Action

Having worked as a journalist most of my life, I have had the great pleasure of being able to ask anyone anything. This has made me very humble as to different life choices, ways of understanding the world and the impressive power we humans hold – each and every one of us. Lately I have also been fortunate enough to work closely with that, which is the foundation of our possibility to live freely – democracy. Here is a small collection of work-related events.

Some things I’ve been inolved in

Work on the Committee for a strong Democracy in Sweden drew to a close in spring 2022. On the 1st of June, we could present the Minster for Culture Jeanette Gustafsdotter with the results of our work as well as proposals on how to further strengthen democracy in Sweden.

Read the report here.

The cover of our report. Artist: Linnea Blixt.

From the English summary:
“Taken together, the Committee’s proposals contribute to the policy
objective of a living democracy that is sustainable and participatory, and in which opportunities for influence are equal. The proposals are expected to lead to increased knowledge of democracy among the population, better coordination between different democracy-promoting initiatives, a clearer analysis of democracy nationally and in different parts of the country, and attention being paid to challenges to democracy in Sweden. In the long run this could lead to more efficient work against the threats facing the democracy. It is also expected that more government agencies, with different points of departure and target groups, will carry out work that contributes to greater participation in democracy and equal opportunities for influence. Clarifying the democratic mandate of schools is an important part of this. Implementing the proposals will ensure that Swedish democracy remains strong.”

Conference on democracy
In March 2022, we arranged a conference on democracy at the Stockholm House of Culture & City Theatre. The day was filled to the brim with interesting conversations on a various range of democracy topics as well as dance, poetry and music. Six of the sessions we did are available through UR Play. Click here to find them!

At the Göteborg Book Fair 2021, our committée was partnering on the democracy theme. We arranged two talks: How to strengthen democracy and how the pandemic has put democracy to a test.

Helena Jonsson and Naima Mohammed on how to strengthen democracy at the Book Fair in Gothenburg.

Together with Stadsmuseet in Stockholm (Stockholm City Museum) and Riksbankens Jubileumsfond we arranged a series of talks on democracy in october 2020. The talks focused on freedom of demonstration, democratic space, voting rights and so on.
Five sessions with insightful guests can be found here.

Martin Rörby, Astrid Hasselroth, Jenny Björkman talking about democratic space.

Freedom of the press is one of the most important pillars of any democracy. That is why I was so happy to be able to organise these talks on press freedom and its challenges during times of corona and other imminent threats.

It was recorded by UR – where I used to work. Through UR, this important discussion can be used as a basis for teaching about freedom of the press in schools all around the country.

Click on the picture to watch the two programmes that came out of these discussions.

In combining my love for literature with my passion for listening experiences and education, I have produced some children’s books as radio programmes. “Jag håller om trädet när det blåser” by Inger Lindahl, and “Elmer Djurdoktor” by Ulf Stark, were both recorded with the actress Siri Fagerudd.

**Jag håller om trädet när det blåser**
**Elmer Djurdoktor**

I also had the privilege of producing a wonderful children’s book by Viveka Sjögren. Working with actor Jarmo Mäkinen was a true pleasure. The book is called “Om du skulle fråga Micha” (If you were to ask Micha) – and is a story about a young child fleeing war and discovering another reality.