Country Profile Part 4: International Trade

International trade in Sweden

Sweden trades mainly with other Northern and Western European countries. A very small amount of trade occurs with non-European countries (mostly China, Russia, and the U.S.). Sweden's top trade partners are Norway and Germany.

Imports: machinery, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, motor vehicles, iron and steel; foodstuffs, clothing
Exports: machinery, motor vehicles, paper products, pulp and wood, iron and steel products, chemicals

Exchange rate: 6.58 Swedish kronor (SEK) per U.S. dollar (2013 est.)

Immigration and emigration: Most of the immigration to Sweden is due to refugees from the Middle East and Somalia. Refugees from other parts of the world, as well as immigration due to family reunification, have made up several "peaks" of immigration rates in Sweden for the past several decades. Other immigrants from other parts of Europe are not uncommon, but are not very significant. Emigration from Sweden is less common than immigration, and most emigrants move to other countries in the European Union, or to the United States.

International Relations: Sweden currently has no disputes with other countries, nor significant allies. Sweden's political strategy is to avoid making allies with any other country in peaceful times; this keeps them neutral. Aside from being part of the UN, EU, and other peacekeeping organizations, Sweden prefers to remain neutral in political situations and stay out of international conflict.

A Fez of the Heart Discussion Questions

a. Choose one passage from the reading that you found particularly interesting. Why was this interesting?

The passage which I found the most interesting was on page 3, in which Seal describes the census that is meant to take place in Pomegranate. I found this part interesting because of Seal's subtle wittiness. I did not understand this paragraph until I re-read it a couple of times. In the passage, Seal talks about the confusion when everyone was told to stay indoors, and how the census was a failure because the only thing which came out of it was a large number of babies born nine months later with the newly-popular first name meaning  "census."




b. Use examples from this reading to illustrate the interaction between economics and culture.

In the reading, the most notable event taking place which Seal describes in Pomegranate is the overpowering of economics over culture. The traditional culture of the Turkish people is rapidly lost as the presence of tourism becomes more abundant. Seal describes how the traditional clothing style becomes less modest until it is completely lax (which goes against traditional Turkish custom and most religion in the area). Additionally, the foods and activities which used to make up the cultural scene in Pomegranate all disintegrated into whatever the tourists wanted and were willing to pay for. Restaurants and shops did away with the cuisine and items that people from the area used to buy/enjoy, and replaced them with American goods (spelled horribly wrong) such as hamburgers and baseball caps and sunglasses. The music became almost completely Euro-pop, and even the language began to change as most people were expected to know English so that they could communicate with the American and European tourists. These examples and more in the reading show that the interaction between economics and culture is close: a shift in one often causes a shift in the other.




c. Beyond the specific example of this town in Turkey, what connections or conflicts do you see between tourism and economics or tourism and culture?

In other areas of the world it is easily noticeable that tourism usually dominates culture when the two go up against each other. From what I have seen in Italy, the landmarks which meant so much to Italian history are often places of worship: The Vatican, St. Francis' cathedral, St. Peter's Basilica, etc. (Of course there are other non-religion-affiliated historical sites as well). In these places, it is considered disrespectful to enter while wearing revealing clothing (such as shorts or skirts that do not cover the knees, blouses which expose the shoulders and collarbone, etc.) however at this point in time, the rules regarding this have become very relaxed because it is extremely difficult to get visiting American tourists to follow this dress code, and if they are asked to dress more modestly before entering a church, they are known to pitch a fit. In other places, there are similar issues in that tourism brings a country so much revenue that people abandon their old occupations (agriculture, crafting, smithing, etc) and slowly all of these specialized jobs are lost in favor of working at tourism sites. People who used to make a place unique because of their work have disappeared among the workers at souvenir shops, restaurants, amusement parks and tour guides.

Country Profile Part 3: Tourism

1. Importance of tourism:
           Only 2.9% of Sweden's GDP comes from tourism; however, 7.1% of household income was reported to be spent on domestic tourism in 2011. Sweden is listed as the world's 21st most visited country, with the main tourists coming from other parts of Scandinavia and Europe.

2. Major tourist attractions:
                Millesgården: An art museum and sculpture garden located in Stockholm.
                Drottningholm Palace and Theatre:  the private residence and opera house of the Swedish Royal Family, built in the 16th century (and restored in the 20th).
                Train rides throughout Sweden are available as popular tourist attractions: these allow visitors to witness Sweden's famous landscape and natural scenery. Some of these trains also pass through importand historical and cultural centers.
                 Many World Heritage Sites including old mining towns, ironworks, historical villages in the northern part of the country, as well as scenic locations along the ocean, lakes, and mountains.


3. National parks, wildlife, nature preserves:
             Sweden is known for its extraordinary wildlife; much of the country is covered in forests and lakes. Because of the relatively undisturbed nature, Sweden has little need to create nature parks or preserves. All that is required to see nature is to leave the city. Popular activities are canoeing along the canals and lakes, fishing, and hiking in the forested areas as well as the mountainous regions in the northwestern part of the country. Because of Sweden's location in the north, the sun only sets for very short periods of time during the summer. Because of this, summer nights are popular for outdoor activities. In the winter, many people enjoy ice-fishing and skating on the frozen lakes. Watching for the Aurora Borealis is also a popular pastime.

4. Important museums:
               The Vasa Museum: A maritime museum which holds the 17th century warship Vasa--the only fully (or nearly fully) intact ship of its size and time to be found and put on display. The Vasa Museum is documented as the most visited museum in Scandinavia.
                Icehotel: The Icehotel is exactly what it sounds like: a hotel made from ice and snow. It is rebuilt each winter near the northern city of Kiruna. Everything inside the hotel-- including chairs, beds, and the glasses used in the bar-- is made of ice, and sculpture artists are invited each year to carve their own additions and decorations. The building includes an ice restaurant as well as an ice chapel which is commonly used for weddings. All of the ice used in the building is taken in large blocks from the Torne river nearby. Guests of the Icehotel are given sleeping bags designed for arctic climates, as well as special instructions for staying the night. Each bed also comes topped with reindeer furs. A heated building stands next-door for guests to use the restroom, eat, and lounge in warmer spaces. The Aurora Borealis can commonly be seen from the hotel as it exists in the northern winters.

Country Profile Part 2: Economics

GDP: $393.8 billion (2013 est.)

GDP per capita: $40,900 (2013 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: 81.89 years

Poverty rate: N/A (0% of population below poverty line)

Literacy rate of total population: 99%

Unemployment rate: 8.1% (2013 est.)

Inflation rate for consumer prices: 0%

Natural resources:  iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, gold, silver, tungsten, uranium, arsenic, feldspar, timber, hydropower

Labor:
Labor force: 5.107 million (2013 est.)
agriculture: 1.1%
industry: 28.2%
services: 70.7% (2008 est.)

Capital: iron and steel, precision equipment (bearings, radio and telephone parts, armaments), wood pulp and paper products, processed foods, motor vehicles

Current Happenings in Sweden: 8 April 2014

This week, officials in Gothenburg have announced a trial run of the 6-hour workday. The city's municipal staff will begin to work under the new hours and if all goes well, the entire country can be expected to cut down the normal workday to six hours, without reducing pay. The reasoning behind this strategy is that providing full pay without the exhausting shifts is expected to "cut down on sick leave, boost efficiency, and ultimately save Sweden money" (Oliver Gee, The Local). Shortening workdays may help to boost workers' morale and productivity as it will cut down on the monotony of a regular "nine-to-five" job. We hope to see the results of this trial run within the next few weeks; if it is successful in Sweden, it is likely that more countries around the world will make the switch to shorten workday hours.

Country Profile Part One: Culture

1. Popular sports
The top three sports in Sweden (in terms of participants and spectators) are football (soccer), ice hockey, and bandy. Other sports such as handball, gymnastics, and swimming are mildly popular but are not as big nationwide. Football is the most popular, as it is in most of Europe. In wintertime ice hockey becomes a big spectator sport, and Sweden is known for having won many championships for their men's ice hockey team. Thirdly, Sweden is the leading bandy-playing country, and also the sport's country of origin. Sweden is also known for producing many talented athletes who go on to compete internationally in a variety of sports.

2. Music:
Traditionally, singing and vocals have been popular in Sweden and many members of the older generations belong to various choir groups. Some have gone on to become opera singers in the past. Most other traditional music is Swedish folk. As for current music, the pop/punk rock scene is very large, especially when it comes to indie pop/rock artists. The "indie feel" has been on a popularity rise in the teen/young adult music industry worldwide, and this goes especially for European countries whose younger citizens are known to express themselves through music and pop culture. Most notable in terms of music is the fact that Sweden has one of the world's largest death metal scenes. Worldwide, death metal, punk rock, hardcore and post-hardcore bands are looking to Sweden for inspiration as they dominate the modern genre.

3. Food:
Swedish food is mainly practical and plain, with meals consisting of potatoes, some meat, and vegetables. Much of the meat consumed is fish due to Sweden's location near the Atlantic Ocean and Baltic Sea. The two main food items Swedes are known for are coffee and cider, both of which are consumed in large amounts. The only country known to consume more coffee is Finland. Swedish cider is sweet and often replaces beer as the drink of social gatherings, due to the state control of alcohol.

4. Religion and Spirituality:
Historically, Sweden practiced Norse Paganism; in modern times the predominant religion is Christianity. About 65% of Swedish citizens are members of the Lutheran Church of Sweden, though only 4% attend worship service, and in a 2010 poll only 18% of Swedes claimed that they "believe there is a god." Some minority religions such as Judaism and Islam exist in the country, but are rare. Overall, religion and spirituality are not very important in Swedish culture as compared to other European countries.

5. National Holidays and Traditions:
Sweden's largest holidays are jul (Christmas with a Norse Pagan twist), New Year's, Epiphany, Easter, Ascension Day, International Workers' Day, Sweden's National Day (similar to our Independence day), Halloween, All Saints' Day, and Midsummer, which takes place on the summer solstice and the night preceding it. All Sundays are minor "holidays" though not as big a deal as the public holidays. Most celebrations in Sweden are associated with the changing of the seasons, and most "Christian" holidays have lost their religious aspects and have now become cultural tradition.

6. Popular TV and Movies:
Sweden has produced many popular titles, the most known worldwide being The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo trilogy, based off of novels by Steig Larsson. Other films such as Melancholia, The Hunt, Antichrist, and The Woman in Black have become widely known across the world. TV shows such as The Bridge and Wallander are quite popular, as are most American shows like Grey's Anatomy and some anime series.

7. Online News Sources:
The Local
Nordstjernan: Swedish News in English
Radio Sweden

8. Online Forums for Expatriates:
Expat Exchange
InterNations
Expats in Sweden
Expat Focus

9. Type of Government:
Sweden's government is a constitutional monarchy, with the prime minister leading the executive power of the government. The government and the parliament share legislative power, elected in a multi-party system. The most prominent parties are the Social Democratic party, the Moderate party, and the Centre party. The current prime minister is Fredrik Reinfeldt and the current king is Carl XVI Gustaf, whose daughter, princess Victoria, is heir.

Reinventing the Bazaar: Chapter 1

Discussion Questions:

Reinventing the Bazaar: Chapter 1

According to McMillan, there are several defining characteristics of a market, along with dozens of less conclusive traits (such as the presence of competition) which together form the idea of a market. The most important characteristic he highlights throughout the chapter is decision-making autonomy. This can be seen as the freedom of any party participating in a market transaction to veto the exchange at any time. The freedom of the consumer to decide to exchange elsewhere, with a different seller, and the freedom of the seller to choose what to sell, what price to ask for it, and in what manner to sell the item(s)--for example, in an online/virtual shop versus a physical trading location. McMillan discusses decision-making autonomy early in the chapter in order to provide the reader with the notion that without this key factor, markets would not be free, or true markets as we see them today. He states that even though participants in a market are limited by resources and rules of the market, "some choice, even if it is narrow, is usually better than none."

McMillan's statement about people's clashing opinions of markets rings very true for me, from what I've seen in my lifetime. The most prominent example that comes to my mind is the presence of communism throughout history. If no leader was afraid of decentralizing power and giving the freedom of trade to his/her people, we wouldn't see the differences in economic systems  that we often see today. The opposite is also true. Many people are so afraid of losing power to an over-controlling government that they do not want their leaders to have any power over their market. The difference in mindset here can be seen worldwide; in countries who boast markets with limited government intervention, and in countries whose government keeps tight control over the market and claims to keep problems such as unfair trade out of the picture. At this point in my educational journey, I don't know enough about either side to declare whether I personally lean one way or another, but I would say that rules are important in moderation, and that governments might be more respected if they offered guidance and suggestion rather than keeping control over the market like a playground supervisor. Elementary school playground supervisors often take away kids' opportunity to learn from their mistakes/experiences by telling them exactly what to play, where and when to play, and how to play. When everything is perfectly fair, perfectly controlled, and all possibilities of crises eliminated, I think that most of the learning opportunities are gone.

I personally don't have much knowledge of markets, but if I had to choose rules which I think would be important in a modern market, I would say that McMillan's "ordered brawl" metaphor makes a lot of sense in terms of allowing chaos to occur in small doses. I think that a market would need freedom and a loose enough control that people could learn from their own (and others') mistakes. But it would also need guidelines to prevent people from being taken advantage of. Without protection against manipulation, thievery, and other major problems, we would have a huge mess. I don't know exactly what these rules would state, but I do think it's important to eliminate issues in which someone has no choice but to give in to an unfair demand, or is taken advantage of in a situation not caused by his/her own ignorance.

Discussion:

"Why Did Human History Unfold Differently On Different Continents for the Last 13,000 Years?" by Jared Diamond

Diamond's major themes and key points were the factual reasons for differences in human development across the globe. Namely, Diamond discusses geographic and climactic differences on various continents, and the ways in which these pertain to the discrepancy in societal development on these respective continents. The areas of focus are early societies in Eurasia, the Americas, Africa, and Australia. The title of the article sums up the central point of the discussion; Diamond offers several possible answers to the question such as domestication ability, climate, land area/size, and disease spread, among others. We learn that the cause of differences in development patterns of societies worldwide was not difference in ability or IQ as it applies to race/ethnicity, but rather the unavoidable differences in the world's geography and environments. We see that humans have always tried to make the best of the environment/tools they were given, even though some were more challenging than others.

According to Diamond, the most important factor in determining a society's success is their location. If the location is rich with plants and animals, and has a climate which allows these to be domesticated, any society living there will be at an advantage. Domesticated plants and animals provide a reliable source of food, and large animals can help with tasks such as transportation and farm work. Diamond also discusses the fact that size and positioning of land is also important in determining success. Humans are social beings and accomplish more with teamwork than individually. If a society's location is on a large landmass, where it can connect with other communities, it will foster faster growth than an isolated society on, for example, a small island. Additionally, if the land is oriented east-to-west, the climate is likely to be relatively stable throughout, since climate changes are more dramatic latitudinally. Land which runs north-south is likely to have very different climactic regions which does not allow for much movement of plants and animals, since they require long-term adaptation to new environments.

The above ideas are reflected in today's economy as we notice the differences in developed vs. developing countries. Almost all developed countries are inhabited by people of Eurasian descent; this is due to the Eurasian continent having all of the aforementioned beneficial land characteristics. The primitive societies in Europe and Asia were well-equipped with a large, laterally-oriented continent, a temperate and steady climate, and wildlife which lent itself to domestication. Most developing countries are in places such as Africa and South America, which were not so predisposed to the development of human societies. Other lands which had unfortunate geography for societal growth (North America, Australia) most likely would contain similar developing societies had they not been dominated by our Eurasian ancestors long ago. The native peoples of these two continents have been almost completely eradicated, and the lands have been taken over by people who were farther advanced due to their fortunate starting locations.