House on March 10.

Through Wiehe’s music …Har du sett världen, the story of Wiehe and the development of Malmö City is told. El Refai takes on the role of a young Wiehe, while Magnason performs some of his well-known songs. These talented singers are backed

by The Malmö Symphony Orchestra and conductor Marit Strindlund.

11 As the ice cream season steadily approaches, GB Glace – Sweden’s biggest ice cream manufacturer – has revealed 11 new mouthwatering ice cream flavors which include chocolate Magnum variants, such as Magnum Intense Dark,

Magnum Mint and Magnum Chocolate & Hazelnut Praliné. New ice popsicles include Rocket, Solero Organic Juicy and Päronsplitt ekologisk. Lactos-free alternatives are Hallon Smoothie Dröm and Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie. Non-Dairy flavors have also been added, including Breyer’s, an ice cream bar low in sugar. The chocolate cone Marabou Mjölkchokladstrut and Ben & Jerry’s peanut butter Cup’Wich also made the list.

50 IKEA’s “Ivar shelf unit” is celebrating 50 years.

The popular pine bookshelf made its way into IKEA at its Kungens Kurva location near Stockholm in 1968 and immediately became a success. The series, which consists of 29 different parts, can be combined in any conceivable manner.

In celebration of Ivar’s continued success, the series has been expanded to include white lacquered metal cabinets and accessories.

1600

Odlarliv: på Kniva Trädgård i Dalarna, a book about life in the country, gardening and growing

by André Strömqvist and Andreas Graveleij will be released in March. Follow gardeners André Strömqvist and Andreas Graveleij and the development of their 1930s farm and 1600 square meter lot, and take part in their quest for the perfectly sustainable garden, greenhouse and garden store.

Learn how to sow seeds, grow fragrant flowers and best care for your fruits and berries.

[Lifestyle] Book We, the Foreigners

• Without the conversational topic of the weather, no two English people would ever get to know each other.

• The French regard every stop sign, every crossroads, every roundabout as an affront to their individual liberty.

• The Germans take their humour very seriously. It is not a joking matter.

• In Italy, losing face is considered far worse than being found out.

• The Spanish do not drink to release their inhibitions, because they have none.

By Peter Berlin

T

here is a tendency these days to believe that national differences have faded in the wake of global ‘sameness’, but if you have ever noticed how often Swedes talk about Sweden, or how Americans sometimes put their feet on the table, or how Canadians pour maple syrup on bacon at breakfast, you know that ‘foreign-ness’ is alive and well and will probably always be with us. It follows that approaching an entire nation of foreigners would be enough to bring on a mild dose of xenophobia (the phobia about others being foreign). Luckily, there are over 30 inexpensive books on the market that will help you enjoy rather than fear cultural differences.

These Xenophobe’s Guides cover most countries and nationalities that we Westerners are ever likely to face.

Written by ‘insiders’, the Guides take an irreverent but insightful look at the beliefs and foibles of nations: “This is how we are, warts and all”. It’s a clever approach because you are entertained and

informed at the same time. In the words of Leo Tolstoy: ‘Tout comprendre, c’est tout pardonner’ (To understand all is to forgive all).

Some of the authors are immigrants while others are expatriates, allowing them to study the countries from an outsider’s ‘inside’ point of view.

Some excerpts: • In Japan everybody wants to be different from everybody else in exactly the same way.

While reading up on a foreign country or partner is useful, it is equally valuable to read about our own cultural imprint. We then realize that we ourselves are almost as exotic as all those baffling foreigners.

The reviews of individual titles on the Internet sometimes reveal disbelief or even hostility on the part of domestic readers, while foreign readers exclaim ‘Spot on!’

Which just proves that the authors have got it absolutely right.

The Guides are published by Xenophobe’s Guides in London, UK (www.xenophobes.com).

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Swedish Press | March 2018 19

[Lifestyle] Travel Horisaki

By Tatty Maclay

T

he tiny village of Kåremo north of Kalmar, deep in the Småland countryside, is not the first place you might expect to find the studio of an avant-garde milliner duo beloved by celebrities and fashion icons. Yet it is here, in a beautifully converted 19th century former country store, that husband and wife team Karin and Makoto Horisaki handmake some 2,000 of their unique hats to order each year for an international clientele including Don Johnson and Lady Gaga.

Swedish Karin and Japaneseborn Makoto met in Stockholm in 2010 and began working in Stockholm together immediately. Karin is a trained milliner. Together they developed their distinctive style and finish, using high quality natural materials, such as antique handwoven straw and rabbit fur felt, in earthy tones and given a signature finish using water and a blowtorch.

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Swedish Press | March 2018 20

Horisaki owners Makato and Karin Horisaki.

They took their hats to Paris where they received rave reviews. and they continue to show their collections there twice a year.

In 2013 they took the decision to move to Småland, Karin’s home province, for practical, economic reasons. Their reputation has enabled them to tempt trainee milliners to join them to work in what is, in fashion terms at least, the middle of nowhere. While Småland has no particular tradition of millinery, it is well-known for its craftsmanship and entrepreneurial spirit, and it is as ‘proud craftsmen’, rather than fashion designers, that the couple see themselves.

With each hat hand-made from scratch and private orders taking between four and six weeks, bespoke millinery is not an easy profession from which to make a living. The quality of the materials, attention to detail (each hat has a special stretch band inside, for example, so it fits more sizes) and finish, as well as man-hours, mean that hats sell for between 400 and 800 Euros each.

But fortunately the brand has found

a loyal, discerning customer base who are prepared to pay for what is, essentially, as much a work of art as something to keep your head warm and dry.

Despite the high price tag and amount of work involved, a Horisaki hat is meant to be easy to wear every day. Many of their hats are one-size with lots of folds so they can be scrunched down and made portable.

The organic materials mean the hats transform and adapt to the wearer’s own shape and style. ‘A hat is supposed to keep your head warm or protect you from the sun,’ says Karin. ‘It’s not just an accessory. It has a purpose.’

Horisaki hats are sold through some 35 stockists world-wide but, should you find yourself in Småland, you can also visit the store adjoining their workshop. Like a stage set from another time, this magical space is filled with antiques, walls lined with squares of birch bark, old musical scores and rough cloth and, of course, timeless, hand-crafted hats of all shapes and sizes. www.horisaki.com

All Photos © Tina Stafren/Visit Sweden

[Lifestyle] Culture Art and Artifacts

By Anna Larsson

Gunilla Bergström at the Nordic Watercolour Museum The Nordic Watercolour Museum (Nordiska Akvarellmuséet) opened in 2000 and is located on the island of Tjörn north of Gothenburg. A modern rectangular box painted in a traditional red color and set along the water, the museum is filled with light. Its main objectives are the study of contemporary watercolor art and how watercolor has been used over time; traditionally, as a means of expression, and as a concept.

There are exhibits both featuring art from the collection and showcasing the work of an artist or theme.

The spring exhibition features the art of Gunilla Bergström in an exhibit titled “I’ll Darn Well Draw the Soul!”

Gunilla Bergström is the creator of children’s book character Alfons Åberg (Alfie Atkins) first published in 1972. Her illustrations are done in a collage technique combined with drawing and her picture books often have a philosophical dimension to them, not shying away from topics such as divorce or disability. On display February 11 – April 15.

For more information, see www.akvarellmuseet.org.

Nordic Watercolour Museum: Alfons Åberg

by Gunilla Bergström. © Gunilla Bergström

“Vikings: The Exhibition” now in Toronto The hugely successful worldwide tour of “Vikings: The Exhibition” has now reached the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, concluding the tour of North America. The exhibition features interactive displays and nearly 500 artifacts on loan from the Swedish History Museum in Stockholm. Exhibited objects range from jewelry, rune stones and silverware to weaponry and clothing.

The exhibition also includes two reconstructed Viking ships, the 13-foot Arby and the 32-foot Eik Sande. There is even an installation of suspended nails forming the shape of a burial boat. The wood of the boat had long since disintegrated, leaving only the nails for archaeologists to excavate.

The majority of the exhibited objects are originals from the Viking age, which lasted from the late 8th century to the mid-11th century, predominantly in Scandinavia and Northern Europe. However, the exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum also includes an exclusive section on Vikings in Canada, as evidence has been found of a temporary settlement in L’Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland. On display until April 2. For more information, see www.rom.on.ca.

The Museum of Artistic Process and Public Art awarded the Kasper Salin Prize The Museum of Artistic Process and Public Art (Skissernas Museum, Museum of Sketches) in Lund in the south of Sweden houses the largest collection in the world which documents the creative process for public art. Its collection contains around 30,000 sketches and models by artists such as Henri Matisse, Henry Moore, Diego Rivera, Sigrid Hjertén and Siri Derkert, all collected since its inception in 1934. Earlier in 2017, the museum reopened with a new addition designed by Elding Oscarson. This addition received the Kasper Salin Prize in November, an architecture award given to the best building each year by Architects Sweden.

The new addition to the Museum of Artistic Process and Public Art. Photo: Peo Olsson

Among current exhibits is “Haven” with American artist Swoon from Brooklyn, NY. Swoon works with social and environmental issues in linoleum prints, drawings and layered collages and has created a large site-specific installation for this exhibition inspired by refugees she has met. On display until August 19. For more information, see www. skissernasmuseum.se.

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Hemma hos

Proposed Ethiopian Church in Stockholm Attracts Attention at the World Architecture Festival

By Kristi Robinson

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nique in its design, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church in Hagsätra is a gathering place that would fit seamlessly into the fabric of Stockholm’s multicultural landscape. The church, as proposed

by Stockholm-based Belatchew Architects, received attention when it was shortlisted for an award last fall in the category of future civic projects at the annual World Architecture Festival (WAF) held in Berlin.

The exterior of the church is influenced by the ancient rock churches in Ethiopia.

Belatchew Architects describe the project as “creating a place for community and bringing together an ancient tradition with modern needs in another part of the world.”

The plan for the church incorporates many elements of its African origins, and combines it with Scandinavian details. The exterior of the building is finished in concrete, inspired by the monolithic rock-cut churches of Lalibela in northern Ethiopia. These ‘living rock’ churches are thought to have been excavated from the earth in the 12th and 13th centuries. In the design of Belatchew’s modern inter-

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[Design]

pretation, the concrete is tinted red because it mimics the rusty color of the African soil. Inside the church Scandinavian aspects can be found.

Following the style of Swedish furnishings, the rows of pews in the round church hall are made from light-colored wood. The walls are finished in wood panelling, and timber columns run from the floor up to the top of the dome ceiling. The absence of windows in this central domed space is to eliminate distraction from the outside world and encourage a spiritual journey inside the church.

Instead, light enters through long narrow windows at the roofline.

When reflecting on the firm’s experience at the World Architecture Fair, Principal Architect and CEO Rahel Belatchew called the WAF manifesto “challenging and inspiring.”

It asked architects to identify demands that will need to be addressed over the next decade – such as climate, energy, and cultural identity. As for the commendation, Belatchew said: “It is satisfying that our design for an Ethiopian church in Stockholm has been shortlisted for an award, especially so when apparently there was a record number of entries.”

The high profile WAF is the largest architectural festival in the world. For Belatchew Architects to be commended for the design of the church means recognition on a world stage.

Inside the church hall Scandinavian details blend with African influences.

It is not the first time the firm has received accolades for a future project.

They won the sustainability award from The Architectural Review in 2015 for their proposed BuzzBuilding, a series of complexes throughout Stockholm that function as insect farms to provide a sustainable and alternative source of protein for the future population. Belatchew was also the winning entry in an invitational architectural competition for their aptly named ‘Twist’ building, resembling a DNA helix. Located at the intersection of Hagastaden and the Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm, ‘Twist’ was designed to be a meeting place, incorporating a restaurant and a rooftop terrace.

It’s clear that Belatchew Architects understand the needs of the present and the future. It will be interesting to see what other projects they come up with to connect people with architecture in the urban environment in Sweden.

All Photos © Belatchew Arkitekter

Hemma hos

Connecting to My Roots

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By Charlotte Danielsson was born in Kalmar, Sweden.

My family moved to Orange County, California when I was three years old. I then moved up to the Bay Area for college (I received my bachelor’s degree from UC Berkeley and then my law degree from Stanford). Growing up, I never thought my Swedish heritage would in any way be part of my future.

When I started my law practice, Infiniti Law, 20 years ago, I realized that there were quite a few Swedish tech companies moving to the Bay Area. I started helping Swedish (and other Nordic) companies set up subsidiaries in the US and filed the immigration paperwork needed to bring their key executives and engineers over to the US. I also joined the board of the Swedish American Chamber of Commerce and ultimately ended up running the organization as Chairwoman.

I then was asked to run Silicon Vikings, a 20 year old nonprofit organization that connects Nordic and Baltic technology and innovation with Silicon Valley. The prospect of running an organization that included the broader Nordic region and was focused exclusively on tech was very exciting; the board was flexible and allowed me to continue my law practice full time. Since starting my role as Executive Director with Silicon Vikings 3 years ago, the organization has more than doubled its network to over 40,000 and we hold more than 25 events per year.

This year, my focus is on getting a better flow going between our Nodes throughout the Nordic region and

[Treats]

à la Charlotte Danielsson

our headquarters in Silicon Valley.

As part of that effort, I arranged for a partnership with Startup World Cup to bring the competition to the Nordics. We are holding competitions in each of the Nordic countries from February to April. The winner from each country is getting a trip to San Francisco to compete in the Startup World Cup Grand Finale. Having the

Swedish Sugar Cookies Ingredients: • I cup sugar • 1 cup butter • 1 large egg • 1 tsp vanilla • 1/2 tsp cream of tartar • 1/2 tsp baking soda • 2 cups flour

Photo: Taste of Home

privilege of doing such engaging and inspiring work promoting Nordic tech in Silicon Valley is an amazing way to stay close to my roots.

Preparation: • Leave the butter out until it’s at room temperature.

• Set oven to 350F. • Cream the butter, sugar, vanilla and egg well.

• Mix the dry ingredients and combine with the sugar mixture.

• Form into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter and roll in sugar.

• Then flatten the balls somewhat so as to form round cookie shapes.

• Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for about 10 minutes (until they just start to brown around the edges).

Gingerbread Cake Ingredients: • 1⁄4 lb butter • 1 cup sugar • 2 eggs • 1⁄2 cup buttermilk • 1⁄4 cup cranberry jam • 11⁄4 cups flour • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon • 1⁄4 tsp ground cloves • 1 tsp ground ginger • 2 tsp ground cardamom • 2 tsp baking powder

Preparation: • Pre-heat the oven to 350°F. • Grease and flour an 8 cup round baking pan.

• Mix flour with baking powder, cinnamon, cloves, ginger and cardamom; then set aside.

• Cream butter and sugar.

• Whip in the eggs one at a time.

• Mix in buttermilk and jam.

• Add flour mixture and mix together.

• Pour the batter in the prepared pan.

• Bake for about 50-60 minutes.

Photo: Hembakningsrådet

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Swedish Press Connects

Swedish Council of America

A Young Scholar’s Nobel Dream Comes True

By Gregg White, SCA Executive Director

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hat is the most rarified experience that could befall a young graduate student in the natural sciences? Working with their research advisor?

Being complimented by the department head?

Meeting with the college president? Those are all truly special encounters but Aeli Olson thinks her experience during Nobel Week in Stockholm last December tops them all.

Aeli was there as one of only 25 exceptional students from around the globe participating in the Stockholm International Youth Science Seminar. This prestigious colloquium offers the participants a unique opportunity to meet and network with not only other bright and dedicated young scientists, but also with diplomats, professors and most importantly, Nobel Laureates in their field. Here is how Aeli herself describes the experience: “The SCA Glenn T. Seaborg Science Scholarship allowed me to attend and participate in the Nobel festivities in Stockholm, Sweden, an honor few can say they have had.

Being able to meet and talk with Nobel Laureates, receive their advice and lifelong wisdom, and most importantly feel their humility, are moments that I will keep with me for the rest of my life. Yes, the Laureates have been honored with an award that few in recorded history can claim, yet they accept it and the subsequent praise with humility, deflecting those words of praise away from themselves and onto those graduate students, engineers, post-doctoral fellows, and technicians who worked under their leadership. More and

more, scientific endeavors are becoming collaborative, as exemplified by Professors Rainer Weiss, Barry Barish, and Kip Thorne, the receivers of the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics, who are role models I desire to follow.”

Like many other students at Bethel University in Saint Paul, Aeli has a Swedish background. “My great-grandparents immigrated to the United States from Sweden, and though I knew I carried Swedish blood, I thought most of the Swedish culture within my family had been lost in the American assimilation process. Yes, we had our own secret Swedish meatball recipe and Dala horses scattered throughout my grandparents’ home, but I thought that barely made me Swedish because almost everyone in Minnesota has a family Swedish meatball recipe. Upon traveling to Sweden and experiencing the culture, I realized that the ‘Minnesotan’ culture in which I grew up retains much more Swedish culture than I could have imagined. The ‘Minnesota nice,’ attitude is because many of us were first ‘Swedish nice.’”

With each generation, the ties that connect the Swedish diaspora with the land of their grandparents tend to weaken or even disappear. To counteract this, Swedish Council of America strengthens contemporary cultural and educational ties between North America and Sweden with several scholarships for undergraduates to study and learn in Sweden. Aeli Olson was the 36th young scientist to experience Stockholm and Nobel Week via the SCA Scholarship named in honor of Glenn T. Seaborg, himself a Nobel Laureate in Chemistry and former SCA Board Chair.

You can read Aeli’s complete account of her week in Stockholm on the SCA website.

5 “My experiences participating in the Nobel Week festivities will forever be some of my most cherished memories. Alfred Nobel established the Nobel prizes for those who provide ‘the greatest benefit for mankind,’ through advances in physics, chemistry, physiology and medicine, literature, and peace. Being surrounded by so many people working toward the greater good has renewed within me an ultimate goal of scientific research – furthering knowledge that leads to the betterment of society.”

Aeli Olson, Blue Earth, Minnesota 2017 Bethel University graduate, 2017 SCA Glenn T. Seaborg Scholar

SIYSS participants tour an Astra Zeneca pharmaceuticals facility.

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The SCA Glenn T. Seaborg Science Scholarship is just one of several scholarships offered by Swedish Council of America. Visit our website to learn more. www.swedishcouncil.org/scholarships

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Swedish Press Connects

Nobel Center

Nobel Center och Elekta tillkännager nytt partnerskap

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obel Center kommer att bjuda på en omfattande verksamhet baserad på Nobelprisbelönade insatser och verk. Skolelever, turister, stockholmare och en intresserad allmänhet inspireras till att vilja vara med och bidra till en bättre värld i Alfreds Nobels anda. I februari 2018 blev det officiellt att Elekta blir det första företaget i en ny grupp av aktörer som stödjer den verksamhet som redan nu börjar växa fram. Elekta AB är ett svenskt företag som främst tillverkar strålkniven Leksell Gamma Knife för behandling av tumörer. ”Vetenskap, humanism och fredssträvan har, sedan Alfred Nobel skrev sitt testamente 1895, lett till nya upptäckter som ingen tidigare trodde var möjliga. Genom att stödja verksamheten i Nobel Center visar Elekta ett tydligt samhällsengagemang för de utåtriktade aktiviteter som skapas baserade på de insatser som Nobelpristagarna belönats för,” säger Lars Heikensten, vd för Nobelstiftelsen.

Elektas VD, Richard Hausmann, tillägger: ”Vi är mycket stolta över att bli en partner till Nobel Center, som är en av Nobelstiftelsens stora satsningar. Deras arbete för att långsiktigt bidra till mänsklighetens största nytta ligger nära Elektas ambitioner. Båda organisationerna representerar en stark svensk tradition av innovation och viljan att göra gott för mänskligheten. Det är ett privilegium för Elekta att stödja Nobel Centers insatser för forskning, vetenskap och kunskap. Elekta välkomnar möjligheten till vidareutbildning och upptäckter som människor får genom de seminarier,

View of Nobel Center from South Public Place. Illustration: David Chipperfield Architects

föreläsningar och diskussioner med Nobelpristagare och forskare som organiseras av Nobel Center.”

För att visa vad Nobel Center kommer att betyda för Stockholm, Sverige och världen arrangerar Nobel Center aktiviteter redan nu. I år kommer det exempelvis att handla om ett fortsatt samarbete med Dramaten kring en serie iscensatta föreställningar, den första handlar om robotar.

Det bjuds in till seminarier och after work med inspirerande talare, och en helkväll är planerad för den som vill ta chansen att lära sig mer om årets Nobelpris som tillkännages i oktober. Uppföljning på förra årets mycket uppskattade lärarkonferens med Nobelpristagare, experter och lärare från hela världen genomförs i Goa och Stockholm. Nobel Center kommer även att vidareutveckla det digitala läromedel kring Nobelpriset som använts flitigt under förra året. En bra hjälp för lärare som snabbt vill kunna berätta för sina elever om vilka upptäckter och verk som belönats med Nobelpriset.

Så finansieras Nobel Center Verksamheten i Nobel Center kommer att finansieras via biljettintäkter, statligt och kommunalt stöd men också via samarbeten med ett antal aktörer som ser fördelarna med den verksamhet som nu växer fram. Elekta, med en verksamhet som syftar till att förbättra, förlänga och rädda livet på svårt sjuka patienter, blir det första företaget i en ny grupp av aktörer som är med och bidrar till verksamheten i Nobel Center.

Regeringen och Stockholms stad gick i november 2016 ut med beskedet att man kommer att stödja driften av Nobel Center under de första åren med sammanlagt 180 miljoner kronor.

Byggandet av Nobel Center finansieras via donationer från stiftelser, företag och privatpersoner. Drygt 1,1 miljarder kronor är redan insamlade.

Nobel Center på Blasieholmen i Stockholm kommer att samla en bred publik verksamhet med utställningar, skolprogram, möten och föreläsningar kring Nobelprisets unika kombination av ämnesområden – naturvetenskap, litteratur och fred. Med utgångspunkt i Nobelpristagarnas belönade insatser och inspirerande berättelser kommer Nobel Center att kunna ta sig an både vår historia, vår samtid och de stora frågor som är avgörande för vår värld och vår framtid. För den eleganta, tidlösa och vackra arkitekturen står David Chipperfield och Christoph Felger som i april 2014 utsågs av en enig jury till vinnare i den internationella arkitekttävlingen om Nobel Center. www.nobelcenter.se

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Road to 2045

Road to 2045

In the Road to 2045 series, Swedish Press explores climate change issues in Sweden and how the country deals with this major challenge. Swedish Press has entered into a collaboration with Forum for Reforms, Entrepreneurship and Sustainability (Fores) who are experts in this area. In the coming months you will see updates on activities and regulations in Sweden, case studies on interesting companies, and interviews with leading climate profiles.

Greening Mobility – Can Sweden Take the Lead?

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By Mattias Goldmann

n most advanced economies, transport is the largest or second largest contributor to climate change emissions, while at the same time accounting for a large share of premature deaths due to local air pollution. Can Sweden take the lead in the move to greener, more sustainable mobility? The competition is fierce, as shown by this second article from the 2030-secretariat.

Paris is about transports After the ratification of the Paris Climate Agreement, a rapid move towards more sustainable modes of transport has started taking place. This is partially due to the fact that the countries in the process of determining

Gothenburg – the first city to incorporate autonomous vehicles into urban planning. © Drive Sweden

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their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) require large and quick emission reductions from the transport sector – but also that there is now a competition for leadership in finding, showing and promoting green transport solutions.

Sweden: A fossil independent transport sector By 2030, Sweden’s climate impact from the transport sector should decrease by 70 % compared to 2010. This is part of the new climate law, approved by seven out of the eight parties in Parliament. When asked why such a small country should have such a tough target – according to Swedish think tank Fores the toughest in the world – the parties focus on how climate leadership is good for business. Industry agrees. Swedish truck manufacturer Scania’s story is a case in point: They only sell about 3 percent of their trucks and buses in Sweden, making it something like the 17th largest market. “It can never be our biggest market, but it can be our most important. When new technology is first tested in Sweden, other bigger markets will be inspired and order this from us”, says Scania strategist Urban Wästljung. Indeed, the world’s first continuously inductively charged electric bus – a Scania which runs in Swedish Södertälje – has already attracted worldwide attention which is now turning into orders.

Biofuel producers, manufacturers of electric vehicle charging and experts in autonomous vehicles have similar stories but also warn against complacency. The race for leadership is on!

From Norway to India Sweden’s neighbor to the west, Norway, is a prime contender for sustainable mobility championship, with plug-in

cars making up more than half of new car sales – way ahead of any other country in the world. After the Teslas and Nissan Leafs, the next step is now ferries, buses and trucks – and by 2040 all domestic aviation is to be electric.

Sweden’s other neighbor Denmark is equally aggressive with biking, which accounts for 60% of Copenhageners’ daily commute, while the Finns are world leaders in turning wood residues into transport fuel. And in the 2030secretariat ranking, the Netherlands has been the most cost-effective in moving to sustainable mobility – an aspect that will be ever more important as less affluent countries seek inspiration.

Across the Atlantic, while President Trump’s federal government is relaxing regulations on clean vehicles and fuels, states like California are accelerating the pace and widening the scope of the regulations. And in September, the Indian government proved that the move to sustainable transport is a world-wide phenomenon by stating that “Car makers who continue to produce vehicles that run on traditional fuels will have their factories bulldozed.”

A global helpdesk The government initiative Fossil-free Sweden equates the ambitions with being a permanent world exhibition for sustainable solutions, while the 2030-secretariat wants Sweden to be a “global helpdesk for greener transports”. But is it really going to be Sweden that the world will dial for help? This may be the fiercest fight we’ve yet seen between these friendly, peace-loving Nordic countries.

Fores is a Swedish think tank devoted to questions related to climate and environment, migration and integration, entrepreneurship and economic reforms, as well as the digital society.

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Museum has two exhibits by Swedish artists – “Available Light,” an installation of still and moving images of life on a farm in Sweden, may be seen in the Swedish American Museum through March 29.

The presentation by artist Erika Råberg was compiled over several years on her family’s property in rural Värmland.

Råberg earned a master’s degree in photography in 2015 from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and has been a fellow at the Shapiro Center for Research and Collaboration. A guest artist at the Royal Art Academy in Stockholm, she earned a grant from the American-Scandinavian Foundation in New York.

Also on display, through March 18, is the exhibit of watercolors by Hans Öhman of Värmland. His interest in painting was kindled

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The art of Bertil Vallien. Photo: Kim Saul

by the work of his grandfather in restoring artwork in churches and building furniture that he decorated in traditional regional style.

While still searching for a basis for his burgeoning creativity, Öhman found the Baha’i Faith.

From that sprang his philosophical, decorative style that is based on haiku poetry.

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“Inspired: Contemporary Swedish Folk Paintings and Haiku Paintings” by Hans Öhman 8

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Year of The Handmade – In 2018, the American Swedish Institute presents a suite of exhibitions and programs exploring the theme The Handmade. These projects delve into relevant and timely issues increasingly reflected in the handmade forum – from the old world to the new, and from the traditional to the contemporary, examining intersections among local and global, identity, heritage and sustainability.

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The year kicks off with CraftBOWL, an exhibition project that explores vessel design and craft traditions represented through varied mediums of handcraft – from wood, to glass, to ceramics – as practiced in Sweden and around the world.

The exhibition explores the work and careers of three established Swedish masters in their respective fields: Jögge Sundqvist and Bertil Vallien, and Swedish National Treasure Ingegerd Råman. Through the craft movements they have inspired globally.

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Ingegerd Råman. Photo: Claudio Bresciani 28

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Calendar & Events

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CHICAGO Swedish American Museum 5211 N. Clark St., Chicago, IL 60640 Tel: 773-728 8111 | info@samac.org www.swedishamericanmuseum.org Ongoing: The art exhibits, “Inspired – Contemporary Swedish Folk Paintings and Haiku Paintings” by Hans Öhman, through Mar 18, and “Available Light” by Erika Råberg, through Mar 29.

Mar 24 – Sat 10 am: Swedish American Genealogy Society program, “Old SwedishAmerican Newspapers – New Treasure Trove for Online Research.”

Mar 25 – Sun: Opening of the exhibit, “Outside the Lines: A History of Swedish Comics,” based on “Swedish Comics History” by Fredrik Strömberg.

DETROIT Swedish Club of Southeast Michigan 22398 Ruth St, Farmington Hills, MI 48336 Info: 734-459 0596 www.swedishclub.net Mar 4 – Sun 1 to 2:30 pm: Buffet.

Mar 17 – Sat 5 to 7 pm: St. Patrick’s Day Buffet, singing Irish songs and games.

MINNEAPOLIS American Swedish Institute 2600 Park Ave. Minneapolis, MN 55407 Tel: 612-871 4907 | www.asimn.org Ongoing through Apr 8: CraftBOWL – an exhibition project that explores vessel design and craft traditions represented through varied mediums of handcraft.

Mar 13 – Tues 7 pm: Skål! A Toast to Uppsala – a silent auction benefit for the Minneapolis-Uppsala Friendship Committee.

Mar 31 – Sat 9 to 10:30 am: Easter in the Castle – the only Easter egg hunt in a Castle!

PALO ALTO Silicon Vikings 1510 Page Mill Rd Ste 110, Palo Alto, CA 94304 | charlotte.danielsson@siliconvikings. com | www.siliconvikings.com Mar 13-14 – Venture Summit | West – Join 700+ VCs, Corporate VCs, Angel Investors, Investment Bankers and Founders of venture backed, emerging and early stage companies at The Santa Clara Convention Center. Register at www.youngstartup.com.

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PHILADEPHIA American Swedish Historical Museum 1900 Pattison Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19145 | Tel: 215-389 1776 | info@americanswedish.org | www.americanswedish.org Mar 25 – Sun 2 to 4 pm: Easter Family Fun Day & Egg Hunt PORTLAND Scandinavian Heritage Foundation at Nordia House 8800 SW Oleson Road, Portland, OR 97223 Tel: 503-977 0275 | shf@mindspring.com www.scanheritage.org Ongoing through Mar 30: Raoul Wallenberg: To me, there’s no other choice exhibition.

SEATTLE Swedish Cultural Center 1920 Dexter Ave. N. Seattle, WA 98109 Tel: 206-283 1090 | www.swedishclubnw.org info@swedishculturalcenter.org Mar 3 & 4 – Sat & Sun 9 am to 3 pm: Antiques & Great Finds Sale. Delicious Swedish pea soup, meatballs and cookies by our Bite of Sweden cooks.

Mar 6 – Tues: Kvinnor Kan! (Women Can!) Dinner. This year, we honor UW President Ana Mari Cauce – the UW’s first permanent women president.

Mar 10 – Sat: Donors’ Dinner. We treat our donors who have given more than $1,000 in the last 12 months to a fabulous dinner and entertainment. It’s easy to be included in the Donors’ Dinner 2018 – just give generously by March 1!

WASHINGTON, DC Embassy of Sweden 2900 K Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20007 Tel: 202-467 2600 | www.swedenabroad.com ambassaden.washington@gov.se Mar 7 – författarna bakom Lars Kepler deltar i ett Artist Talk på House of Sweden för lansering av en av sina böcker.

WISCONSIN Swedish American Historical Society of Wisconsin Tel: 414-352 7890 | www.sahswi.org Mar 20 – Saturday 1:30 pm: Fika – The Swedish Coffee Time Tradition – We’ll learn 18

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the history of Fika, share recipes and have hands-on experience in the preparation of Fika at Redemption Lutheran Church, 4057 North Mayfair Rd, Wauwatosa, WI (Hwy. 100, just north of Capitol Dr.) CALGARY Swedish Society of Calgary 739 20 Ave. N.W. Calgary, AB T2M 1E2 Tel: 403-284 2610 | www.swedishsociety.ca Mar 24 – Sat 3 pm: Carl's Way – a movie about Carl Anderson, a Swedish settler in Scandia, who models creativity and resilience of rural people in overcoming devastation during the depression in Western Canada. Free admission at the Scandinavian Centre.

TORONTO Svenska kyrkan i Toronto 25 Old York Mills Road, Toronto ON M2P 1B5 Tel: 416-486 0466 | toronto@svenskakyrkan.se www.svenskakyrkan.se/toronto Mar 17 – Lördag kl.11-14: Påskbasar Försäljning av allt du kan önska dig till påsk.

VANCOUVER Scandinavian Community Centre 6540 Thomas Street, Burnaby, BC V5B 4P9 Tel: 604-294 2777 | info@scandinaviancentre.org | www.swedishculturalsociety.ca Mar 4 – Sun 1 to 3 pm: Nordisk Jazz Concert – featuring Heather Soles and The Scandinavian Express.

WINNIPEG Swedish Cultural Assn of Manitoba 764 Erin Street, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3G 2W4 | Tel: 204-774 8047 | Reservations at: svenskclub17@gmail.com Mar 11 – Sun 1 to 4 pm: Rosemaling, led

by Selma Parsons. Brushes and paints provided. Reserve please.

Mar 11 – Sun 4 to 8 pm: Melodiefestival – join us for fun to watch the Swedish music competition on our television. Finalists go to Eurovision in May. Mar 18 – Sun: Special Swedish Brunch – the Scandia Dancers will be travelling to a dance workshop in Falun this summer.

Let’s support the send-off with members from Vasa Lodge. Entertainment with Tuva Bergstrom; reserve please.

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[Ads] and Info Swedish Press Classified Alberta Organizations Svenska Skolan i Calgary bedriverundervisning för barn 3-15 år gamla på lördagar kl 9:30-12. Alla barn är välkomna. Undervisningen sker på svenska. Kontakta Svenska Skolan genom Scandinavian center 403-284-2610 eller skicka epost till contact@swedishschool.com.

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Swedish Press | March 2018 29

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Sista ordet

“A portrait of Lenin hangs on one of the walls...”

Inter-Cultural Conflict: Inspired by a True Story

By Peter Berlin

Read through this story and try to find the cultural dimensions defined on page 12. (Answers in the endnotes.)

T

he year is 1987. A political thaw is softening the relationship between East and West.

A Western delegation arrives in Moscow to negotiate the launch of an American-built spacecraft with a Russian rocket manufacturer. If the negotiations succeed, this will be the first Western satellite ever to be launched by a Soviet rocket. History is about to be made.

The Western delegation consists of the American project manager Susan Cartland, accompanied by an American female lawyer and a Swedish male expert on launch systems. The three of them are 30 – 35 years old.

Susan is a rising star within the company where she works. She has recently been appointed project manager on the basis of her technical knowledge, strong convictions and ability to rally people around her1. She has picked her negotiating team because they share her temperament and values2.

The Russian delegation is much larger3 and older. They are all men.

The leader is Boris Ivanov, a deputy director general in his late 60’s and the cousin of a government minister4.

He is supported by a dozen technical experts5, all of whom hold senior positions within their departments.

The Western and Russian negotiators, along with their interpreters, take their seats on either side of the table in the large conference room. A portrait of Lenin hangs on one of the

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Swedish Press | March 2018 30

walls. Without wasting time on polite preliminaries6, Boris Ivanov opens the meeting.

“Where is the rest of your delegation?” he enquires.

“How do you mean?” Cartland replies.

“We were expecting to meet your senior management.”

“I’m sure there will be an opportunity for that later if our negotiations succeed.”

“But who will speak on behalf of your company during the negotiations?”

“I will7. My employer has given me the necessary delegated authority.”

The Russian negotiators exchange puzzled glances. Smiling indulgently, Ivanov resumes: “I take it that you’ve come here to ask our help to launch your satellite?”

“I’m not sure ‘help’ is the right word. What we want to explore with you is whether we can obtain a launch on financially favorable terms, while at the same time assisting you to bring your rocket onto the world market.

We’re looking for a win-win deal8 where all of us gain something.”

“But you’ve had one rocket after the other crash in the West lately.

Surely then it’s our help you require?”

Several hours go by in the same vein without any tangible breakthrough in the negotiations which attempt to cover a host of commercial, technical, financial, contractual and logistic matters. Cartland tries to swallow her growing indignation9, but finally she loses her patience with the attitude of the Russians which she perceives to be patronizing.

“Mr Ivanov, everybody knows that the Soviet economy is in a state of imminent collapse. Your inflation is running at 20 percent a month, and your Central Bank continues to print roubles as if they were Monopoly money. We on the other hand have substantial financial resources. We are willing to spend them on rockets which, by the way, your government can no longer afford to launch. So you should appreciate that my colleagues and I are doing you a big favour just by coming here!”

Boris Ivanov slams his fist on the table10 and barks: “How dare you come here and lecture us about our government and economy? I suggest you stick to subjects which you know something about. I’m sure my team will be able to answer any technical questions you may have. I myself have more important things to do.”

With that, Ivanov rises from his chair and leaves the room.

PS: The negotiations succeeded in the end, but they took three years and led to much cross-cultural introspection.

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