Materials, destinations and economics

I just had two very inspiring and informative days. Yesterday we got a visit at Nässjö Träcentrum, the school where I teach, from Materialbiblioteket (The Library of materials in English). Björn Florman showed us exciting new materials and talked about the future trends. He had brought samples of plastics, fibres, fabrics, composites or various metals, and my students had the chance to be inspired and come up with creative thoughts and ideas for new applications. If you are in Stockholm, a visit to Materialbiblioteket is to recommend, situated in the same building as Konstfack at Telefonplan.

And today, I participated on Regiondagarna 2011 – a conference focusing on regional questions and development of the trade and industry. First I heard Karin Voltaire, representing Svenska Turistföreningen – the Swedish Association for Tourism. She presented the new Strategies for developing the Swedish Tourism Industry. I have heard and read a lot of it before, but I got more information and understanding now. Also there was a very good  speech from Cecilia Hermansson, senior economist at Swedbank. Sweden has managed to come out strong from the financial crisis and we are a role model for other countries. Regiondagarna was held in my own hometown Västervik at the beautiful environment at Gränsö Slott.