Kick off for "How are you doing in the Nordic countries?"

Name: Kaisa Kutilainen

Represents: Kultuurikaveri (a Finnish organisation helping people looking for a “culture companion”, i.e. someone to share cultural experiences with).

Answer:

The most important issue is the economy. I am worried about how it will affect welfare  in the Nordic region. The large number of refugees means some of the political opinions being voiced clash with the Nordic notion of equal access to services.

Name: Esa Vienamo

Represents: The regional council for Southern Ostrobothnia

Answer:

We try to increase cultural cooperation between different municipalities and are interested in finding out whether there are similar things being done in other Nordic countries. We are looking for new models of cooperation.

Name: Outi Salonlahti

Represents: Culture for All 

Answer:

The refugees represent the most important issue in the Nordic region right now. All the Nordic countries share the same problem of how to handle the flow of refugees. We must improve our cooperation in this matter.

Name: Mira Korhonen

Represents: Nordjobb

Answer:

The most important issue is what is happening on the Nordic labour market. There is a crisis in Finland any many youths want to have the opportunity to travel to other countries to find work. At Nordjobb we have arranged temporary jobs for 300 youths, but that is only a fraction of the total number of applicants, perhaps 10 to 20 percent. They only work for a short while, so they don’t run into many problems, but what we most often hear is that it is difficult to open bank accounts in other Nordic countries.

Name: Vera Schrey

Represents: An EU project aimed at establishing an education for culture workers in the social sector 

Answer:

Name: Maria Grönroos

Represents: NIKK (Nordic Information on Gender)

Answer:

The refugee issue. There is a lot of knowledge in the Nordic region. It is also possible to work across authorities and organisations. In Gothenburg we have two young swimming instructors who have started a business learning refugee children how to swim. A goal which is closer to what we do is to find a shared terminology when debating equality. This varies enormously between different Nordic countries.