Swedish Press Sample Nov 2015 Vol 86:09

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November 2015 Vol 86:09 $4.95

Sweden’s home masters, classic and modern

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2015

House of Clicks The IKEA Foundation Interview with Karin Markides

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Heritage 15 Heritage: Sewn Dala Pictures

5 From the Editor’s Desk

Global Swedes 16 Putting Sweden on the map – at home: Karin Markides

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Swedish Headlines Headline News: Christian Democrats’ decision to exit the “December Agreement” puts Sweden’s political system in turmoil News at a Glance Swedes in the News

Feature 10 Building better lives around the world Maria Stuart. Foto: Sören Vilks

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Photo: IKEA Foundation

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Interview 12 Lena och Thomas Engström: kärlek i fotografi

NEXT ISSUE DEADLINE: NOVEMBER 10

Lifestyle 18 Top Sju 19 Theatre: Maria Stuart, Dramaten 2015

Business 7 Business News 9 Company File: Orbital Systems

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CONTENTS ( November 2015 )

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Swedish Press

Hemma hos 20 Design: The House of Clicks – Sweden’s most desirable home 21 Treats à la Camila 22 Lär Dig Svenska 23 Comic: Among the Swedes of Kansas city In the Loop 24 Landskapsnyheterna 27 Canada, US & Beyond 28 Calendar and Events 29 Ads and Info 30 Sista Ordet The Christmas Doctor: the true story of Dr. J. P. Weber 31 Reader survey Cover photo: Picture of living room by Wilm Ihlenfeld and water colour painting of the Cottage

by Carl Larsson. Left photo © Thomas Engström

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Building better lives around the world

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he latest news from IKEA includes stories about a novel movable wall design, a 41st US store opening in St Louis, Missouri, and an IKEA Group sales growth of EUR 31.9 billion ($35.7 billion US) for 2015. However, the IKEA Foundation’s latest award from the World Childhood Foundation has drawn the most accolades.

Uma Thurman, Lars Petersson and H.M. Queen Silvia at the World Childhood ThankYou Gala in New York. Mr. Petersson, President of IKEA North America, accepted the Childhood ThankYou award on behalf of the IKEA Foundation.

On September 24th, during the World Childhood Foundation USA’s ThankYou Gala at the Plaza Hotel in New York, Her Majesty Queen Silvia of Sweden presented the ThankYou Award to the IKEA Foundation. She honored the Foundation for its outstanding achievements in supporting vulnerable children and promoting child rights around the world.

“IKEA’s extraordinary commitment and investment in children’s rights and environmental sustainability is unpre-

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cedented in the corporate sector. Over the past fifteen years, IKEA and the IKEA Foundation have embarked on improving the situation of vulnerable children in the world showing the way we can help ending the abuse, exploitation, trafficking and violence of children. I hope that the Childhood ThankYou Award will inspire other corporate foundations to follow IKEA’s example and step up their efforts to give more children a chance in life,” said Joanna Rubinstein, President and CEO of World Childhood Foundation USA. The philanthropic arm of INGKA Foundation (the owner of the IKEA Group of companies), the IKEA Foundation funds dozens of programmes run by 40 large and small organisations to improve life for children living in extreme poverty. The Foundation’s mission is to create substantial and lasting change by funding holistic, long-term programmes in some of the world’s poorest communities that

The IKEA Foundation fund programmes that focus on children’s four fundamental needs: a place to call home, a quality education, a healthy start in life and a sustainable family income.

address children’s fundamental needs: home, health, education and a sustainable family income.

Abdu Rachman Khalil and two of his children carry new mattresses, blankets and linens back to their tent. The bedroom items are part of a donation by the IKEA Foundation. Photo: IKEA Foundation

“Our goal with the IKEA Foundation is in keeping with exactly what we’ve always tried to do as a home furnishings company – create a better everyday life for as many people as possible around the world. For families living in poverty, the needs are obviously greater than for those in more prosperous conditions. But we all share basic needs: a secure home, good health, a regular income, a desire to keep our children safe, to see them get a good education and succeed in life.

That’s why the IKEA Foundation has decided to focus our funding on these key necessities, in order to improve the situation for children and youth across the developing world so that they can create a better future for themselves and their families,” said Ingvar Kamprad, Founder of IKEA and the IKEA Foundation.

Founded in 1982 by Ingvar Kamprad, the IKEA Foundation is one of the largest charitable foundations and organizations in the world. According to its original registration in the Netherlands, the main focus of the Foundation was “to promote and support innovation in the field of architectural and interior design”.

In the early years, the Foundation received a slew of accusations; the world’s wealthiest charity was criticized for being one of the least generous. In 2007, the Berne Declaration, a nonprofit organization in Switzerland that promotes corporate responsibility, criticized IKEA for its tax avoidance strategies during the Opening Day of the World Economic Forum.

Zaynab, a Somali mother in Kobe Refugee Camp in Ethiopia stands in the light of a solar lantern in her refugee shelter. Photo: IKEA Foundation

In 2009, the IKEA Foundation expanded its charter to include a broader mission of improving opportunities for children to enable them to take control of their own futures. Today the Foundation works with strong strategic partners who are applying innovative approaches to the root causes of child labour and to promoting children’s rights and education. In 2014 alone, IKEA Foundation invested more than $115 million (EUR 103 million) to help children and their families, many of them refugees. A partnership with UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) resulted in the creation of the Better Shelter, an innovative temporary shelter designed for those displaced by conflicts and natural disasters around the world.

IKEA, in partnership with the UNHCR, designed Better Shelter to improve the living conditions of people displaced by natural disasters and conflicts.

This year, IKEA Group and IKEA Foundation are making bold new commitments to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy and to support the communities most at risk of being deprived of clean drinking water and denied access to education.

In June 2015, IKEA announced its plans to spend EUR 1 billion ($1.13 billion) on renewable energy and its steps to help poor nations cope with climate change. This is the latest example of corporations upstaging governments in their efforts to tackle global warming.

The EUR 1 billion total consists of an IKEA Group commitment of EUR 600 million for investment in renewable energy and a EUR 400 million IKEA Foundation commitment to support families and communities who are most impacted by climate change until 2020.

The IKEA Foundation’s funding will go towards helping vulnerable communities build resilience to the impacts of climate change. In addition, the Foundation will work to improve lives by implementing renewable energy technologies in homes, schools and businesses in the developing world.

“We’re working toward a world where children living in poverty have

Play based learning in the model pre-primary school in Kinyinya.Photo: Jung Park/UNICEF

more opportunities to create a better future for themselves and their families.

Tackling climate change is critical to achieving this goal,” said Per Heggenes, CEO of the IKEA Foundation.

The IKEA commitment coincides with the Bonn Climate Change Conference in June this year, where world governments are preparing a universal climate agreement to be negotiated at the United Nations Conference on Climate Change meeting (COP21) in Paris on 7-8 December.

Per Heggenes, CEO of the IKEA Foundation.

Photo: IKEA Foundation

IKEA’s bold step in addressing climate change reveals that they are not waiting for governments around the world to take action. IKEA is determined to step up to become energy independent and to produce as much renewable energy as it consumes in its buildings. IKEA Group has already committed to owning and operating 314 offsite wind turbines and has installed 700,000 solar panels on its buildings. The majority of the new commitment (EUR500 million) will be invested in wind energy with roughly EUR 100 million to be invested in solar up to 2020.

The recent recognition that the IKEA Foundation received from the World Childhood Foundation’s ThankYou Award will hopefully propel even more impactful work in the future. As the founder of IKEA and IKEA Foundation, Ingvar Kamprad, once said: “The most dangerous poison is the feeling of achievement. The antidote is to every evening think what can be done better tomorrow.”

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EXKLUSIV INTERVJU MED LENA OCH THOMAS ENGSTRÖM

Lena och Thomas Engström: kärlek i fotografi Av Birgitta Lauren

L

ena och Thomas är paret som båda jobbar som fotografer.Som nomader flyttar dom jorden runt och fotograferar allt ifrån nyheter, reklam, evenemang och kändisar.

Efter att ha flyttat från Stockholm har de varit baserade i New York, Peking, London, Bangkok, och Los Angeles. I LA har de blivit kända som de ’Svenska Hollywoodfotograferna’.

Thomas började fotografera 1975 på lokaltidningen i Mariestad. ”Jag tog en bild på mitt basketbollag och lämnade den till tidningen. Sen ringde dom och frågade om jag inte vill

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börja jobba på tidningen under sommaren. För första lönen köpte jag en cykel så jag kunde cykla runt på olika jobb. Jag var bara 16 år och körkort och bil låg långt fram i tiden.”

Tidningen anställde Thomas efter ett tag och systertidningen värvade honom ett år senare. Hade han inte blivit fotograf så hade han troligen blivit arkitekt och ritat hus som han gjorde som liten. ”Det är hemskt hur illa arkitektfirmor planlöser hus idag. Det kan jag prata länge om. Men det är en annan artikel,” säger Thomas och ler.

Efter tiden i landsorten gjorde han lumpen på tidningen Värnpliktsnytt och flyttade till Stockholm. Han började frilansa åt Expressen och veckotidningar. 1987 bar det av till New York för att där bli fotograf åt Aftonbladet.

Lena kommer från klädbranschen. I 20 år var hon butikschef på Lindex, men har alltid tagit bilder och trivd med att göra något annat idag – som är mer kreativt.

De har varit gifta i 10 år och är vana vid att flytta med kort varsel. Lena berättar med glimten i ögat om en dag 2007, ”Thomas ringde mig på jobbet och sade att vi skulle flytta till Kina. Jag sade, ’vad kul’ och tog tjänstledigt nästa dag.”

EXKLUSIV INTERVJU MED LENA OCH THOMAS ENGSTRÖM

Året innan flyttade de till England och 16 timmar in på deras vistelse i London, stod de i kö på IKEA för att köpa möbler. Då ringde Expressen och ville att Thomas skulle åka till New Orleans för att bevaka Katrinakatastrofen.”

Thomas frilansar åt Expressen och svensk TV, med sin favoritkamera för tillfället, en Canon EOS 5D Mark III. En liten Leica har han alltid över axeln, även när han är ledig.

Lena har fotograferat åt olika tidningar och skriver ibland för veckotidningar och Expressen. Hon tar också porträtt på skådespelare och musiker.

I början assisterade Lena med allt möjligt, som att agera som chaufför i LA-trafiken och att hjälpa till med att bära kamerautrustning och fixa med ljuset på olika fotograferingar.

Thomas har verkligen öga för att ta fina bilder, och säger, ”Så länge man har något bra att fota så är det lätt. När det inte finns något att fotografera och man måste leverera i allafall – då är det lite svårare.”

Han blir inspirerad av att ta bilder genom att hitta en bra komposition med linjer och vad han kallar ’element’

som ska passa ihop. Han är väldigt tekniskt intresserad och tycker om att trycka på knappar.

Under sommaren befann sig detta kära par i Stockholm för att jobba i Sverige för första gången på 7 år. Nästa stopp blir Thailand. Där blir det inte så mycket ’Hollywoodfruar’ och entertainment som i Los Angeles, utan mer fokus på ’hard news’. De fotograferar också för hotell som de gjorde när de bodde i Asien för några år sedan. Under 2008 var de baserade i Peking inför och under Sommar-OS. Trehundratusen svenskar besöker Thailand varje år.

Många pensionärer väljer att bosätta sig i Thailand istället för Spanien. Thomas har varit fotograf i 40 år. Om några år är det dags att varva ner och tänka på livet som pensionär. ”Det är otroligt billigt att bo i vissa länder i Asien jämfört med Sverige och USA.” Lena och Thomas kan leva utan dyra omkostnader förutom deras omfattande kamerautrustning som upptar fyra resväskor. ”Vi flyttar runt utan en massa privata prylar. En utmaning är att köpa nya grejor till nya hem. Ibland funderar vi på hur många brödrostar vi egentligen köpt.”

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Putting Sweden on the map at home

Global

‘Talented Swedish leadership is changing...’

Karin Markides, Senior Advisor to the President and CEO of

Chalmers University of Technology and Chairman of the Scientific Council for Sustainable Development under the Swedish Government

Swedish Professor in Analytical Chemistry Karin Markides recently left her post of nine years as President and CEO for Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden. She is now Senior Advisor to the new President and CEO, and also Chairman of the Swedish Research Council for Sustainable Development. Swedish Press sat down with the Professor to discuss leadership, education and civil courage.

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Please tell us a little bit about your background.

I was born and raised southwest of Stockholm, where higher education was the norm only for the many families from Stockholm city that had summerhouses in the area.

Changing environment has since then become a valuable part of my life. With a PhD in Analytical Chemistry from the University of Stockholm, I got tenure track from the entrepreneurial environment at Brigham Young University in Utah.

I then built my own research group as professor and Dean at Uppsala University, while enjoying close collaboration with research groups in the open environment of Stanford University. The production reached over 250 scientific articles in highly ranked journals and supervision of over thirty PhDs. I became increasingly interested in what role universities and education would need to take in the future and was able to learn more about this as deputy director general of Vinnova, the Swedish agency for innovation.

When scientists approached me from Chalmers University of Technology to become their next leader, I felt that I was prepared for the challenge.

You recently left your post as President and CEO for Chalmers

University of Technology, what have you enjoyed the most about your time there? What will you be focusing on now?

I am proud that Chalmers is in a very good condition and can play an important role in the different geographies that it operates. My most important contribution to Chalmers has probably been as a systemic leader; enhancing diversity and catalyzing and guiding development at the complexity level of the actual challenges. By this approach I have initiated a higher standard of excellence through crossdisciplinary and cross-stakeholder incentives, attracting top-scientists and students with agile talents. This approach also enabled fundraising from the engaging stakeholders to sustain the new developments. I get the most joy out of seeing people of all ages engage and perform on a level higher than they thought possible.

I am now Senior Advisor to the new President and CEO, as well as Chairman of the Swedish Research Council for Sustainable Development and Chairman of a Science Park with a novel concept. I thus have a strong background in leadership and value building, as well as forefront research and education at both private and public universities

Swedes

‘...Sweden has an opportunity to be in the driver’s seat.’

in Sweden and in the US. I also have broad experience in state-ofthe-art practice for higher education, research and utilization with true impact in business and society.

In which areas do you feel Sweden contributes most globally?

Sweden has become dependent on export and global trade. Sweden needs to stand strong in keeping this position. This is fantastic for a small country since it can set the standards that will prevail in the world. The ability to find fast solutions across stakeholder barriers and collaborate between researchers in universities, companies and the public sector is adding advantages to the Swedish way, especially when leaders come with these assets. With the growing awareness that future markets will be driven by gain on a systemic view of economically, socially and ecologically solutions, Sweden has an opportunity to be in the driver’s seat. In areas that have succeeded in taking this opportunity, Sweden also has a strong global position. IKEA is a good example of a company that understands and uses this strength.

How do you think the image of Sweden is changing and developing internationally and particularly in North America?

I think that the old image that the Swedish consensus-culture is hindering concrete action and talented leadership is changing with an increased awareness that individual strength also has become an important part of the Swedish culture. This combined ability to act in a group and individually is going to be even more respected going forward, since the societal challenges we face today are far too complex to be approached with yesterday’s methods. They call for solutions demanding a new mindset and new ways of collaboration over traditional boundaries and cultures. To cope with such an assignment, research and education institutions must optimize their own operations to fully exploit the expertise and potential in their research, education and innovation activities. We can see some of this increased respect for Swedish culture, for example, in the way the Chinese owned Volvo Cars is making the image of this car more Swedish than the Swedish or American owners ever did. It takes a system approach to develop the clean, sustainable and safe products with subtle beauty that are coming out of Sweden today.

Why do you think Sweden has achieved the success it has despite being such a small country, population wise?

The ability to cross borders is an essential part of the Swedish school system and this mind-set builds an

important foundation for understanding and listening to different opinions. Another important component has been international experience early on in different careers, especially researchers and business leaders. Sweden has also gained from being open to skills and influences from other parts of the world.

What aspects of Swedish culture and life are you personally most passionate about promoting?

Sweden’s young people are mature, outgoing and concerned about the values carried by their future employer. Their digital skills will also help them to the next level in any area. If these young people are provided with opportunities to meet across present barriers, and get inspired by new perspectives, they will take this chance. I would like to promote this talented generation, Swedish and international, and make them able to become the talented leaders of tomorrow.

Are there any other upcoming projects or events that you would like to mention?

When the House of Sweden in Washington DC celebrates its first decennium next year, my hope is that the event will bring visibility to Sweden. I also hope that young American students will choose to study abroad and learn systemic skills.

Interviewed by Sofie Kinnefors.

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