The IYTT Celebrates 40 Years of the Hamrin Foundation

This past week, Urban Strandberg and I were invited to take part in the Hamrin Foundation’s 40-year jubilee in Jönköping, Sweden, the city the Hamrin Foundation calls home and has had a significant influence on, contributing to its universities, high schools, creative scene, and businesses. It was a wonderful celebration of the foundation’s four decades of supporting academia, industry, and culture.

IYTT was invited as a guest and participant, having the opportunity to speak on a panel discussing the state of democracy in the world. As a Youth Fellow, I represented IYTT on a panel alongside speakers Bo Petersson, professor of Political Science at Malmö University, and Gustaf Arrhenius, professor of Philosophy and director of the Institute for Future Studies in Stockholm, and moderated by Karin Hübinette, journalist and editorial manager at SVT.

Throughout the course of the day’s events, we heard journalists, academics, and business leaders speak on a variety of topics from the development of Sweden’s perception abroad and at home to the state of academia and engagement with the broader world.

For the final panel, I joined Bo Petersson and Gustaf Arrhenius to discuss the state of democracy. During the panel I imparted the important lessons from discussions I’ve had with other Youth Fellows during the annual conference this year in Washington, D.C. A key take away from the panel was the message that although the democracy is better off today than fifty years ago, if the foundational pillars of democracy, from equal civil rights to freedom of press, are not protected and constantly reinvigorated with the input of the people and particularly the youth, then democracy can quickly deteriorate even in countries where it have long since been established.

Today, we face unique circumstances that present new challenges to maintaining democracies. We must address the growing alliance of political power with a tech aristocracy that uses money and control of media platforms to influence politics. In the age of social media algorithms curating the narratives we are exposed to daily, we need to create more physical spaces for the free exchange of ideas, where we can hold proactive discussions. That is why IYTT’s work bringing youths into active engagement with democracy is so vital. Not only do Youth Fellows achieve a deeper understanding of democracy themselves, but through initiating projects, holding Open Chair Democracy Talks, collaborating during events like the World Youth Openness and Democracy Summit, and creating knowledge products like the Handbook for Innovative Democracy, IYTT reaches out to expand democratic consciousness in local communities.

The night concluded with joyous discussions over a delicious dinner. Thank you to the Hamrin Foundation for holding a wonderful event and continuing to enrich communities through its vital work.

A full look at the panel participants and more about the Hamrin Foundation can be found here.