Tromsø Library, Norway
Tromsø is in northern Norway, above the Arctic Circle. Tourists visit to see the Northern Lights, also known as the Aurora Borealis, a natural light show caused by electrically charged particles from the sun entering the earth’s atmosphere and hitting molecules of oxygen and nitrogen. The old section of the island of Tromsø features many picturesque wooden houses. The city’s main library shares a building with the city archives. It was originally built as a cinema in 1969, designed by the architect Gunnar Bøgeberg Haugen. It reopened as a four-story library in 2005. The concrete shell is 12 centimeters thick, inspired by the work of the Spanish-Mexican architect and structural engineer Félix Candela, who developed thin-shell designs in concrete. When the cinema interior was removed, the roof’s shell structure was retained for a striking effect. This redesign was handled by the Oslo-based architecture firm HRTB AS (Arkitektkontoret Hultberg, Resen, Throne-Holst og Boguslawski). Steel sculptures by the Norwegian artist Karl-Gustav Gjertsen decorate the library, with figures including “Flying Reindeer,” “The Reading Horse,” and “The Book Worm.”
Thailand and Norway
Last year, His Excellency Kjetil Paulsen, Norwegian ambassador to the Kingdom of Thailand noted on the Norwegian embassy website that in 2014
on 26 December, I participated in the commemoration of the victims of the Asian Tsunami in Khao Lak. This event was a strong reminder of the vulnerability this region has for natural disasters. After the event, I have visited national and regional institutions working on improving disaster preparedness. I have seen impressive progress, even if more needs to be done… Europe and Norway now face a large inflow of refugees from our neighbouring region and must deal with this challenge comprehensively. Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries must work together to address this region’s challenges. Southeast Asia faces large migration flows, but also security challenges, persistent transnational crime and various human rights violations. We are all part of one global community. In this age no country is protected from humanitarian crises, with the human suffering and despair this entails. Southeast Asia and Europe alike must plan for and contribute to resolving problems that occur on our doorstep, and even within our own house. This is because we have a common obligation and a common goal; to protect those who need protection. In our respective regions we must plan together. Furthermore, we must plan not only to respond but also to prevent.
The ambassador noted that bilateral trade between Thailand and Norway benefited from growth in export from Norway to Thailand of seafood. Import of fresh salmon grew 186% in one year. Norway’s Sovereign Wealth Fund, formerly the Petroleum Fund, has invested in Thailand, with 50% going to private companies and 50% to government bonds. About 150.000 Norwegian tourists visit Thailand annually. Around 8,000 Norwegians live in Pattaya, Phuket, Hua Hin and Chiang Mai. About 14,000 Thais, most of them married to a Norwegian, live in Norway. The Norwegian Embassy in Bangkok issued almost 10,000 visas for Thais to travel to Norway each year. Approximately 8,000 Norwegian retired people live in Thailand, spending about 2.5 billion Thai baht annually. In 2014, showing concern with social development, one of the ambassador’s first official visits was to Khlong Toei, a district in central Bangkok known for its slum area. It is bordered by the Chao Phraya River and has major market. A Norwegian non-governmental organization (NGO) supports a daycare center and kindergarten there for local children.
Food treats.
In January, the Thai-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce, Norwegian Seafood Council, and Norwegian Embassy hosted the annual Seafood under the Stars in the garden of Ambassador Paulsen’s residence. 260 guests attended. Norwegian seafood prepared by a Norwegian chef was on the menu, and Norwegian-Thai business cooperation, investments opportunities, the increasing trade and tourism were discussed. As its website indicates,
The Thai-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce was founded in 1996 with the aim of facilitating increased trade and investment between Thailand and Norway. It provides members with a forum to improve business conditions and opportunities as well as creating venues and channels for exchange and sharing of information. Current membership stands at around 90 premium and corporate members in addition to some 10 individuals. The chamber office is co-located with Innovation Norway’s representative office in Bangkok’s central business district and also works closely with the Royal Norwegian Embassy as part of Team Norway. Through its membership of the Joint Foreign Chambers of Commerce in Thailand, the chamber identifies challenges and opportunities in doing business in Thailand, seeking support in Thai Government policies to address such issues.
The same month, The Nation reported that Norway’s Telenor Group reaffirmed its longterm investment in Thailand, one of its top revenue contributors. Telenor Group is a Norwegian multinational telecommunications company based near Oslo. It is one of the world’s biggest mobile telecommunications companies. Mobile-telecom revenue from Thailand accounted for 14.4 per cent of its total revenue as of the end of 2015.
In 2014, it was reported that Norway saw Thailand as a gateway for its businesses and investments in Myanmar. That year’s annual “Norway-Asia Business Summit” in Bangkok was attended by 150 Norwegian businesspeople and officials, especially concerned with food and energy. The Norwegian fertilizer company Yara sells products to Thai farmers. The Norwegian paint company Jotun opened a subsidiary in Thailand in 1968 and around 300 Thai employees work in factories in Samut Prakarn and Chonburi. Norske Skogindustrier ASA (Norwegian Forest Industries) is a Norwegian pulp and paper company based in Oslo, owns Pan Asia Paper, the only newspaper mill in Thailand. Norske Skogindustrier ASA has been working in Thailand for almost two decades and employs over 200 people in its Bangkok office. Norway typically imports from Thailand iron, steel and machinery. Norway exports to Thailand fertilizers, seafood, and machinery, among other items. In 2014, Ambassador Paulsen reminded Horizon Thailand, an online publication of the Department of International Trade Promotion, Thai Ministry of Commerce, that Thailand and Norway have a long history of international exchange:
Thailand was one of the first countries that extended diplomatic relationship with Norway and recognized Norway as an independent state. The relationship … dates back to 1907, when King Chulalongkorn, Rama V first visited Norway.
The ambassador pointed to future possibilities for mutual collaboration in the area of energy and the environment:
Norway has a lot of environmental technologies, and we are looking to implement some of them in Thailand, which comply with the rules and regulations of the current government in order to better the environment for the Thai population.
(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons).