February 2020

Nordic News 240 Sparks Street, PO Box 55023, Ottawa, ON K1P 1A1

An introduction to KONE - a Leading Company in People Flow: by Laura Kehusmaa

Laura Kehusmaa

Laura Kehusmaa works as a Coordinator for the Finnish elevator company KONE Inc. Ottawa. She comes to us highly recommended as a speaker by CNS member Tuula Bigras. Laura will make her presentation on Wednesday, February 19 at 7:30 PM at the Army Officers’ Mess, 149 Somerset Street West, Ottawa. Admission is free for members, $5 for non-members.

Date Changes for Distinguished Speaker Evenings

To make some of our upcoming distinguished speakers evenings possible, we have changed some of the dates from the usual third Wednesday evening of the month. The revised schedule for the rest of this season is now: • Wednesday, February 19 • Wednesday, March 11 • Wednesday, April 8 • Wednesday, May 13 (Annual General Meeting) ~ 1 ~ Bright Nights Baltic Nordic Film Festival

Ottawa's annual film festival of the Baltic and Nordic countries: Lithuania, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Iceland, Estonia, and , takes place this year between February 19 and 26. For more information and the full schedule, please go to https://www.cfi-icf.ca/bnff

The Nordic Model - Does it Still Exist?

Treasurer Lennart Nylund (left) thanked Ambassador Ahlin on behalf of the CNS

“The Nordic Model - does it still exist?” was the topic of the talk given by His Excellency Urban Ahlin, Ambassador of Sweden, on January 22. We don’t call our speaker series ‘The Distinguished Speakers Series’ for nothing,” is what I was thinking as I listened to the Ambassador. His background and experiences as leader of Sweden’s Social Democratic party, Chair of the Committee of Foreign Affairs, and Chair and Speaker of the House of Commons, among many other impressive accomplishments, gave so much weight to his opinions about this topic.

Ambassador Ahlin strongly believes that the Nordic countries (in which group he includes Canada), have a major role to play in a world which is moving rapidly away from liberalism and democracy. He noted that the Nordic countries consistently appear on the lists of best countries to live in, using many different criteria. As managers of the CNS Facebook page, Hanne Sjøborg and I regularly post such lists and in fact, the day after the Ambassador spoke, the Ottawa Citizen published an article about the world’s ten most family-friendly cities. Helsinki came first, followed by Québec City. The list included Oslo, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Reykjavik, Calgary, Montreal and Gothenburg. Ambassador Ahlin proposed several reasons why the Nordic countries have been so successful in creating such well-functioning societies.

One reason he cited was their history of never having been feudal states (with the exception of a small amount of feudalism in Denmark and in the southern tip of Sweden.) He suggested that this meant that the Nordic people had therefore never accepted subservience towards the state. They

~ 2 ~ expected to be treated fairly by the state and historically had rebelled against perceived injustice. The Ambassador also believes that Lutheranism, with its emphasis on hard work, good deeds and kindness to others, has had a huge impact on Nordic values. Other factors he mentioned were the public right of access to the forests and countryside, which allows anyone to share in berry and mushroom picking, and the very early establishment of public schools for all children. His final point on the success of Nordic societies was the influence of the harsh climate. People needed to be able to count on each other when times were difficult. Many had a subsistence livelihoods, so disaster and starvation were never far away and co-operation improved everyone’s chances of survival. The Ambassador noted that these were his own, personal thoughts on the background for the Nordic model, but I certainly found them well thought out and interesting.

Ambassador Ahlin then spoke about the rapidly changing conditions of the world we now live in. He mentioned the current worldwide tendency in political debate to focus only on strengthening one’s own beliefs rather than engaging in true debate. This is reinforced by social media which allows the faceless expression of ideas that would never be spoken in public. He noted in particular the enormous amount of hostile online commentary his female political colleagues received. And since traditional media is no longer trusted by many people, politicians can get away with a great deal that they would not have been able to get away with in the past.

The Ambassador sees the Nordic Model as being about trust and seeking consensus when looking for the best solutions. “What happens when trust dissolves?” he wondered. “What happens to democracy?” The Nordic countries, including Canada, stand up for the rights of women, children, LGBTQ, and minorities. Ambassador Ahlin believes that the Nordic countries must co-operate and work together to maintain these values or the world will continue to move in the wrong direction. The liberal world order is losing and the Nordic countries need to back each other up. This was the Ambassador’s strong message and it certainly resonated with the audience. Several questions and spirited discussion followed his talk, and the Ambassador’s experience as Speaker of Sweden’s House of Commons served him well. Several individuals also stayed behind to speak to him personally. It was both an enjoyable and a very thought-provoking evening.

Grete Mohaupt (seated), Åse Boardman (left) and Councillor Kristin Udjus Teitelbaum, attended

~ 3 ~ Viking Gala Becoming a Key Annual Event

Arriving guests knew they were in the right place when they were greeted by the very dapper “Lennart Nylund the Viking”

The success of this year’s January 16 Viking Gala made it very clear that for many members, the Gala is a highlight of our CNS annual program. The annual Gala was initiated by Councillor Hanne Sjøborg in 2017, and she has taken the lead on it ever since - liaising with Collège de la Cité to establish the menu, issuing the invitations, organizing the program, and attending to all the little professional details that make these evenings so enjoyable. The gourmet Nordic meal prepared by the students of the culinary program under the supervision of their chef was original and delectable. The atmosphere was warm and friendly with Vice-president Trygve Ringereide as master of ceremonies. Norwegian Ambassador H.E. Anne Kari H. Ovind and Danish ambassador H.E. Hanne Fugl Eskjær were engaging and gracious as they addressed the guests. Rolf Christensen was impressive in his detailed knowledge of explorer Jens Munk’s expedition 400 years ago. Many thanks to Rolf for the second photo on page 6 and to Astrid Ahlgren for the rest (see below)!

~ 4 ~ On top of all her other contributions to organizing the Gala, Hanne Sjøborg enlisted the help of husband Henry Storgaard to put together the warm-up quiz about Denmark.

CNS President Karin Birnbaum welcomed the guests warmly ~ 5 ~ The always eloquent Trygve Ringereide was the Master of Ceremonies for the evening, and is pictured here with his wife Marian McLennan.

Left to right, Anne Kari H. Ovind, Ambassador of Norway; Rolf Christensen, President of Danish Federations in Canada and guest speaker; Hanne Fugl Eskjær, Ambassador of Denmark; Pétur Ásgeirsson, Ambassador of Iceland

~ 6 ~ David Bournes, President of the Danish Club of Ottawa, and his wife Marianne Bournes

Len and Leena Sillanpää

~ 7 ~ Kristin Udjus Teitelbaum

Aud Karin Sund, Carol Ann Godo, Hilde Huus

~ 8 ~ More from France Rivet on Voyage with the Eskimos 1880-81

In the spring of 2015, France Rivet told the CNS the story of the eight Labrador who were recruited by Norwegian and brought to to be exhibited in zoos. Many CNS members purchased a copy of her book on the subject. On December 1, 2019, she published the second edition of the diary Jacobsen kept during his travels with the Labrador Inuit. The book has gone from the original 86 pages to 300 pages! Dieter Riedel, husband of CNS member Doreen Riedel, assisted with this project.

Here is France’s own description of the new edition: The first edition consisted of the English translation of the main portion of Johan Adrian Jacobsen’s 1880-1881 diary. It covered the period from June 28, 1880 (as he was sailing to Greenland to recruit Inuit to bring back to Europe) to January 20, 1881 (four days after the death of the last survivor of the group of eight Labrador Inuit). This portion of the diary was translated by Professor Hartmut Lutz from the .

Thanks to Dieter Riedel, the husband of CNS Member Doreen Larsen-Riedel, we now have access to a larger extract of Jacobsen’s diary. It starts in October 1879, when Jacobsen, his brother Jacob Martin, and zoo owner had the idea of purchasing a ship to travel to the Arctic to recruit Inuit; and it goes until July 24, 1881, the day before Jacobsen headed on his next mission: collecting artifacts on the Northwest Coast of for the Berlin Ethnology Museum. But that’s not all, thanks to Dieter’s dedication, this new edition also includes the English translation of:

~ 9 ~ • Jacobsen’s letters with the Greenland Inspector in July 1880 when he was denied the permission to bring Greenlanders to Europe. • Over 25 letters, Jacobsen received from family, friends, and business partners between November 9, 1880, and Dec 2, 1881, which mention the Labrador Inuit or give us insight into the world of 19th century “human zoos.” • Excerpts from two publications by Jacobsen where he talks about his travels on the Eisbar. • The 1880 registration documents for the ship Eisbar.

Other additions include a new foreword, a revised and expanded introduction, an afterword, and an index. The number of photos and illustrations has gone from 14 to 54. France Rivet notes that: The book can be obtained in paper and ebook format from various online retailers such as Amazon, Indigo/Kobo, etc. It can also be ordered from your favourite local bookstore or directly from Polar Horizons, the publisher. We sincerely hope that this new enlarged edition will prove to be worthwhile and meaningful to all who have an interest in better understanding the story of , his family, and companions who shared the last four months of their lives with Johan Adrian Jacobsen.

If you’re stupid, see your doctor By Martti Lahtinen

(I was one of the many who were stricken with a nasty cold/flu virus over the Christmas holidays. In my email correspondence with Martti regarding another potential article for his Bucket List series, he commiserated with me and offered his own experiences in Chelsea, Quebec, as well as his opinion of medical practitioners in general. This is the little article he put together to explain his point of view….Hilde Huus)

There's an urgent need for doctors in the Gatineau Hills, but let's watch what we wish for. I'm not especially enamoured with doctors per se – we do need body mechanics as we need auto mechanics – but society gives MDs an unconditional free pass when brain power is on the examination table. Thinking of climbing Mount Everest on the weekend? See your doctor. Contemplating a fun run across the Sahara Desert with Chelsea ultramarathoner Ray Zahab? Consult your doctor. The federal

~ 10 ~ political party leaders don't give you a rise? You may have Electile Dysfunction. Talk to your doctor.

See? They freakin' know everything – or at least we're led to believe they do. I'm not on that bandwagon, because intelligence has no measurable benchmarks that indicate common sense. Think Mensa Society, where intelligence quotient (IQ) indices rule. The Common Sense Club doesn't go around counting knows-is.

I was once referred to a cardiac specialist after my family doctor detected an arrhythmia. The visit did not go well. It began with the usual preliminaries: How old are you? Do you smoke? Do you drink? How tall are you? How much do you weigh? You know the drill. I answered “five-foot- eleven” and “240 pounds” re: the latter questions, whereupon the doctor consulted a faded dog- eared, circular height/weight chart and said, “According to this, you should weigh 168 pounds.” I couldn't believe it: I had been referred to a cardio guy who couldn't pass an eye test.

The BMI ratings had me pegged as being Obese, but I wasn't far off the Normal mark for a body- typefied mesomorph. I reacted to his outdated frame of reference: “Doctor, with all due respect, some people are thicker than others, and sometimes the thickness is above one's neck.” “Well,” he hrummphed, shooting me a withering look, “You might want to lose a few pounds.” I did, after exiting his office, never to be seen there again.

I have since added another vinaigrette to the lighter side of medicine, filed under “Affairs of the Heart,” near my go-around with the cardio guy. It was reported in a news piece some years ago that the decomposing body of a California doctor was found stuck in the chimney of her boyfriend’s house. Forty-nine-year-old Dr. Jacquelyn Kotarac apparently tried to force entry into the house, which the boyfriend had vacated to flee a potential confrontation over a deteriorating relationship. After failing to jimmy open the door with a shovel, she used a ladder to mount the roof, removed the chimney cap and climbed in feet first. She was reported missing, and the house-sitter made a gruesome discovery two days later when she went to feed the fish.

So applying the notion of doctor’s advising patients regarding all and sundry in life, here ya go - Want to drop in on the boyfriend? Talk to your doctor. Meanwhile, if the chimney incident had occurred during a viral pandemic, and I were handling the story as an editor, the headline writer gods would have lit the way for this one: “Doctor Making House Call Victim Of Flue Season.”

One hopes that MDs occasionally see themselves as patients and recommend heavy doses of laughter, the best medicine. If they can't ascribe to the prescription, here's my advice: Talk to a doctor.

Postscription My family physician, Dr. Shlomo Litwin, is retiring on Dec. 31, 2020, leaving the patient to wonder: how does one adequately thank someone who saved his life on their first encounter and continued doing it every visit over three decades? My blood pressure reading during our initial meeting on April 11, 1991, registered 200/100 mm Hg, prompting Dr. Litwin to remark on the dire situation: I was a “walking time bomb.” He also suggested we take steps to keep me around “to see the grandchildren,” of which there were none at the time. ~ 11 ~ Thirty years later, the “time bomb” has been defused. The doctor’s prescribed meds concoctions serve to keep my numbers in the 120/60 mm Hg range. Thanks to him, I am very much alive to see the grandchildren, of which there are now three. He often forgoes strapping on the cuff after asking me the usual question initiating each visit – “How have you been?” – to plumb the depths of my condition between the ears.

Not only is Dr. Litwin a medical practitioner, he’s also a university-trained addictions counsellor. Since I stopped drinking 13 years ago, I get a two-for-one deal, with mental issues often dominating the scheduled appointments.

Dr. Litwin will be missed,, and I plan to needle him in December with a framed copy of the above Bucket List essay – as well as a bottle of fine wine – after the doc’s last shot at practising medicine on a truly grateful patient.

Contributions to Nordic News

We appreciate receiving your articles and news to include in the Nordic News. Please email them to the editor, Hilde Huus, at [email protected]

Canadian Nordic Society Co-ordinates

Our website is www.canadiannordicsociety.com, and you can contact us by email at [email protected]. The CNS council list, including email addresses and phone numbers, is available at: http://www.canadiannordicsociety.com/council.html And the CNS has its own, very active, Facebook page.

Join CNS or Renew your Membership

September 1 is the beginning of a New Membership Year. You can join CNS or renew your membership online, by mail, or in person. We encourage you to pay online using PayPal. This is the quickest and most efficient method. If you prefer, you can pay in person when you attend one of our luncheons or speaker events. Please speak to any one of our Council members.

Online To pay online, go to the CNS website (http://www.canadiannordicsociety.com/join-cns.html) and complete the membership form. By mail Please print and complete the membership form below, enclose a cheque payable to the Canadian Nordic Society and mail to: Canadian Nordic Society 240 Sparks Street Box 55023 Ottawa, ON K1P 1A1

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Canadian Nordic Society

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