Celebrating July 4th, Chicago-style

On June 29, 2012, in Natalia, by Sweden
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Under the brilliant sunshine, our wonderful Embassy community came together yesterday afternoon to celebrate the Fourth of July. It was a day filled with warm laughter, deep pride and a real sense of family, even among a crowd that reached 600! Watching my husband, the Ambassador, walk tall and proud alongside our U.S. Marines in full garb as they presented the colors of the flag was an incredibly moving moment that will always symbolize American pride and values of liberty for me. The theme of our event was “Sweet Home Chicago” and we filled the Ambassadorial residence with all things associated with the “windy city” including a personal video message from Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel honoring American Independence Day and the strong imprint Swedish immigrants have had on the city. You can see the video here.

The story of Chicago and its proud citizens has always symbolized the story of the American dream to me. Coming to America carried with it a promise of opportunity, of hope and the freedom to be yourself and be embraced for your individuality, and that is what the celebration of the Fourth of July is all about.

Like many Chicagoans, I am the daughter of immigrants. Growing up, our family always made July 4th a huge celebration. I remember neighborhood barbecues where Mexican-Americans, Indian-Americans and Polish-Americans would share beers and hot dogs, and tell the story of their American dream. These stories would often involve incredible early hardships, followed by hard work and success. I often remember hearing the words, “only in America could I have given my children this kind of life.” It was a special source of pride to have my mother present at this event to honor the sacrifices she made as someone who come to America with nothing and gave me everything.

In order to convey the Chicago narrative, we turned each room in the residence into a specific element that makes Chicago unique. We had ethnic foods as part of the iconic “Taste of Chicago celebration that honors the multi-cultural make-up of the city, Chicago art, jazz music and architecture through an expansive sun-drenched skyline and the “Chicago bean” made of 5,000 flowers. A 1920s Chicago “Speakeasy” filled the formal dining room, and Chicago history enveloped our library displaying a timeline celebrating Chicago’s 175th birthday and facts on decades of global immigration into the city.

And of course, we celebrated Chicago Sports in our “Wrigleyville Sports Bar” room with special memorabilia from the White Sox, Chicago Bears, Chicago Bulls and Chicago Black Hawks.

The entire event was a great success and lasted far into the early evening as both Swedes and Americans shared stories about family, friends and of course, their love of Chicago! Mark and I were so personally honored by the creativity and hard work the entire Embassy community put in to make our vision of Chicago a reality. Thank you U.S. Embassy Stockholm for your support and friendship, this is a Fourth of July memory we will carry with us for the rest of our lives!

 

An American State and the US Embassy Working Together to Build American Jobs

On June 21, 2012, in Mark, by Ambassador Brzezinski
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From left to right: Sweden’s Ambassador to the USA Jonas Hafström, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell and US Ambassador to Sweden Mark Brzezinski. US Ambassador to Sweden Mark Brzezinski joins Sweden’s Ambassador to the USA Jonas Hafstrom in welcoming Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell to Sweden to promote trade and commerce.

 

President Obama and Secretary Clinton have been clear:  Economic Statecraft and commercial diplomacy are a priority for every section in our Embassy.  The overlay between the commercial context and the strategic context has never been closer.  It’s about building jobs and conveying American values.  Every single job we create is a step in the right direction.  This is why US Embassy Stockholm is so pleased to welcome Governor of Virginia Bob McDonnell to Sweden.

Ambassador Brzezinski and Governor McDonnell at the US Embassy reception for American and Swedish business leaders.

An American state’s CEO can be a deal closer, can convey better than most the unique combination that a state can offer in terms of infrastructure, tax benefits, public education and other qualities can combine to create a perfect opportunity for a Swedish investment in America.

 

Swedish Ambassador to the United States Jonas Hafström flew in for the Governor’s visit, and the Swedish Embassy in Washington collaborated in a highly effective fashion to make the case for Swedish investments in the United States.

US Embassy Stockholm’s commercial section (led by the able Frank Carrico) worked for months with the State of Virginia’s Economic Development office to develop a program whereby the Governor, his Secretary of Agriculture, and the state’s office for travel and tourism could meet with Swedish executives in banking, building and construction, infrastructure, agriculture (from wine to wood pellets), aerospace and defense, truck vehicles, industrial parts, logistics management, offshore windmills, biotech equipment, legal and accounting services, and travel and tourism operators to make a strong case for an investment in America. Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) in The Hague, along with AmCham Sweden and SACC-USA, also helped pull in decision-making executives with strong interest in Virginia. Very important for the Governor’s visit was the work of our Embassy Public Affairs Section in setting up an interview with Dagens Industri, the Wall Street Journal of Sweden. Results from the visit will be followed carefully by Embassy Stockholm.

With Virginia’s Finest: Ambassador stands with Sergeant Chris Clark (left) and Master Trooper Dave Johnson (right), both with the Virginia State Police Executive Protective Unit

Governor McDonnell and the First Lady of Virginia Maureen McDonnell met with business titans in Stockholm, including Jacob Wallenberg, a distant cousin of the famous Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg (who chose not to be indifferent during World  War II and saved thousands of Hungarian Jews).

The Governor also travelled to Western Sweden to the city of Gothenberg, where he met with Regional Governor Lars Bäckström and the Volvo Group CEO Olof Persson.

Building jobs and economic growth is a full time job – I was very pleased our Embassy’s Foreign Commercial Service (FCS) section worked so well with the Governor’s office and the Swedish Embassy in Washington to ferret out business leads.  We live in a globally interdependent economy, and building jobs and trade between countries can be advanced ably by state governors.

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Speaking to Microsoft’s Women’s Network

On June 18, 2012, in Natalia, by Ambassador Brzezinski
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Mrs. Brzezinski and Per Adolfsson, VP for Microsoft Sweden

How do we as professional women gain the confidence necessary to speak up for ourselves in the workplace? What is the best way to break down staid gender attitudes and assert oneself as a business leader?  How do we balance being the “perfect” woman who does it all with being happy and effective?

These are just a few of the questions I discussed with a group of talented women when I spoke to Microsoft’s women’s network on Friday. When I first entered the modern, spacious offices— which are now under construction to create a more decentralized, open workspace where all levels and departments sit together with no fixed desks and no “corner office”— I was greeted with a mother on maternity leave and her baby excitedly waiting for my speech. I knew then, it was going to be a great afternoon.

The group ranged from women in their 20s to their 60s, which lent to a rich breadth of personal stories describing the challenges for women 30 years ago compared to the challenges of today and how to overcome them.

One senior level manager described trying to be the perfect mother, wife, hostess and professional which eventually exhausted her and caused her to become profoundly ill. Finally, she realized perfection is impossible.

While another young women described her first meeting as a project leader: It was 13 people, 12 men and her. Of course everyone assumed she was an intern or secretary so they all presented before her without asking her if she had anything to say. When the 12 were finished they opened their iP

hones and tuned out. Then she stood up, asserted that she was the project manager and their superior, and they better listen up. That got their attention, she said.

The assertive and confident nature of Millennial women—those born after 1980— like the one I mention here, gives me so much hope that the young generation will force the workplace to change. This is the first generation to boldly assert that they refuse to just be someone’s wife. Millennials want to be mothers but want that identifying quality to be one of many comprising a multidimensional identity of woman, professional and social influencer.

The key to cultivating young women is mentorship and role models. Private companies like Microsoft are leading the way in this through programs like “Digigirlz”, which creates a summer camp at Microsoft’s offices for girls graduating grade school to promote their interests in IT and science. Microsoft also allows for very flexible work hours to aid both men and women in achieving work-life balance.

The generous and well-organized system of childcare and maternity care in Sweden coupled with the values of openness, diversity and mentorship that American companies bring is a great combination for empowering women, according to one of Microsoft’s senior managers.

As a conclusion, I shared with the group a few things I found to be helpful to me as a young woman. The first is to proactively seek out mentors. Many young women work hard and hope that a senior female will notice them and begin to mentor them, but actually I have found it is the other way around. Second, don’t be afraid to embrace women’s issues and be vocal about promoting women. Finally, always speak up. How many times have you had a great idea that you were afraid to bring up in a staff meeting? Or more importantly, why are women so scared to ask for a promotion or pay raise?

I think ultimately we all need to stop worrying who is judging us in the boardroom or as a mother, who does or does not like us and just go for it and maximize our potential because women have a great deal to offer the world.

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Learning from REACT

On June 12, 2012, in Mark, by Sweden
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Environment Minister LEna Ek, HRH Crown Princess Victoria, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton

As an environmentalist, it pleases me greatly that the Obama Administration has made clean energy one of its top-priorities. This was epitomized during Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s visit when she addressed climate change at an event together with the Swedish Environment Minister, Lena Ek at the Museum of Photography in Stockholm.

Last week I invited four great young minds to the Embassy who recently returned to Sweden after spending two weeks in the United States. These graduate students each visited a different city under a program that we launched under the Swedish American Green Alliance called REACT U.S., or Research on Environmental Action and Clean Tech in U.S. Cities.

I was pleased to hear the students confirm that real change on sustainability mainly occurs bottom-up. That is U.S. cities are leading the charge, often with support of the Federal Government, in deploying green solutions.

Calle Österlin from Stockholm University conveyed to me that strong community involvement in Portland, OR has been key in making the city one of the most environmentally friendly in the United States. Although Sweden is ahead when it comes to district heating and waste-to-energy, Portland can offer a number of green solutions to Sweden.

Portland recently launched a private car pool allowing car owners to rent another person’s car. The city has also launched an initiate named “In My Backyard” that enables people and financiers to donate money to local renewable energy projects.

Sebastian Röstberg, a student at Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, who visited Portsmouth, NH, also witnessed the strong grassroots movement pushing policymakers into “thinking green.” Sebastian raised an interesting point saying that municipalities in Sweden tend to have greater clout when it comes to environment issues in regards to U.S. counterparts. This leaves a much greater role of the private sector. He mentioned the shoe manufacturer Timberland as a good example. The company is looking at installing an electric vehicle charging pool at its office.

The city of Minneapolis, Minnesta hosted Linda Armyr.  She even appeared on local TV in Minneapolis to talk about her experiences. She said she was surprised to see an extensive web of bicycle lanes in the city and was impressed how carefully Minneapolis was keeping an eye on how it was doing on living up to the environmental goals that the City Council had established.

Finally, KTH student Linda Elonsson spent two weeks in Boulder, CO. When she arrived the city was in the midst of debating a new tax on plastic bags. This is a trend we are seeing around the United States. Californian cities Los Angeles and San Jose have taken this one step further and entirely banned plastic bags. Linda Elonsson cited this as an example how many decisions that are taken nationally in Sweden are taken locally in the U.S.

I really believe that people-to-people exchanges are the best way to learn about and from each other.  Listening to the students brought that point home to me.  We are looking at ways to continue and hopefully expand REACT.   Here is a link to interviews with the students I conducted after our meeting.



 

Secretary Clinton’s Historic Visit to Sweden

On June 7, 2012, in Mark, by Ambassador Brzezinski
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Secretary of State Clinton being introduced to Embassy staff by Ambassador and Mrs. Brzezinski

Natalia and I have been in Sweden for less than seven months, but I honestly can not think of any other period of time in my life more packed with excitement than this first half-year in Stockholm.  We have had the time of our lives, and literally every day has been unforgettable.   But just when I thought it could not possibly get any better…the Secretary of State comes to visit!  What an incredible honor – and what an amazing recognition of the importance of our friendship with Sweden, and the high value our most important leaders place on this relationship.  This was the first visit to Sweden in more than 30 years by a U.S. Secretary of State, purely for the purpose of enhancing, deepening, and honoring the relationship between our two countries. And that’s what made it historic.

Swedish-American relations have never been stronger or warmer.  Literally as the Secretary landed on the coldest day in Sweden in decades, the warmth of Foreign Minister Bildt and his wife ,who joined Natalia and I in greeting the Secretary on the wet tarmac, was palpable and set the tone for the entire visit.
Sweden is in the very front ranks with us in direct engagement with the immediate global problems we all confront. Our Swedish hosts were both honored and very pleased the Secretary travelled to Stockholm. They welcomed Secretary Clinton with the same enthusiasm that the staff and families of US Embassy Stockholm did. We are so proud of our Secretary of State, and we are proud of the American – Swedish relationship which her visit deepened and honored.

A Powerful Global Partnership Based on Shared Values

As Secretary Clinton said, Sweden is – and has long been – one of America’s top partners and one of our oldest friends.  Importantly, Sweden brings its diplomatic heft and its development expertise to nearly every corner of the globe.  When it comes to global priorities, whether it is Afghanistan, Iran, counter-terrorism, global economic reform, humanitarian assistance, the Swedes are right by our side.  It is a relationship based on shared and deeply cherished values, values which we and Sweden are both committed to protecting.

At the recent NATO Summit in Chicago, the U.S. warmly welcomed Sweden as one of NATO’s strongest partners, standing with us in Afghanistan as we begin the transition to full Afghan responsibility for security by 2014, as well as working for the betterment of the Afghan people into the future.  In addition, Sweden offered NATO the use of its Nordic Center for Gender in Military Operations, which further demonstrates the strong and positive relationship between Sweden and NATO.  Secretary Clinton recognized this important offer in her remarks in Stockholm with the Swedish Prime Minister Frederick Reinfeldt and Foreign Minister Carl Bildt.

Working Together To Keep The Internet Free

The Secretary also noted the close cooperation we share with the Swedes when it comes to protecting Internet Freedom.  She applauded Sweden’s leadership on Internet Freedom issues, stressing that those rights belong in the Internet as much as they do in the “real” world.  She also commended our Embassy for maximizing our social media platforms, and in particular for our our work in reaching out to Swedish bloggers.  As we all know, Foreign Minister Carl Bildt is a prolific blogger himself.  So when he

complimented our embassy’s use of social media as a model for his own ministry to follow, it was high praise indeed! And when it comes to all of the large challenges that know no boundaries, such as climate change, or gender equality, or Internet freedom, it is true that Sweden is not just on the front lines, but leading.  And I am greatly appreciative for all of that work, and look forward to enhancing it in the months and years ahead.

Dealing With Climate Change Together

Personally, I’m delighted that Secretary Clinton also chose to focus on climate and the environment during her visit. Sweden and the U.S. have a strong partnership in this area — both countries are initiators of a global coalition to address short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs). Secretary Clinton joined Sweden’s Environment Minister Lena Ek and H.R.H. Crown Princess Victoria at an event launching the coalition’s global awareness-raising efforts, and in her remarks she said: “Few people actually know about the impact we could have on global warming if we aggressively target short-lived climate pollutants.  And fewer still know that many cost-effective solutions already exist and are just waiting to be broadly implemented.”

To bolster the efforts led by Sweden and the U.S. to raise awareness about SLCPs, Secretary Clinton announced a global contest to find the most creative ideas for raising awareness of short-lived climate pollutants and the work that must be done to stop them. You can find details on the contest at www.unep.org/ccac.

It was so terrific to have the Secretary visit Stockholm and to spend some time with our Embassy team and their families.  Our Meet and Greet with Embassy staff and families was warm and uplifting, and reflected the respect and admiration our Secretary of State has for public service.  That she took time for photos with our Marines, our Embassy’s kids and all of us will long be remembered.  As the father of a young daughter with a wife joining me in a commitment to women’s empowerment, it was inspiring to have Secretary Clinton visit Sweden, as she is a global leader on this and many other issues.  In Sweden she finds a willing and capable partner which shares our values, as Sweden’s government today has more women ministers than men, including a female Minister of Defense.  Tack så mycket (“Thank you so much” in Swedish) Madame Secretary!!!!

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Global Symposium on Women’s Entrepreneurship

On June 1, 2012, in Natalia, by Ambassador Brzezinski
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(From left to right) United Arab Emirates Ambassador to Sweden Sheikha Najla Alqassimi, Professor Mary Barrett from the University of Wollonkong, K. Shelly Porges, Senior Advisor leading the State Department’s Global Women’s Initiative and Mrs. Natalia Brzezinski

This morning I had the privilege of moderating a fascinating panel on women’s entrepreneurship. The dynamic speakers included K. Shelly Porges, Senior Advisor leading the State Department’s Global Women’s Initiative, the United Arab Emirates Ambassador to Sweden Sheikha Najla Alqassimi, and Professor Mary Barrett from the University of Wollonkong.

The global symposium was organized by the Swedish non-profit organization, ESBRI, and served as the inaugural event for the coming year’s work aimed at creating a global knowledge and action network for enhancing women’s entrepreneurship with a theme of women’s entrepreneurship as both an economic force and a societal force to change society and contribute to sustainable growth.

Secretary Clinton has said: “talent is universal, opportunity is not.” This is the guiding principle behind the Global Women’s Business Initiative and a way of leveling the playing field to create opportunity for women around the world in entrepreneurship. This office utilizes policy and public-private partnerships to educate women on how to start a business, create programs to monitor their progress and facilitate support networks. See more information on the Global Entrepreneurship Program here.

The theme of the panel was deciphering a global outlook on different forms of entrepreneurship occurring around the world and how to maximize that potential. Cultural norms are critical to implementing these policies, and the challenges that women face in the Arab world are incredibly different that those in Africa or Australia. This is why having such a disparate group of women provided a very rich context for those of us listening. I found it fascinating hearing Ambassador Alqassimi discuss the burgeoning movement toward enterprise by middle class women with a lifetime’s worth of meticulous savings who want to join the marketplace, or the young generation of Emirati women who are increasingly more educated than me and craving a professional life. Professor Barrett’s assessments of Australia having equal numbers of men and women participating in entrepreneurship were also eye-opening.

However, one universal problem seemed to be a lack of confidence among women in every nation. According to statistics from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2010 Women’s Report less than half–47.7 percent–of women believe they are capable of starting a business, while well over half–62.1 percent–of men believe they are capable. One thing is crystal clear: if you don’t believe in yourself and your own ideas, no one else will.

It is essential to provide women with role models who can describe their varied journeys to success and show other women that their dreams too can become reality. I passionately believe this is the moment for women to finally break through the glass ceiling, partly because of the incredible global leadership promoting this issue by women like Secretary Hillary Clinton, but also because people, in particular the young generation, are sick of the “old way of doing business” and are demanding equal opportunities for all.

The full participation of women in the global economy is vital to prosperity, political stability and sustainable development. With female leaders like the ones mentioned in this blog, as well as male leaders such as Magnus Aronsson, the President of ESBRI, I am confident the new generation will be the women’s generation.

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