Fourth day in Amsterdam. If I would need to name one thing why this city if amazing, it is its Spring. The whole city is blossoming - something that we will get only in like a month in Finland. It is clear that it is still my Second City.
I just facilitated a a great two-day meeting with TheStrangers, the advisory group of StrangerFestival consisting of young video makers. Above one of them, Nerimon, talking about what we do. After this weekend I am quite convinced that the festival will be awesome this year. The deadline for entries is 15 August but this year it is wise to upload early as one video is picked every month as a monthly winner and the maker is invited to Amsterdam.
A bit more about Amsterdam. Cycling around this city, it is easy to understand why people love it so much. I do too. Amsterdam is the best city in terms of doing things in human scale. I wish more cities could give you this amazing feeling that the city is open for you, it is there for you and it is playful.
Showing posts with label amsterdam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label amsterdam. Show all posts
Monday, April 20, 2009
Stranger´s Back
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Greener Across The Border
Today´s Forum Virium Hidden Treasure seminar showed the difficulty of international comparisons in policy debate. A presentation painted a picture of the Dutch innovation system and Innovation Platform as a smooth and efficient actor in fostering innovations. However, what was not mentioned was the heated discussion before the last Dutch parliamentary elections whether the entire organization should continue. It was largely seen as an inefficient bureaucratic failure. Alike what was not mentioned today at Vanha was the recent book by Frans Nauta, the first General Secretary of the Innovation Platform, in which he highly critically went through the setup and work of the body. Nauta, who is currently lecturing on innovation in Arnhem, left the office out of frustration quite quickly due to immense struggles with the government engine.
Before the last elections I did an article for Suomen Kuvalehti on the Dutch Innovation Platform as it was assembled following a Finnish example. Most of the interviewees then criticized the Innovation Platform for its broad agenda and the big publicity around its launch. Whereas in Finland the Science and Technology Council is not known by most people and is largely seen as a coordination body, in the Netherlands the government did a huge publicity stunt around its launch – i.e. it was doomed to fail in its delivery. As Joeri van den Steenhoven said in my interview for Suomen Kuvalehti then:”In Finland compromise means that people discuss, vote on the propositions and everyone lives with the result. In the Netherlands compromise means that we discuss and discuss, we split into numerous subcommittees and make an overall strategy so broad that everyone can keep on doing what they were already doing.” As someone on the coffee break rightly said in the Forum Virium seminar:”The problem with the Innovation Platform is that it has no money so it really cannot initiate much.”
I am all for international comparisons and learning from others. I also hope the Innovation Platform has learned from its start. I am also all for investment in innovation and R&D. But without a full picture of the international case, we end up making the wrong conclusions of it and therefore carry out our changes in false consciousness. But then again, I guess we have come full circle now in the Dutch-Finnish relations: some years ago van den Steenhoven´s and Nauta´s Kennisland was an active lobby in the Netherlands for learning from the Finnish model following Manuel Castells´ and Pekka Himanen´s work. Now we are presented in Helsinki the work of the Innovation Platform only to be followed by statements praising the leadership position of the Netherlands in investing in innovation. How did it go: what goes around, comes around.
Before the last elections I did an article for Suomen Kuvalehti on the Dutch Innovation Platform as it was assembled following a Finnish example. Most of the interviewees then criticized the Innovation Platform for its broad agenda and the big publicity around its launch. Whereas in Finland the Science and Technology Council is not known by most people and is largely seen as a coordination body, in the Netherlands the government did a huge publicity stunt around its launch – i.e. it was doomed to fail in its delivery. As Joeri van den Steenhoven said in my interview for Suomen Kuvalehti then:”In Finland compromise means that people discuss, vote on the propositions and everyone lives with the result. In the Netherlands compromise means that we discuss and discuss, we split into numerous subcommittees and make an overall strategy so broad that everyone can keep on doing what they were already doing.” As someone on the coffee break rightly said in the Forum Virium seminar:”The problem with the Innovation Platform is that it has no money so it really cannot initiate much.”
I am all for international comparisons and learning from others. I also hope the Innovation Platform has learned from its start. I am also all for investment in innovation and R&D. But without a full picture of the international case, we end up making the wrong conclusions of it and therefore carry out our changes in false consciousness. But then again, I guess we have come full circle now in the Dutch-Finnish relations: some years ago van den Steenhoven´s and Nauta´s Kennisland was an active lobby in the Netherlands for learning from the Finnish model following Manuel Castells´ and Pekka Himanen´s work. Now we are presented in Helsinki the work of the Innovation Platform only to be followed by statements praising the leadership position of the Netherlands in investing in innovation. How did it go: what goes around, comes around.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Coolest Damn Video Festival on the Planet
I love my job. I just really really love my job. It is maybe weird to make that statement 5 days before leaving it but this weekend it once again became very apparent: this work is amazing as you get to work with top notch people. This weekend also made concrete all those books about collaborative creativity I have read lately: together we make better ideas.
We started StrangerFestival around two years ago on a couple of PowerPoint slides. Along the way came the visuals, the partner organisations, first videos uploaded on the site, first marketing material, more partners, more videos, an international festival and loads more. It is already a great project which has given loads of people their first time on a plane, their first video-making experience and their first international friendship.
This weekend we had a meeting first with our European partners and continued right away with the first meeting of TheStrangers, a group of young video makers acting as our expert group. Both of these meetings made it clear: this project belongs now to more people. It is not just our project. It is a bloody fab feeling when you start hearing more and more people using the word ´we´.
I am happy I get to continue in the project also next year, although in another role. Having these meetings in the beginning of the year would have made sense but then again TheStrangers group was really possible only after the first entries. It is fantastic that we can now learn from 2008 and make things better in 2009.
The people and issues we work with are amazing. Just a testing session on the website generated already a list of small things that would help make joining easier. You get to see some of them in the coming months. We came up with ideas for great workshops, created new categories, wrote down lists of possible jury members, brainstormed on prizes and even made some videos. TheStrangers showed us in the team and to each other already several videos which we had not seen before but which were winning material. It has now been proved that having young video makers owning the project with the team brings in great content. It is therefore clear now that in 2009 StrangerFestival will be even more special, even more fun and even more meaningful. I cannot wait.
Here are some of their findings:
Beautiful childhood memory from Slovakia
Role of video making in one´s life
How making a video important to you always does not need to be about you
We started StrangerFestival around two years ago on a couple of PowerPoint slides. Along the way came the visuals, the partner organisations, first videos uploaded on the site, first marketing material, more partners, more videos, an international festival and loads more. It is already a great project which has given loads of people their first time on a plane, their first video-making experience and their first international friendship.
This weekend we had a meeting first with our European partners and continued right away with the first meeting of TheStrangers, a group of young video makers acting as our expert group. Both of these meetings made it clear: this project belongs now to more people. It is not just our project. It is a bloody fab feeling when you start hearing more and more people using the word ´we´.
I am happy I get to continue in the project also next year, although in another role. Having these meetings in the beginning of the year would have made sense but then again TheStrangers group was really possible only after the first entries. It is fantastic that we can now learn from 2008 and make things better in 2009.
The people and issues we work with are amazing. Just a testing session on the website generated already a list of small things that would help make joining easier. You get to see some of them in the coming months. We came up with ideas for great workshops, created new categories, wrote down lists of possible jury members, brainstormed on prizes and even made some videos. TheStrangers showed us in the team and to each other already several videos which we had not seen before but which were winning material. It has now been proved that having young video makers owning the project with the team brings in great content. It is therefore clear now that in 2009 StrangerFestival will be even more special, even more fun and even more meaningful. I cannot wait.
Here are some of their findings:
Beautiful childhood memory from Slovakia
Role of video making in one´s life
How making a video important to you always does not need to be about you
Thursday, October 09, 2008
Going all ARTE
Just found this video from YouTube by googling StrangerFestival where they interviewed both me and the maker of one of my favourite videos from the competition. Should have worked on my German a bit more in school.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Making Sense
First day of networking and learning at PICNIC08 done. Got home at 22.00 after a spontaneous dinner with corporate trend analysts. Great stuff and discussions on how to create governments able to recognise the issues that matter to people. Basically the question was: why is a marketeer able to develop a working model that benefits product development, brand recognition and also profits the individuals taking part? Or more importantly, why governments are not able to do this? More surely to follow on that. As Charlie Leadbeater put it: why does it feel like governments are doing things to us when they claim they are doing things with or for us?
So what else did I grab from today?
- Google is not very good - some even said crap - in suggestings things to us that we were not aware that we are interested in (like for instance newspapers are)
- nearly all creativity requires collaboration but not all collaboration is creative
- "free form internet is a pure myth"
- Aaron Koblin's work on visualising data is amazing (see video above on visualising SMS sending in Amsterdam)
- internet platforms have corrupted the way we use the word friend and the meanings we give to it.
By the way: PICNIC is doing a huge mapping on trends. If you can think of one, let me know by giving a short explanation and an example and I will add it to the mapping exercise they are doing. One I saw added today was sharing rare music via YouTube.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Tale of Two Worlds
"Sir, we have two alternatives for you."
1. Exhausting, budgets, deadlines, Excel, "do we have this money or not", "this registration of hundreds of people really takes a lot of time". "I thought you were doing this", "shouldn´t we leave the office, it is like eight in the evening".
2. "I saw them, I saw them, I saw them on my way to work! The posters are everywhere! Can we just leave the office and go and take pictures of all StrangerFestival posters in Amsterdam!?", "I love these AudienceAward final videos! I can watch some of these like gazillion times.", "Yes, the Congolese video makers are coming!", "This MC performance will be sooooo cool!"
"So, are you ready to lock your options?"
"Yes, I think I will go for two."
"No hesitation there? Would you like to call someone or ask the audience?"
"No, let´s go for two."
1. Exhausting, budgets, deadlines, Excel, "do we have this money or not", "this registration of hundreds of people really takes a lot of time". "I thought you were doing this", "shouldn´t we leave the office, it is like eight in the evening".
2. "I saw them, I saw them, I saw them on my way to work! The posters are everywhere! Can we just leave the office and go and take pictures of all StrangerFestival posters in Amsterdam!?", "I love these AudienceAward final videos! I can watch some of these like gazillion times.", "Yes, the Congolese video makers are coming!", "This MC performance will be sooooo cool!"
"So, are you ready to lock your options?"
"Yes, I think I will go for two."
"No hesitation there? Would you like to call someone or ask the audience?"
"No, let´s go for two."
Thursday, May 08, 2008
Nice Conversation
There are very few things Europeans love as much as bashing Americans as shallow or simple. One often hears for instance people stressing how the British English is sooooo much more advanced than the American English. But you could also turn that argument around by pointing out the difference between a class society and an immigrant society but that was not the subject I wanted to dive into.
Even if the argument about the simple American language would be true, simple language is really not something reserved for Americans. As my Dutch keeps getting better, I notice more and more how the public language functions with a shockingly limited vocabulary. The most amusing thing is the word lekker that means something like alluring, enticing, tasty, tempting and can on a single commercial break refer to everything from a pasta sauce to an insurance policy. It also seems to be the default reaction to 90 % of situations in Dutch life.
Today on the train back to Amsterdam I was listening to the 20-something girls sitting next to me. I sincerely wanted to start counting how much they used words lekker and leuk (meaning something like nice). The flatness of the vocabulary was not unfamiliar to me after three years and listening to the discussion made me once again appreciate the richness of my native language concerning making up words and playing with words. Call me a melodramatic Eastern European angst-driven snob but everything should not be just fine and nice.
Even if the argument about the simple American language would be true, simple language is really not something reserved for Americans. As my Dutch keeps getting better, I notice more and more how the public language functions with a shockingly limited vocabulary. The most amusing thing is the word lekker that means something like alluring, enticing, tasty, tempting and can on a single commercial break refer to everything from a pasta sauce to an insurance policy. It also seems to be the default reaction to 90 % of situations in Dutch life.
Today on the train back to Amsterdam I was listening to the 20-something girls sitting next to me. I sincerely wanted to start counting how much they used words lekker and leuk (meaning something like nice). The flatness of the vocabulary was not unfamiliar to me after three years and listening to the discussion made me once again appreciate the richness of my native language concerning making up words and playing with words. Call me a melodramatic Eastern European angst-driven snob but everything should not be just fine and nice.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Sunny Jenkins
This was not how it was supposed to work. On Thursday I left the office energetic to prepare for the next day's evening with my team members. I had invited them over for casual dinner and drinks. My idea was also to use some of the evening for preparing for my lecture next Saturday in Geneva. After Friday I had planned an active Saturday of studying, shopping and so forth.
Well, as I got back from work on Thursday it was clear that the flu had caught me. And it came over like a flood. By the hour it only got worse and by the evening it was evident that the next day would be ruined. Before two I could not get up from bed as my head was pounding. I had to cancel the party planned a month back which sucked big time. In the end I ended up staying home also most of Saturday as I still felt relatively weak.
My weekend was however saved by two things: Professor Henry Jenkins and a sunny Sunday. Jenkins is MIT's Professor of Comparative Media Studies and writes phenomenally and in an entertaining manner on popular culture, fans, convergence of old and new media as well as media education. He has a critical but not cynical take on media, he admits being a fan of popular culture and he provides suggestions for improvements. I also like the fact that he often consciously looks at phenomena from the point of view of the viewer. His research on how Americans watch American Idol socially is awesome. Highly recommend his book Convergence Culture. Here I also need to thank Daniel and Celia for leading me to his literature.
The weather does not need explanation apart from pointing out that I am sure everyone knows how it feels when you get outside after being ill. Superman is back! Seriously, you feel reborn. I felt so energetic that we ended up discussing the European Dream for five hours on a terrace. It functioned as a good training camp for a debate in Stockholm on Thursday on the very existence of European culture.
Well, as I got back from work on Thursday it was clear that the flu had caught me. And it came over like a flood. By the hour it only got worse and by the evening it was evident that the next day would be ruined. Before two I could not get up from bed as my head was pounding. I had to cancel the party planned a month back which sucked big time. In the end I ended up staying home also most of Saturday as I still felt relatively weak.
My weekend was however saved by two things: Professor Henry Jenkins and a sunny Sunday. Jenkins is MIT's Professor of Comparative Media Studies and writes phenomenally and in an entertaining manner on popular culture, fans, convergence of old and new media as well as media education. He has a critical but not cynical take on media, he admits being a fan of popular culture and he provides suggestions for improvements. I also like the fact that he often consciously looks at phenomena from the point of view of the viewer. His research on how Americans watch American Idol socially is awesome. Highly recommend his book Convergence Culture. Here I also need to thank Daniel and Celia for leading me to his literature.
The weather does not need explanation apart from pointing out that I am sure everyone knows how it feels when you get outside after being ill. Superman is back! Seriously, you feel reborn. I felt so energetic that we ended up discussing the European Dream for five hours on a terrace. It functioned as a good training camp for a debate in Stockholm on Thursday on the very existence of European culture.
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Don't Give Me That Shit
One of the best parts of my work is meeting dedicated and inspiring people and organisations. This weekend I went to see a performance of our potential partner for StrangerFestival, the theatre company Made in da Shade. Ooh Shit is a play/performance by four girls focused on something highly important for them - friendship. The name Ooh Shit refers to the dramatic turn in the group of rowdy girls when one of them finds herself pregnant, not fully sure who is the father.
Made in da Shade's take on theatre is highly physical. The two productions I have seen now both mix dance, music and theatre. Yesterday's performance was due to its subject aggressive and loud down to the last movement. These were the girls I saw in real life in Nirit Peled's hip hop girl documentary Say My Name. These girls gained so much strength from their friendship that they felt no need to apologise for anything or to anyone.
The audience was very mixed both in terms of ethnicity and age. It was fantastic seeing how different people laughed at different things during the performance. Without falling too far into kitchen psychology, one saw parents of teenagers laughing uncomfortably and teenager girls identifying with the empowered and aggressive nature of the expressions on stage.
In projects that bring amateurs into the field of culture, one always has the balancing act between product and process. This time the girls really did a superb job in making the performance their own. But I must say still that my heart warmed up the most when I looked at their faces when the performance ended, the lights went on and the audience was clapping wildly. The joy on their faces is something you very seldom see on professionals' faces.
Made in da Shade's take on theatre is highly physical. The two productions I have seen now both mix dance, music and theatre. Yesterday's performance was due to its subject aggressive and loud down to the last movement. These were the girls I saw in real life in Nirit Peled's hip hop girl documentary Say My Name. These girls gained so much strength from their friendship that they felt no need to apologise for anything or to anyone.
The audience was very mixed both in terms of ethnicity and age. It was fantastic seeing how different people laughed at different things during the performance. Without falling too far into kitchen psychology, one saw parents of teenagers laughing uncomfortably and teenager girls identifying with the empowered and aggressive nature of the expressions on stage.
In projects that bring amateurs into the field of culture, one always has the balancing act between product and process. This time the girls really did a superb job in making the performance their own. But I must say still that my heart warmed up the most when I looked at their faces when the performance ended, the lights went on and the audience was clapping wildly. The joy on their faces is something you very seldom see on professionals' faces.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
New Folk Culture
StrangerFestival is proceeding. First videos are coming in and the workshops are currently going on in Slovakia and Finland. Romania has already finished their first two workshops, so has AT5 in Amsterdam. And the quality of the videos is brilliant which makes me extremely happy. This video is a good example of a clear message. Although it has been fascinating to show this in different settings and realise that people read different things to it. What do you think the maker is saying?
More videos available at www.strangerfestival.com.
More of this analysis will be done in the research we have commissioned the British think tank Demos to do. They are openly developing their project online which I think is a great way of keeing the ball rolling.
Thursday, December 06, 2007
From somewhere
It is 7 minutes past midnight, I sit in a hotel room in Berlin and in 53 minutes (local time), my home country starts its celebration for the 90th anniversary of independence. What does this all mean - to me?
Two days ago a Finnish friend of mine was visiting Amsterdam and we sat in a cafe with a group of friends when the discussion shifted to nations and nationalities. One of the people around the table described his feelings a fortnight ago when he received his Dutch nationality and passport. He said that he felt confused being rewarded something like that rather quickly and being surrounded by Turkish and Moroccan old ladies who had been in the Netherlands for 30 years and just now got their full rights. My friend described how tired the women look, nearly like they had already given up hope. Nationaly can be a mixed set of feelings.
I mentioned in that discussion that I nowadays introduce myself as being from Amsterdam. I would not say that I am from the Netherlands but from Amsterdam. At the same I do feel Finnish. One could easily go into the blah-blah on the death of nation states and state that passport is just a document. But at least for me giving up my Finnish passport for instance for a Dutch one would mean losing something that has always been there. The Finnish passport is a sign of my roots, it shows my soil.
Usually the Finnish independence day speeches stress the struggle the nation went through defending its independence 1939-1945 and the high price paid for it. I have this experience even in my immediate family - when Finland lost the Carelia region, my then 17-year-old grandmother was amongst the half a million people who needed a home when the border shifted West.
My Finnish identity has never been contested. I was given it and no one has tried to take it away from me. I have lived my whole life with a safety net provided by my family and my country. It has allowed my to jump because I have always known that there are mechanisms and people to catch me.
What does being Finnish then mean to me? It is not a flag, it is not a winned battle. I and I think most of my generation find it difficult to grasp these concepts that define the nations and the EU for the baby boomers. For me being Finnish means a sincerely loving family, it means being comfortable in nature, it means a language that allows one to invent words that others understand, it means being comfortable with nudity, it means appreciating the simple, it means taking care of the smallest and the weakest, it means being able to leave your bag on the chair when you go to the toilet in a cafe, it means school lunches, it means not cheating nor lying and it means giving space.
My Finnishness does not require living within its borders. The things listed above are not mentioned in my passport or in the constitution. That is why my sense of being Finnish does not contradict with being from Amsterdam.
Happy birthday, homies.
Two days ago a Finnish friend of mine was visiting Amsterdam and we sat in a cafe with a group of friends when the discussion shifted to nations and nationalities. One of the people around the table described his feelings a fortnight ago when he received his Dutch nationality and passport. He said that he felt confused being rewarded something like that rather quickly and being surrounded by Turkish and Moroccan old ladies who had been in the Netherlands for 30 years and just now got their full rights. My friend described how tired the women look, nearly like they had already given up hope. Nationaly can be a mixed set of feelings.
I mentioned in that discussion that I nowadays introduce myself as being from Amsterdam. I would not say that I am from the Netherlands but from Amsterdam. At the same I do feel Finnish. One could easily go into the blah-blah on the death of nation states and state that passport is just a document. But at least for me giving up my Finnish passport for instance for a Dutch one would mean losing something that has always been there. The Finnish passport is a sign of my roots, it shows my soil.
Usually the Finnish independence day speeches stress the struggle the nation went through defending its independence 1939-1945 and the high price paid for it. I have this experience even in my immediate family - when Finland lost the Carelia region, my then 17-year-old grandmother was amongst the half a million people who needed a home when the border shifted West.
My Finnish identity has never been contested. I was given it and no one has tried to take it away from me. I have lived my whole life with a safety net provided by my family and my country. It has allowed my to jump because I have always known that there are mechanisms and people to catch me.
What does being Finnish then mean to me? It is not a flag, it is not a winned battle. I and I think most of my generation find it difficult to grasp these concepts that define the nations and the EU for the baby boomers. For me being Finnish means a sincerely loving family, it means being comfortable in nature, it means a language that allows one to invent words that others understand, it means being comfortable with nudity, it means appreciating the simple, it means taking care of the smallest and the weakest, it means being able to leave your bag on the chair when you go to the toilet in a cafe, it means school lunches, it means not cheating nor lying and it means giving space.
My Finnishness does not require living within its borders. The things listed above are not mentioned in my passport or in the constitution. That is why my sense of being Finnish does not contradict with being from Amsterdam.
Happy birthday, homies.
Saturday, December 01, 2007
I know
Uncertainty is not only a scary thing, sometimes it also creates a sense of safety. When you do not know for sure, you can live thinking that the status of things is the one you wish. A lot of us go forward in life based on this strategy – not wanting to know and not wanting to check. It keeps some marriages together and some working relationships going. We hope for the best and don’t check for the worst.
Today is World Aids Day. The Dutch Aids Foundation has been running a big campaign in the course of the last weeks with beautiful children looking into the camera in posters saying Stop Aids Now. I found the campaign highly moving and of great excellence – it states that AIDS is not only amongst the gay population and that it does not always show.
I watched just a while ago again the brilliant TV drama Angels in America which focuses on the 1980s in the US – the time when AIDS broke its way into the public sphere and caused fear and panic. We have come far from those times – the awareness of the AIDS situation in Africa is far higher and we as a society realise that AIDS is amongst us. This does not go without negative side effects. The fear and awareness caused for instance by Freddie Mercury’s death is gone and a lot of people act rather self-assured – not wanting to know.
I know. I did the test yesterday. Not out of any other reason but for the fact that every sensible person should get tested regularly. Those who have taken the test, know exactly how scary it is. Those who have not, let me give you a brief.
The clinic here in Amsterdam is quite busy. The test is for free and you hear the results in 30 minutes after the test. I started by waiting for my turn in the crowded hall. Some people come to the clinic with friends but most people are there alone. Joking is quite limited. I found myself looking at people and thinking:”Does he have it? Does he think I have it? Why is she here?”
After 50 minutes or so I was called into the informative session where they take your details and ask you some basic question. The woman yesterday was extremely nice and certainly quite used to nervous people. I found myself mumbling and making mistakes in my mobile phone number. She did not assure me that things will be fine – instead she asked:”What do you think the result will be”. After her interview I was sent back to the hall to wait for the test. It took ages before I was called. The woman was highly calm and kind – I took notice of the empathy in her eyes. She explained again what will be done. She started with rather frank questions about sexual behaviour, then took 3 samples of blood and asked me to get on the examination table. It is not too comfortable when you have different tools and sticks pushed into most holes in your body. I was gagging when she checked my throat with a sample stick. The other things you can imagine yourself.
After the test I was asked to give a urine sample and then wait for 30 minutes for the results of the HIV test. I tried to read a newspaper, but found myself walking back and forth to the coffee machine, going to the toilet, checking my mobile. The only thing occupying my mind was:”What if?”
After 30 minutes I was called into the room again. She told me that my results came through good and the result was negative. I started sweating out of relief. Funnily enough, I was not smiling too much. I must have thanked her four times when leaving the room. Never cycled that lightly to the centre.
Even if my test came through as I wished, AIDS is amongst us. It is not always a result of promiscuous behaviour. Some of us are born with it, some of us just have bad luck. Be safe. Happy World AIDS Day.
Today is World Aids Day. The Dutch Aids Foundation has been running a big campaign in the course of the last weeks with beautiful children looking into the camera in posters saying Stop Aids Now. I found the campaign highly moving and of great excellence – it states that AIDS is not only amongst the gay population and that it does not always show.
I watched just a while ago again the brilliant TV drama Angels in America which focuses on the 1980s in the US – the time when AIDS broke its way into the public sphere and caused fear and panic. We have come far from those times – the awareness of the AIDS situation in Africa is far higher and we as a society realise that AIDS is amongst us. This does not go without negative side effects. The fear and awareness caused for instance by Freddie Mercury’s death is gone and a lot of people act rather self-assured – not wanting to know.
I know. I did the test yesterday. Not out of any other reason but for the fact that every sensible person should get tested regularly. Those who have taken the test, know exactly how scary it is. Those who have not, let me give you a brief.
The clinic here in Amsterdam is quite busy. The test is for free and you hear the results in 30 minutes after the test. I started by waiting for my turn in the crowded hall. Some people come to the clinic with friends but most people are there alone. Joking is quite limited. I found myself looking at people and thinking:”Does he have it? Does he think I have it? Why is she here?”
After 50 minutes or so I was called into the informative session where they take your details and ask you some basic question. The woman yesterday was extremely nice and certainly quite used to nervous people. I found myself mumbling and making mistakes in my mobile phone number. She did not assure me that things will be fine – instead she asked:”What do you think the result will be”. After her interview I was sent back to the hall to wait for the test. It took ages before I was called. The woman was highly calm and kind – I took notice of the empathy in her eyes. She explained again what will be done. She started with rather frank questions about sexual behaviour, then took 3 samples of blood and asked me to get on the examination table. It is not too comfortable when you have different tools and sticks pushed into most holes in your body. I was gagging when she checked my throat with a sample stick. The other things you can imagine yourself.
After the test I was asked to give a urine sample and then wait for 30 minutes for the results of the HIV test. I tried to read a newspaper, but found myself walking back and forth to the coffee machine, going to the toilet, checking my mobile. The only thing occupying my mind was:”What if?”
After 30 minutes I was called into the room again. She told me that my results came through good and the result was negative. I started sweating out of relief. Funnily enough, I was not smiling too much. I must have thanked her four times when leaving the room. Never cycled that lightly to the centre.
Even if my test came through as I wished, AIDS is amongst us. It is not always a result of promiscuous behaviour. Some of us are born with it, some of us just have bad luck. Be safe. Happy World AIDS Day.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
"You wanna do something after work..."
I have posted about this before but never mind. This blog is supposed to reflect a certain part of my thoughts and like pensioners, also people in their 30s keep going around and around with the same old story.
After evenings like this I go back to the lyrics of my life mantra, Baz Luhrmann's song Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen). I listen to it at least once a month and everything he says makes sense. I actually do strive to live my life the way he preaches. Tonight was the time for the following:
"Understand that friends come and go,but for the precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography in lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young."
Amsterdam would not be the same without a few key people here. After nearly three years we are starting to reach this level where you don't need to explain everything, the other person just knows. Every single time I go back to Finland I realise how special it is to have friends who you have experienced things with and who know you inside out. And it is such a warm feeling to realise that the same is evolving here. Tonight we did not do anything special - met for dinner, a few drinks and talked - but it was still absolutely beautiful.
For me places live and die with the people. When it comes to friends, I am bloody fortunate.
After evenings like this I go back to the lyrics of my life mantra, Baz Luhrmann's song Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen). I listen to it at least once a month and everything he says makes sense. I actually do strive to live my life the way he preaches. Tonight was the time for the following:
"Understand that friends come and go,but for the precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography in lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young."
Amsterdam would not be the same without a few key people here. After nearly three years we are starting to reach this level where you don't need to explain everything, the other person just knows. Every single time I go back to Finland I realise how special it is to have friends who you have experienced things with and who know you inside out. And it is such a warm feeling to realise that the same is evolving here. Tonight we did not do anything special - met for dinner, a few drinks and talked - but it was still absolutely beautiful.
For me places live and die with the people. When it comes to friends, I am bloody fortunate.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Gezellig
It is not too sexy to start a sunny day by stepping into a big load of dogshit. (I remember reading once that if you really want to catch the attention of your readers, try to use the words 'sex' and 'shit' in the first sentence.) I was convinced that this day was ruined when I realised that my whole bike tire and my trendy Adidas sneaker was covered in it. Luckily I did not have a hangover. But there is a sunny side in every poop. After scrubbing my shoe manically for 30 minutes, I figured the obvious: after this the only way is up.
Today was one of those days when I once again started loving Amsterdam. This city is just ideal for social Sundays. Sunny streets, fresh air (despite the smell of dogshit following you around) and people changing from summer to autumn clothing. Full cafes, busy streets and trees changing colour. Amsterdam is designed for this: cycling on the canals, walking on the shopping streets and commenting people, sitting in cafes and talking about light issues, having a splendid dinner with a good friend and going for drinks with friends in the end of the day.
There is a word in Dutch which is perfect to describe today: gezellig. It means something like cosy and nice - in Swedish you have a word for it as well: lagom. It is just right, slightly bourgeois, not too much and not too little.
I definitely amsterdam.
Today was one of those days when I once again started loving Amsterdam. This city is just ideal for social Sundays. Sunny streets, fresh air (despite the smell of dogshit following you around) and people changing from summer to autumn clothing. Full cafes, busy streets and trees changing colour. Amsterdam is designed for this: cycling on the canals, walking on the shopping streets and commenting people, sitting in cafes and talking about light issues, having a splendid dinner with a good friend and going for drinks with friends in the end of the day.
There is a word in Dutch which is perfect to describe today: gezellig. It means something like cosy and nice - in Swedish you have a word for it as well: lagom. It is just right, slightly bourgeois, not too much and not too little.
I definitely amsterdam.
Friday, September 28, 2007
Up to the him and her
It is really weird if you think of it. During the last weeks I have been less occupied with daily practices like funding applications at work and have been able to take time for clarifying my thoughts, reading and talking to people. Taking part in PICNIC event was one of these clarifying experiences. As the Stranger Festival - my biggest project so far - keeps approaching, I find myself having a clearer idea on what I would wish to accomplish. Fab.
I wish to shift away from the organisation point of view and consciously take the angle of the individual. PICNIC was a good example of how the most innovative projects have managed to take personal needs and driving forces as the starting point rather than analysing different target groups or driving for the ultimate high-tech gadget. As someone said in today's workshop once again:"You know from the technical point of view, everything is possible."
I more and more feel like we should see the individual behind all their group belongings and foster experiences where people actually can choose the part of their identity they wish to perform. Concrete example: we should stop deciding that the way we approach a Turkish youngster is through their Turkishness and therefore limit them to their immigration background. We should find ways of working where people can tap in based on their current interests and passions and then get linked to other people with similar driving forces. We should build common ground through interest.
This does not mean forgetting notions of diversity and intercultural dialogue. By choosing where we put our efforts, we are able to build up a diverse audience in a way that is welcoming, non-patronising and participatory. In every action we should be able to answer two simple questions:
1. what does it give to the participant? Why would they do this?
2. how does it encourage interaction?
I wish to shift away from the organisation point of view and consciously take the angle of the individual. PICNIC was a good example of how the most innovative projects have managed to take personal needs and driving forces as the starting point rather than analysing different target groups or driving for the ultimate high-tech gadget. As someone said in today's workshop once again:"You know from the technical point of view, everything is possible."
I more and more feel like we should see the individual behind all their group belongings and foster experiences where people actually can choose the part of their identity they wish to perform. Concrete example: we should stop deciding that the way we approach a Turkish youngster is through their Turkishness and therefore limit them to their immigration background. We should find ways of working where people can tap in based on their current interests and passions and then get linked to other people with similar driving forces. We should build common ground through interest.
This does not mean forgetting notions of diversity and intercultural dialogue. By choosing where we put our efforts, we are able to build up a diverse audience in a way that is welcoming, non-patronising and participatory. In every action we should be able to answer two simple questions:
1. what does it give to the participant? Why would they do this?
2. how does it encourage interaction?
Saturday, September 15, 2007
We seem to need a ´them´ for us to be ´us´
A week ago I attended the 50th birthday party of a dear friend of mine in Helsinki. Many of the speakers emphasised how Helsinki is a European metropole - a true mix of cultures. All the speakers in that event were historians and therefore they looked things from a perspective of a century pointing out - rightly so - that in the beginning of the 1900s one could easily hear Finnish, Russian and Swedish on the streets of the city.
As living in Amsterdam in a neigbourhood with more than 50 % of the population with a non-European descent, Helsinki is still extremely homogenous. Helsinki is still far from being a city where white man would not be the default option. The level of multiculturalism can be explained by analysing the Finnish multiculturalism debate - in Finland the discussion dwells still around tolerance and anti-discrimination rather than inclusion, coexistence, joint rules and reciprocity.
When one looks at Helsinki and Finland on a scale of 20 years and from a personal perspective of a once migrant, the picture turns out to be somewhat different. My Finnish friend Umayya Abu-Hanna's new book Sinut is a moving and honest take on the way the small nation in the North deals with the world. Or in many cases, on the way that it doesn't.
Quote:
"I have never encountered that the taste of mämmi or sauna would cause problems. The basic problem is losing yourself, the attempt to recognise oneself in this individual who functions in Finland. Here I get back to the point that quantity matters. In big cities where one has lots of people who have arrived from different cultures and people who are outsiders even in those cultures, there is a greater probability at least at times to be heard as oneself. In a place like this also the majority culture has learned to interpret and see differing ways to be and live." (translation from Finnish by me)
In her book she goes through incidents of pure racism and xenophobia, often practised by highly educated people (like employers) and often without the people realising themselves the fu**ed up value structures they are communicating. She cleverly breaks and builds again the notion of identity. The book brought me into tears with its frankness for instance when Umayya writes about feeling scared in a Finnish hospital. What really made me love the book was the lively way she describes also incidents when she has fallen short or just given in but also when Finns have opened their hearts and homes for her.
Finland still has a long way to go in order to be sinut (Finnish word for being comfortable with yourself and the title of Umayya's book) with a mixture of cultures, habits and customs. We still simplify other cultures while demanding specificity when people deal with us.
Umayya's compassion and love for Finland is obvious throughout the book. I am confident that many readers will be irritated by her criticism. But by seeing her as one of us rather than as an outsider the criticism is only welcome - we all bitch every now and then about our loved ones but will get on barricades if we would hear the same things from outsiders. 20 years should be more than enough to claim one's experiences as Finnish. The best thing in Umayya's book, however, is the optimistic underlying tone - we are still far but we have travelled far in 20 years.
"When one has lived her entire adult life in this culture and feels being part of it, it is impossible to work if everything you do is seen from another angle. Every journalist feels that it is necessary and is expected that one is building the community with the observations, conclusions and stories. One criticises injustice. From my perspective my position is Finnish. Here is the biggest contradiction: when I see myself participating as myself in a discourse and building of my society, in the eyes of some I break an unwritten or maybe written rule which states that Finnishness is a clear definition which I do not fit in to."
As living in Amsterdam in a neigbourhood with more than 50 % of the population with a non-European descent, Helsinki is still extremely homogenous. Helsinki is still far from being a city where white man would not be the default option. The level of multiculturalism can be explained by analysing the Finnish multiculturalism debate - in Finland the discussion dwells still around tolerance and anti-discrimination rather than inclusion, coexistence, joint rules and reciprocity.
When one looks at Helsinki and Finland on a scale of 20 years and from a personal perspective of a once migrant, the picture turns out to be somewhat different. My Finnish friend Umayya Abu-Hanna's new book Sinut is a moving and honest take on the way the small nation in the North deals with the world. Or in many cases, on the way that it doesn't.
Quote:
"I have never encountered that the taste of mämmi or sauna would cause problems. The basic problem is losing yourself, the attempt to recognise oneself in this individual who functions in Finland. Here I get back to the point that quantity matters. In big cities where one has lots of people who have arrived from different cultures and people who are outsiders even in those cultures, there is a greater probability at least at times to be heard as oneself. In a place like this also the majority culture has learned to interpret and see differing ways to be and live." (translation from Finnish by me)
In her book she goes through incidents of pure racism and xenophobia, often practised by highly educated people (like employers) and often without the people realising themselves the fu**ed up value structures they are communicating. She cleverly breaks and builds again the notion of identity. The book brought me into tears with its frankness for instance when Umayya writes about feeling scared in a Finnish hospital. What really made me love the book was the lively way she describes also incidents when she has fallen short or just given in but also when Finns have opened their hearts and homes for her.
Finland still has a long way to go in order to be sinut (Finnish word for being comfortable with yourself and the title of Umayya's book) with a mixture of cultures, habits and customs. We still simplify other cultures while demanding specificity when people deal with us.
Umayya's compassion and love for Finland is obvious throughout the book. I am confident that many readers will be irritated by her criticism. But by seeing her as one of us rather than as an outsider the criticism is only welcome - we all bitch every now and then about our loved ones but will get on barricades if we would hear the same things from outsiders. 20 years should be more than enough to claim one's experiences as Finnish. The best thing in Umayya's book, however, is the optimistic underlying tone - we are still far but we have travelled far in 20 years.
"When one has lived her entire adult life in this culture and feels being part of it, it is impossible to work if everything you do is seen from another angle. Every journalist feels that it is necessary and is expected that one is building the community with the observations, conclusions and stories. One criticises injustice. From my perspective my position is Finnish. Here is the biggest contradiction: when I see myself participating as myself in a discourse and building of my society, in the eyes of some I break an unwritten or maybe written rule which states that Finnishness is a clear definition which I do not fit in to."
Saturday, September 01, 2007
Bearforce1
Are you able to mention a world-wide popular Dutch music act? I am not. I mean there was 2Unlimited but that is enough said. Well, now there's Bearforce1.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Stretch...and relax
Holidays do have their downsides, not many, but a few. One of them - at least for me - is that exercise does not even cross my mind when living my freedom to the full. And when the routine including the gym hits you in the chilly Amsterdam, it is not a pretty nor comfortable sight.
As my working day today stretched until seven, I decided to go straight from the office to the gym and to the Pilates class. I tried it for the first time a few weeks back and it was tough but fantastic. But going in with no training for weeks and a few visits to Fatburger in California led to the instructor asking me at one point:
"You seem very stiff. What have you been doing?"
"Nothing, I think that is the problem."
"Nothing?"
"Well, eating."
Pilates class is interesting. The stretches are so tough that people start unconsciously breathing really loud and hard. At first people find it a bit embarrassing and awkward but after the time the class sounds like a birth clinic. Funny indeed.
I have found this sporty type from myself only during the last few years. I absolutely hated sports in school as I managed to convince myself that the slightly stubby kid with thickest of the thick glasses was good only for being the pride and joy of the Finnish language teacher. I kind of regret it now that the way sports was taught in school made me take this long before I realised that by training regularly I could become good in something that I actually enjoy.
As my working day today stretched until seven, I decided to go straight from the office to the gym and to the Pilates class. I tried it for the first time a few weeks back and it was tough but fantastic. But going in with no training for weeks and a few visits to Fatburger in California led to the instructor asking me at one point:
"You seem very stiff. What have you been doing?"
"Nothing, I think that is the problem."
"Nothing?"
"Well, eating."
Pilates class is interesting. The stretches are so tough that people start unconsciously breathing really loud and hard. At first people find it a bit embarrassing and awkward but after the time the class sounds like a birth clinic. Funny indeed.
I have found this sporty type from myself only during the last few years. I absolutely hated sports in school as I managed to convince myself that the slightly stubby kid with thickest of the thick glasses was good only for being the pride and joy of the Finnish language teacher. I kind of regret it now that the way sports was taught in school made me take this long before I realised that by training regularly I could become good in something that I actually enjoy.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Unstuffy diversity
My landing to Amsterdam after weeks of holidaying was a smooth one. Uitmarkt is a free festival offering a preview to next season's cultural programming in Amsterdam. Sunny weekend and Uitmarkt made it feel like still being abroad.
Weekend's highlight was the El Hema project by Dutch cultural new media organisation Mediamatic. Let me explain it in short in my own words:
HEMA is one of the key Dutch household brands offering beautifully designed products in low prices. I and most people living in the Netherlands adore HEMA. Somehow their design concept reminds me of IKEA - beautiful does not have to be expensive.
Mediamatic wanted to test with El Hema what an Arabic version of HEMA would look like - what would the logo, the advertising and the products. The exhibition designed into a HEMA shop offered smoked halal sausage, T-shirts, scarves, wine and such. They were clear in their communication -rightly so- that the project focused on the Arabic cultures, not on islam.
When HEMA found out about the project, they sued Mediamatic for abuse of their copyrighted concept. But the story led to a happy end when HEMA realised that Mediamatic's goal was artistic and not commercial and actually the project just showed the importance of HEMA to the Dutch. Mediamatic's Director Willem Velthoven told me on Saturday that the Head of Marketing of HEMA is now in the jury of the design competition, HEMA approves the project and is already considering taking some of the products made by the artists and designers into their collection.
I think Mediamatic has once again mastered addressing stuffy subjects like multicultural society in a fresh manner. The exhibition is popular, fun, beautiful and intelligent and open for visitors until 4 November. I loved Willem's practical idealism when people asked him about the future:"After the exhibition it is up to HEMA and others what happens. We need to move to the next project." I think he is right - there is need for people setting things rolling and people who implement the realisation.
Weekend's highlight was the El Hema project by Dutch cultural new media organisation Mediamatic. Let me explain it in short in my own words:
HEMA is one of the key Dutch household brands offering beautifully designed products in low prices. I and most people living in the Netherlands adore HEMA. Somehow their design concept reminds me of IKEA - beautiful does not have to be expensive.
Mediamatic wanted to test with El Hema what an Arabic version of HEMA would look like - what would the logo, the advertising and the products. The exhibition designed into a HEMA shop offered smoked halal sausage, T-shirts, scarves, wine and such. They were clear in their communication -rightly so- that the project focused on the Arabic cultures, not on islam.
When HEMA found out about the project, they sued Mediamatic for abuse of their copyrighted concept. But the story led to a happy end when HEMA realised that Mediamatic's goal was artistic and not commercial and actually the project just showed the importance of HEMA to the Dutch. Mediamatic's Director Willem Velthoven told me on Saturday that the Head of Marketing of HEMA is now in the jury of the design competition, HEMA approves the project and is already considering taking some of the products made by the artists and designers into their collection.
I think Mediamatic has once again mastered addressing stuffy subjects like multicultural society in a fresh manner. The exhibition is popular, fun, beautiful and intelligent and open for visitors until 4 November. I loved Willem's practical idealism when people asked him about the future:"After the exhibition it is up to HEMA and others what happens. We need to move to the next project." I think he is right - there is need for people setting things rolling and people who implement the realisation.
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
This is what I call public service
The day has been spent packing. Tomorrow morning i am off to Texas and California for a holiday which I dare to say is well deserved. Even if Amsterdam is turning into a sunny city after all, I cannot wait to board Continental Airlines tomorrow. And how cool is this: I am flying to George Bush Intercontinental.
Gladly my American friend reminded me of checking my insurance policy. As we can see in the Presidential Debates, there is no such thing as universal health care - especially not for visitors like me.
Over lunch today I had a good chat with a friend of mine over public services. We were trying to compose a liberal political agenda consisting of compassion, certain universal services, empowerment of individuals and pure liberalism. The lunch was so inspiring that the debate will definitely continue.
The lunch date was good groundwork for the afternoon visit to the new main library of Amsterdam. One can only congratulate the City of Amsterdam for an excellent investment. Openbare Bibliotheek is a strong example what good public services are. It has a lot of chilling out areas, it has lots of light, it is free, it is multi-functional (classical books, huge DVD collection, café, study rooms, newspaper and magazine hall etc) and a beautiful location on the waterfront
I remember a Finnish MP who I value highly (Irina Krohn) said once cleverly that a public place is not one where you need money for a cafe latter. Openbare bibliotheek shows how to give your citizens genuine value for money.
Mr Mayor, today I am proud of being an Amsterdammer tax payer.
Gladly my American friend reminded me of checking my insurance policy. As we can see in the Presidential Debates, there is no such thing as universal health care - especially not for visitors like me.
Over lunch today I had a good chat with a friend of mine over public services. We were trying to compose a liberal political agenda consisting of compassion, certain universal services, empowerment of individuals and pure liberalism. The lunch was so inspiring that the debate will definitely continue.
The lunch date was good groundwork for the afternoon visit to the new main library of Amsterdam. One can only congratulate the City of Amsterdam for an excellent investment. Openbare Bibliotheek is a strong example what good public services are. It has a lot of chilling out areas, it has lots of light, it is free, it is multi-functional (classical books, huge DVD collection, café, study rooms, newspaper and magazine hall etc) and a beautiful location on the waterfront
I remember a Finnish MP who I value highly (Irina Krohn) said once cleverly that a public place is not one where you need money for a cafe latter. Openbare bibliotheek shows how to give your citizens genuine value for money.
Mr Mayor, today I am proud of being an Amsterdammer tax payer.
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