H E A D L I N E ST H E F I N N I S H A M E R I C A N C H A M B E R O F C O M M E R C E 3/2004

Negative Looks Positive for Finnish Rock

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3Headlines 3/2004

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NEWS 4-15 • Ticketmaster Buys Lippupalvelu • HIM Signs with Sire Records • Negative Gets Positive • Digital Chocolate Bites into Sumea • Cruise Traffi c Pays Helsinki Quick Visits • Uponor Sells U.S. Subsidiary

ART AT THE HEART OF NEW 16-17 AMBASSADOR’S MISSION

NATIONAL APPROACH TO GLOBAL STRATEGY 18-19

FINLAND ATTRACTS WIDER INVESTMENT BASE 20-21 DESIGNS WITH 22-23 FINNISH FLARE

CULTURE 24-25• Star of Wonder Wows Pori• Mirror of The Wood: Finnish Woodcuts SEMI-ANNUAL FACC NATIONAL MEETING 26-27

FACC NEWS 28-29 CLUB 1932 30

Headlines 3/2004

Kristiina HeleniusPress Counselor

Embassy of Finland, Washington D.C.

A Good MatchOctober started particularly well. The presidents and board members of the Finnish-American Chambers of Commerce held their semi-annual meeting at our premises in Washington, D.C. It was a true brainstorming and networking event, with the strong conviction to continue working closely together.

The Finnish Embassy and consulates general are links between Finland and the United States. We are briefed daily on developments in Finland, and we participate in various activities on the highest level in our host country. We are well placed to pass information in both directions.

There has been a lot of activity in rethinking the role of our Invest in Finland arm. The Finnish Tourist Board is involved in strategic work looking far into the future. Finnish universities are in great shape and ready to receive top international talent. There is a great deal of exciting news coming out of Finland.

The Embassy of Finland has developed an information campaign entitled Why Finland? to effectively communicate these messages. The name was derived from the many questions that come our way when Finland ranks high on competitiveness, environmental awareness and education. People want to know how Finland continually achieves such high rankings, and most of all, what is in it for them. We are here to provide them with answers and to highlight the opportunities only Finland can offer.

The Why Finland? arsenal includes a PowerPoint presentation and a promotional video as well as an extranet for exchanging views and ideas on how to best further our goals. The tools are for all of us to use. They help us coordinate our messages, and they can easily be updated and redistributed by the embassy media office to the members of the Why Finland? network.

The Chambers of Commerce have a clear mission and an active member-ship throughout the country. You promote the same things we do, and, thanks to the sheer power of geography and numbers, you do it in a way we cannot. To me, the meeting in Washington, D.C. proved that the chamber network is a perfect strategic match with the embassy and all the other Finnish Government players in the United States.

Communications technology helps us tremendously in keeping in touch and doing big things fast. Let us take full advantage of this. Nothing, however, compares with visiting the Museum of the American Indian or having lunch together. I am delighted to have had the presidents and the board members of the chambers as our guests, and am only too eager to see all the exciting things to come.

Headlines 3/20044

NEWS

Ticketmaster has acquired Lippupalvelu Oy (Ticket Service Finland), the leading ticket service provider in Finland from

TeliaSonera Finland Oyj and private investors in September. The company will continue to operate as Lippupalvelu Oy and under the leadership of Harri Kaasinen. The acquisition of Lippupalvelu follows Ticketmaster’s recent expansions into Sweden, Norway and Denmark and positions Ticketmaster as the market leader in Scandinavia. Ticketmaster’s European ticketing operations now include England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and The Netherlands, as well as Finland.

Lippupalvelu Oy, headquartered in Helsinki, has been servic-ing ticketing solutions for sports, concerts, theater, and festivals since 1946. In 2003 Lippupalvelu sold some 4.5 million tickets. www.ticketservicefinland.fi

Ticketmaster, the world’s leading ticketing company, sold 100 million tickets valued at $4.9 billion in 2003, through the Inter-net, more than 3300 retail outlets and 19 worldwide call centers. www.ticketmaster.com is one of the largest e-commerce sites on the Internet. Ticketmaster serves more than 8000 clients worldwide and acts as the exclusive ticketing service for hundreds of leading arenas, stadiums, performing arts venues, and theaters and was the official ticketing provider and supporter of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games. Ticketmaster is headquartered in West Hollywood, California. www.ticketmaster.com

Lippupalvelu

Nokia won a contract with Hotwire Communications on July 22nd to supply its IP DSLAM platform for broadband connec-

tivity and a triple play of bundled services, including voice, video and data over DSL. Deliveries and network implementation have already begun and are expected to continue through to 2005. In practice, the deal will significantly boost the aim of the Finnish mobile phone maker to extend mobile Internet connectivity and efficiency.

The deal covers the supply of the Nokia D500 IP DSLAM (Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer) solution, which delivers integrated IP functionality unlike any other IP DSLAM in the broadband industry. The Nokia solution, including related support services, brings unrivalled benefits for operators includ-ing fast Internet services and voice and video capacity. It will also include ADSL2+ features for enhanced bandwidth.

Hotwire Communications is a privately held BLEC (Building Local Exchange Carrier) based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, serv-ing the Philadelphia, New York, DC and New Jersey regions. The company specializes in providing DSL, cable and voice services for multiple apartment complexes. www.hotwirecommunications.com www.nokia.com

Nokia Signs with HotwirePh

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5Headlines 3/2004

Finnish ‘love metal’ band HIM has been signed to an exclusive worldwide recording contract with

Sire Records. Sire Records is the original home of The Ramones, Talking Heads and Madonna, to name but a few, and is part of the Warner Music Group. The label has also provided a launch pad for other international success stories such as Blondie, The Pretenders, The Cult, and The Cure.

According to Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sano-mat, the deal guarantees that the band’s records will be released simultaneously across the world, covering the next four HIM albums and an option for a fifth, provided U.S. sales of the fourth one exceed three million copies. The multinational Warner Music will be responsible for the worldwide distribution of future HIM albums everywhere else except in Finland, where albums will continue to be released under the band’s own Heartagram label.

“The first record (in the deal) has a seven-figure value and the entire deal runs to eight - in euros as well as dollars,” says HIM manager Seppo Vesterinen.

Him are touring the U.S. between November 12th and December 4th. www.heartagram.com www.sirerecords.com

HIM Signs with Sire Records

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Yet another Finnish rock band has signed a deal with an international label. Nega-

tive and its Finnish label Gbfam Records Oy have signed a three album world wide contract with the U.S. Roadrunner Records. The deal covers all countries in which the band does not have a recording deal. This leaves out Scandinavia, Italy, Japan and Russia. Roadrunner Records artists include Machine Head, Type O Negative and the Finnish band Nightwish.

The Tampere-based band was set up in 1997. The current line-up includes Jonne Aaron (vocals), Larry (guitar), Christus (guitar), Antti (bass), Jay (drums) and Snack (keyboards). Negative’s debut single “The Moment Of Our Love” and first album “War Of Love” went gold in Finland. “War of Love” was released in Scandinavia, Italy, Russia and Japan. The September-released second album, “Sweet & Deceitful”, and the first single from it, “Frozen To Lose It All”, went straight to number one on the official Finnish charts. www.negative.fi www.gbfam.com

Negative Gets Positive

NEWS

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7Headlines 3/2004

NEWS

Robert Peaslee, Senior Commercial Officer at the Ameri-can Embassy in Helsinki, took up the post in August

2004. In this capacity, he directs the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Commercial Service programs in Finland, as well as in Norway and Estonia.

Peaslee was previously the Principal Commercial Officer at the American Consulate General in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia from August 2002 to May 2004. His previous assignments include two years as the Commercial Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and two years as a Com-mercial Specialist at the U.S. Commercial Service’s Export Assistance Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He has been with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Commercial Service since 1998.

Before joining the Commercial Service, Robert Peaslee worked for three years as a full-time university professor in New Mexico, teaching international management, mar-keting and computer information systems. He also spent three years as the State of New Mexico’s Americas Trade Specialist. Additionally, he worked for USAID in the area of information resource management.

Peaslee earned a BA in Political Science from Colorado State University, an MBA in International Management and an MA in Latin American Studies from the University of New Mexico. He is a certified Eximbank City/State Coun-selor and is fluent in Spanish.

Osmo Lipponen has been appointed Fin-land’s Consul General to New York as

of October 1st. Lipponen entered the Finnish foreign service in 1973 and served in Tokyo, Paris and Moscow. He has also served as Consul General in St Petersburg, Russia and Finland’s Ambassador to Zagreb, Croatia. In 2002 he was appointed Head of the OSCE Presence in Alba-nia. www.formin.fi

Introducing Robert Peaslee:

U.S. Senior Commercial Offi cer

New Consul General for New York

Robert Peaslee, Senior Commercial Offi cer at the American Embassy in Helsinki.

Osmo Lipponen, Finland’s new Consul General to New York.

Headlines 3/20048

The Virtual Finland (VF) website has been given a complete overhaul. Parts of the site have been

updated from time to time, yet this is the first time that the entire site has changed its substance, structure, and appearance.

Virtual Finland is one of the pioneers in Internet-based promotion. It was launched in 1995 - only a few years after the emergence of the World Wide Web. From the very beginning, the principal aim has been to provide extensive and up-to-date information on Finland and the Finns.

In addition to reshaping and updating, an important objective of the overhaul has been to achieve a modern and pleasant visual appearance. The new look relies on Finnish design: itís produced in cooperation with Satama Interactive, Finland’s leading digital services company. The head designer was Satama’s Risto Vauras.

“The purpose of this process was to lift the portal to a new level that better reflects what Finland is truly about in 2004. We are a country of high technology and high culture and we have many stories to tell and things to show,” says Juha Parikka, VF’s Editor-in-Chief. “Most notably, there has been a clear shift to a more magazine-type format.” The team behind Virtual Finland is drawn from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs’ Unit for Promotion and Publications. Most of the actual articles are, however, written by freelance specialists.

New Look for Virtual Finland

Juha Parikka, Virtual Finland’s Editor-in-Chief.

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“The new Virtual Finland is aimed at all people interested in our country. It is suited for everyone from schoolchildren to tourists to professional researchers. It also caters for the needs of people moving to Finland from abroad who wish to know more about the country before arriving here. Moreover, Finnish companies will be able to offer the latest Finland-information for their clients,” Parikka concludes. www.virtualfinland.com

On September 8th, Nokia acquired a portfolio of applications development tools based on the Symbian operating system and

to license core development tool technologies from Metrowerks Corporation, an independent subsidiary of Freescale ™ Semi-conductor, Inc. Nokia will employ some two-dozen Metrowerks employees, experts in these products, to be located in a new Nokia Inc. office in Austin, Texas.

The closing of the transaction, subject to customary conditions, is expected in the 4th quarter of 2004. Upon completion, develop-ment tools and related support will be available through Nokia and its channels, both to independent software developers as well as to the entire Symbian OS ecosystem, including licensees.

Metrowerks Applications to Nokia

The anticipated transaction is expected to speed up marketing time through a single source for platform and device development processes. It will also help developers build a broader and more versatile pool of applications for Symbian Platform Series 60, 80 and 90, and Symbian UIQ.

Metrowerks Corporation creates CodeWarrior software and hardware products and services for developers that focus on the consumer electronics, transportation, wireless, and networking and communications industries. The CodeWarrior product line includes hardware and software development tools and middleware that enable customers to decrease their time to market. Founded in 1985, Metrowerks is an independent subsidiary of Freescale Semiconductor, Inc., with corporate headquarters in Austin, Texas. www.metrowerks.com

Freescale Semiconductor, Inc., is a global leader in the design and manufacture of embedded semiconductors for the automotive, consumer, industrial, networking and wireless markets. It became a publicly traded company in July after more than 50 years as part of Motorola, Inc. Based in Austin, Texas, it has design, research and development, manufacturing and sales operations in more than 30 countries. Sales in 2003 were $4.9 billion. www.freescale.com

www.futureimagebank.com

NEWS

9Headlines 3/2004

NEWS

The biographies of eleven chefs from Hel-sinki appear in the recently published

first edition of “The International Who’s Who of Chefs” (IWWC) book 2004-2005.

The Helsinki chefs, who are among almost 3000 of the best chefs from 70 countries selected for induction after a rig-orous screening process, are: Hans-Henrik Välimäki, Chez Dominique; Matti Wikberg, Chez Dominique; Vesa Parviainen, Chez Dominique; Jarmo Vähä-Savo, G.W. Sun-dmans Restaurant; Kimmo Martiskainen, Lappi Restaurant; Pekka Terävä, Palacen Ranta; Ara Aremo, Restaurant George; Jarkki Kinnunen, Savoy Restaurant; Kai Kallio, Savoy Restaurant; Freddy Raoult, Sipuli Restaurant; and Onni Laine, Sipuli Restaurant.

Information in the book was compiled during an intensive four-year process in which researchers traveled the globe to

Helsinki Chefs Among The Best

gather information on the top restaurants on five continents. The biographies include backgrounds, careers, awards and citations, media critiques and publications. Apart from being the first trade volume of its kind to hit the restaurant industry, the inclusion of signature recipes from the world’s master chefs makes the IWWC the world’s best and most prestigious cookbook.

The more-than-800-page, hardcover book of “The International Who’s Who of Chefs”, which will be published every two years, gives readers a unique chance to learn more about the chefs at the restaurants they visit. It’s also the most comprehensive cookbook ever published. www.internationalchefs.com

Headlines 3/200410

NEWS

On August 10th, AT&T Wireless and Nokia made avail-able the benefits of EDGE for U.S. subscribers with the

Symbian OS and Series 60 Platform -based Nokia 6620 smart phone, for use on AT&T Wireless’ national EDGE network. Consumers downloading the latest games or mobile profes-sionals accessing instant news and information can use AT&T Wireless’ EDGE service at speeds up to three times faster than GPRS.

New services include Real - rTV™, an audio/video sub-scription service from RealNetworks®, Inc, through which content from channels such as FOX Sports, ABC News, CBS MarketWatch and Sporting News Radio can be accessed for only $4.95 per month.

The Nokia 6620 smart phone is based on Nokia’s world-leading Series 60 Platform. Customers can capture both still and video images with its built-in camera and further customize their device by choosing from hundreds of Series 60 applications.

For business travelers, the ‘WorldMate’ application offers a simultaneous graphical representation of up to five different time zones, current weather conditions for over 250 cities and a currency converter function. ‘Quickoffice’ allows users to open, edit and save word processing documents, presenta-tions and spreadsheets on their Nokia 6620 phone. Other

AT&T Wireless and Nokia EDGE Together

tools include e-mail and a full Internet browser over the EDGE network.

Applications are available on a free trial-basis, after which the full version can be purchased directly from the phone or from the ‘My mMode’ website at www.attwireless.com/mymMode www.nokia.com www.attwireless.com

Digital Chocolate, Inc., U.S.-based developer of innovative software for mobile phones, has

acquired the Finnish company Sumea, developer and publisher of high-quality games for mobile phones in June.

Founded in 2003, Digital Chocolate is headquar-tered in San Mateo, California. It develops games, lifestyle and entertainment applications for mobile phones. Digital Chocolate’s founder and CEO, Trip Hawkins, has a history in gaming software, having founded and built the seminal games company Elec-tronic Arts.

Sumea was founded in 1999 and specializes in downloadable mobile games like “Mafia Wars” and “Racing Fever” which are already mobile classics. Sumea’s partners include Vodafone, O2, Orange, AT&T Wireless, T-Mobile, and Cingular Wireless. www.sumea.com

Digital Chocolate Bitesinto Sumea

www.futureimagebank.com

11Headlines 3/2004

NEWS

M-real Corporation has signed a letter of intent to sell its Price & Price Group to

Gould Paper Corporation. M-real acquired Price & Pierce Group in 1998. It is a trading house specialized in paperboard, paper and pulp trading operations. The estimated net sales of Price & Pierce Group in 2004 are €100 million. www.m-real.com

Price & Pierce Sold to Gould Paper

www.futureimagebank.com

Headlines 3/200412

The cruise liner m/s Prinsendam of the Holland America Line called into Helsinki on September 1st, just one of

about 200 cruise ships that stop off at the Helsinki capital every summer. The ship was in a sense coming home, since it was launched in Turku in south-western Finland in 1988 as the Royal Viking Sun. It’s one of many luxurious Finn-ish-built ships plying the sea’s oceans.

The Prinsendam, with its 790 mainly American pas-sengers, included Helsinki on its Baltic cruise itinerary, which also included stops at Copenhagen, St Petersburg and Tallinn. “The best thing about cruising is that people can pick and choose and do exactly what they want every day,” said social hostess Nancy Hansen. Passengers can try the golf simulator under the tuition of the ship’s own golf pro, for example. It’s possible to eat as many as eight times a day at no extra charge – although passengers have to pay for their drinks. Entertainment includes a differ-ent show every night, while a gym, fresh- and salt-water pools, and massage and other treatments in the Ocean Spa are other options.

Because of the prohibitive harbour fees incurred by the Port of Helsinki, cruise ships rarely overnight at Helsinki, preferring to dock longer at Tallinn, for example, where the fees are significantly lower. According to a Talous-tutkimus Oy survey, 191 cruise ships visited Helsinki in summer 2003, carrying a total of 161,000 passengers who

Cruise Traffi c Pays Helsinki Quick Visit

Royal Caribbean International Ltd. and Kvaerner Masa-Yards Inc. have agreed on a revitalization

project, including a mid-body lengthening, for the luxury cruise ship m/s Enchantment of the Seas.

The mid-body will be built at Kvaerner Masa-Yards in Turku and the lengthening will take place between mid-May and early July 2005 while the cruise ship is being dry-docked at the Keppel Verolme Shipyard in Rotterdam. The contract value for Kvaerner Masa-Yards is some €40-45 million.

The project includes an extensive public area revitaliza-tion program, as well as a lengthening of the ship by build-ing a 22.2-meter mid-body, cutting, inserting and joining of the mid-body, as well as final outfitting, powering up and recomission for the whole ship. After the lengthening, the ship will measure 301.8 meters from end to end, and will include an additional 151 passenger cabins.

Kvaerner Masa-Yards Customer Service Division has specialized in comprehensive conversion projects of cruise ships. Kvaerner Masa-Yards built m/s Enchantment for Royal Caribbean International in 1997. The ship is pres-ently operating 4-5 day cruises in the Caribbean from Fort Lauderdale. www.masa-yards.com

New Mid-body for RCI Liner

NEWS

spent an average of €126.40 in the city, earning Helsinki about €22.5 million. That’s a sum that could be doubled if passenger ship operators were given an incentive to dock their ships for longer in the harbours of the Finnish capital. www.hollandamerica.com

Kvaerner Masa-Yards will built the new mid-body for Royal Caribbean’s m/s Enchantment of the Seas.

M/S Prinsendam of the Holland America Line was one of about 200 cruise ships that stop off in Helsinki every summer.

Photo: Tim Bird

13Headlines 3/2004

Installation of underfl oor heating.

Kemira has signed an agreement on the sale of its calcium chloride business to the American Tetra Technologies,

Inc. Kemira Group’s annual net sales in calcium chloride total approx. €50 million. The deal is conditional and subject to further approval by authorities. Calcium chloride is used in dust binding and de-icing of snow and ice, for deliveries to the oil drilling industry and food processing plants, for instance.

Kemira’s areas of growth are in pulp and paper chemicals, water treatment chemicals, paints and coatings and industrial chemicals. Calcium chloride has not been among Kemira’s core business areas. Production plants of calcium chloride are in Kokkola, Finland, and in Helsingborg, Sweden. Kemira further operates a liquid calcium chloride production unit in Delfzijl, Holland, on a 50/50 joint venture basis with Akzo. www.kemira.com

Kemira Agrees Sale to TETRA

Uponor’s wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary, Uponor Aldyl Com-pany, Inc. has sold its business and substantially all of its

assets to PW Poly Corporation, a manufacturer of polyethylene pipe in September. The transaction, valued at $15 million.

Uponor Aldyl Company is a supplier of gas pipe and fittings systems to the U.S. utility market, with net sales exceeding $40 million last year. The business is based in Shawnee and Tulsa, Oklahoma, where it employed some 165 persons in the end of 2003. Uponor Aldyl Company is a part of Uponor’s Municipal Ameri-cas division, which was created in 2002 as a home for Uponor’s municipal infrastructure businesses in North and South America. In spring 2003, the Division’s largest business unit, Uponor ETI, was divested to PW Eagle, Inc.

Uponor continues to run its rapidly growing housing solutions business in North America. Based in Apple Valley, MN, Uponor is the North American market leader in hydronic radiant floor heating systems and in plastic tap water systems.

Uponor Sells US Subsidiary

Uponor is one of the world’s leading suppliers of housing and environmental technology. The Group employs 4800 people in 23 countries. Net sales in 2003 totalled to €1 billion. Uponor Corporation is listed on the Helsinki Exchanges in Finland. www.uponor.com

Ahlstrom Corporation and Lydall, Inc. announced the launch of a strategic alliance on July 30th through their

U.S.-based subsidiaries. The partnership offers promising growth opportunities for the Lydall micro glass product platform in North America. Ahlstrom is a global leader in filtration materials and has a strong emphasis on liquid engine filtration products in North America. Lydall is a world leader in producing wet-laid micro glass products for challenging filtration/separation applications.

Ahlstrom’s Fiber Composites division manufactures products for engine filtration, non woven and reinforce-ment composites markets worldwide. Its engineered

Ahlstrom Teams up with Lydall

NEWS

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fabrics are used in industrial products as well as everyday consumer products, such as surgical gowns, tea bags and wipes. Its expertise in reinforcement composites serves the energy, marine, sporting goods, and transport sectors. The Fiber Composites division employs more than 2600 people, operates from 16 sites in Europe, the Americas, and Asia, and in 2003 had net sales of €645 million.

Ahlstrom Corporation, headquartered in Helsinki, employs about 6500 people and serves customers in more than 20 countries. Today, annual net sales of Ahlstrom’s fiber solutions business are in the region of €1.6 billion. www.ahlstrom.com

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15Headlines 3/2004

Marita Cauthen has been decorated with the Knight, First Class of the Order of the Lion

of Finland. Jukka Leino, Finland’s Consul General in New York decorated her at a ceremony in his residence on June 17.

Cauthen has worked actively in the field of Finn-ish-American media and culture. She is a longtime trustee of the former Finnish Cultural Center at Fitchburg State College. During that time she served as chairman of its program committee and brought numerous performers and speakers to the Fitchburg area. Fitchburg, MA, and its surrounding area have been one of the liveliest Finnish communities in

Marita Cauthen Knighted

The U.S. Ambassador to Finland Earle I. Mack and Mrs. Carol Mack hosted a reception in honor of Fulbright

exchange program grantees at their residence on August 26th. Jukka Valtasaari, Finnish Ambassador to Washington D.C., and Paavo Lipponen, Speaker of the Parliament of Finland also welcomed American Fulbright grantees to Finland.

Ambassadors Welcome Fulbright Grantees

the U.S. Its Finnish ‘peak’ was a hundred years ago, when it boasted about 40,000 residents of Finnish origin.

Maria Cauthen has been Editor-in-Chief of the Finnish American Weekly “Raivaaja” (The Pioneer) since 1984. The Fitchburg based newspaper was founded in 1905. It contains articles in Finnish and English. Cauthen’s and “Raivaaja’s” role in the Finnish-American community of Fitchburg were recently highlighted by the Los Angeles Times in a large article titled ‘Invisible Finnish Community Still Has One Proud Voice Left’.

(l-r) Mrs Päivi Lipponen, Mrs Carol Dickey Mack, Mrs Etel Valta-saari, Ambassador Jukka Valtasaari and Speaker of the Parliament of Finland Paavo Lipponen.

A joint get-together of trade associations and chambers of commerce, including

the Finnish-American Chamber of Com-merce, was held at their administrative home Fintra in Helsinki on October 7th. Finland’s Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paula Lehtomäki was the guest speaker and her speech covered topical trade issues.

Trade News Shared at Fintra

Minister Paula Lehtomäki was the guest speaker of trade associations and chambers of commerce joint get-together at Fintra.

NEWS

Headlines 3/200416

Art at the HeThe new U.S. Ambassador to Finland, Earle I. Mack, sees great economic poten-tial in Finland’s cultural riches, and stresses that building friendship and trust is his priority. Headlines meets the Ambas-sador and hears what has impressed him most in his fi rst few months in Finland.

The United States Ambassador to Finland, Earle I. Mack, presented

his Letters of Credence to the Presi-dent of the Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen on Thursday, June 10th, 2004, having arrived in Finland on June 9th.In business, the Ambassador was Senior Partner and Chief Financial Officer of the century-old commercial real estate player, The Mack Company. He was on the Executive Committee and Member of the Board of Directors of the National Realty Committee. Articles for the ABA Banking Journal and The Mortgage and Real Estate Executives Report are also listed among his business accomplish-ments. Ambassador Mack was also on the Board of Directors and the Execu-tive Committee of White Rose Foods, the largest food distributor in the New York Metropolitan area.

Dedicated to the arts, Ambassador Mack was Chairman and CEO of the New

From speech to Finnish-American

Chamber of Commerce, September 9th, 2004.

Investing in Culture“When I was appointed as Ambassador to Finland, I knew that it would be a par-ticularly rewarding experience given the country’s strong commitment to culture and the arts. Since my arrival, I’ve been extremely impressed by the number of festivals, concerts, and cultural events, not only in Helsinki but throughout the country. There are almost more festivals than lakes!

In the past few months, I’ve had the pleasure of getting to see a bit of your dynamic and beautiful country. It has been enormously uplifting. I have visited Pori, Savonlinna, Porvoo, Imatra, and Turku. I hope to visit many more Finnish com-munities, business, and cultural heritage sites in the near future.

Spotlight on Earle I. Mack

York State Council on the Arts, which has a close to $50 million annual budget, and of which he is now Chairman Emeritus, as well as extremely active in a variety of artistic and cultural organizations.

In public service, Ambassador Mack served 12 years as the Chairman of the Board of the Benjamin N. Cardoza Law School, where he is currently Chairman Emeritus. Earle Mack has been a Member of the Governor’s Committee on Scholastic Achievement; a Member of the Advisory Board of the New York State Business Venture Partnership; a Member of the Board of Trustees, New York Racing Association; and he served for 7 years as the Chairman of the New York State Racing Commission.

He is married to Carol Dickey Mack and has two children, Andrew and Bea-trice.

17Headlines 3/2004

eart of New Ambassador’s MissionHL: What are your expectations of Finnish-American business life, and where do you see areas for development?First, as Ambassador, it’s my job to promote the best bilateral rela-tions. I don’t think any Ambassador can promote good bilateral relations unless there is friendship and trust. Once that bridge is crossed then we can knock down the barriers to doing business anywhere in the world.

In order to achieve my goals of bringing the business com-munity in the U.S. and Finland as close together as possible, we are working on several initiatives. I would hope to bring to bear my business and cultural background in order to promote busi-ness. To start with, we hope for a number of initiatives with the Finnish private sector.

One upcoming initiative is on November 23rd in Tampere, cen-tral Finland, where we will hold an entrepreneurial forum bringing together experts from Finland and the U.S. to share their knowledge and discuss venture capital formation. The forum is called “V2C” – “Venture to Capital.” We’ve invited some leaders from the U.S. capital market to come over and talk about the entrepreneurial spirit and how to access and create capital.

In addition, I see tremendous potential in the arts, culture and heritage field here: they are community builders and friendship builders, but what many people don’t fully appreciate, even in the U.S., is that the arts are “big business.” As Chairman of the New York State Council on the Arts, we commissioned a McKinsey and Company study about the arts as an economic engine, called “You’ve Gotta Have Art.” The message of that study was that the cultural tourist spends a lot more money than the average tourist, and even more than the sports tourist. This was looked at for a time as the “gold standard” in the U.S. for arts and cultural advocacy.• TIM BIRD

Headlines: What did you know about Finland before you received your posting, and how has the country met your expectations?Ambassador Mack: I had never been here before. But I had known that Finland was a heroic and brave country that had a strong system of social justice. I knew about the humanitarian initiatives of President Ahtisaari, about (historian) Max Jacobson, and more recently about President Halonen and her initiatives all over the world. The Finnish arts were very close to my heart. Of course, I knew about Sibelius, whose music was an inspiration for me as a boy. And I had heard that the Sibelius Academy produces the best conductors in the world. I also knew about the greats of Finnish architecture, the Saarinens, father and son, and Alvar Aalto. I have followed the career of Alvar Aalto, and was so impressed that, soon after I arrived in Finland, I even went to Vyborg (in Russian Karelia) to look at his library. There has been a movement in the Finnish-American community to restore the library there. Only today, while driving back from one of the ministries, I was struck by the beauty of a building near the harbor. My driver told me it was the HQ of a big paper company (the Stora Enso head office near the South Harbour) and that Alvar Aalto was the architect. Forty years or so after its completion, the building stands as a monument to an architectural style that still holds up as original and innovative.

The Finnish people have been very gracious and very warm, and I certainly agree with William Randolph Hearst Jr. who visited Finland in 1979 and afterwards wrote: “The Finns are friends, and more pro-American than many of the Western European countries for whom we Marshalled so much money.”

My expectations before coming here were great, but objec-tively speaking, I don’t see anything that hasn’t exceeded my expectations.

Creative about CruisesThis year there are projected to be 204 cruise ships carrying approximately 212,000 passengers stopping in Helsinki. A recent report states that the average cruise ship passenger to Finland in 2003 spent only 126 euros. The average visitor who overnighted spent 380 euros - three times as much! Just imagine how much revenue could be generated for Helsinki if more of these cruise ships would stop and stay overnight, perhaps to see some planned major cultural or sporting events starting as early as July in Helsinki. This could have an additional ripple effect for all business in the Helsinki area. It could also increase conference traffic. Cultural and sporting events of importance, such as the World Championships in Athletics, will help entice the tour operators to stay overnight.

Of course, Finland’s strategic location in the region is important in broader economic terms. In addition to entering the Finnish market, many American companies – 290 strong - are interested in working with Finnish business partners to serve the Baltic countries and north-eastern Russia. There are wonderful opportunities that – with continued creative thinking – promise dividends for Finland’s future growth.

My family and I recently took a bike tour around the center of Helsinki, and it was one of the most pleasant days I’ve spent. This is one of the very few cities I’ve visited with such extensive, clearly marked, and safe bike paths. We biked all around the bay, past Kiasma museum, around the Opera House, and through the park. With the addition of a new concert hall currently being planned, which could boast the best acoustics in Europe, I think that this exciting new cultural enclave could become a major tourist destination on a par with Lincoln Center in New York – but even more attractive to visitors, because of the beauty of the natural setting. With fine restaurants and hotels nearby, this could become a great cultural axis and a booming business environment. It could incentivize additional development of hotels, shops, fine restaurants, small galleries and other cultural establishments.

I recently read that the Minister of Culture, Tanja Karpela, believes Finland needs to invest more in culture as a means of eco-nomic development. The Ministry of Culture clearly recognizes the multiplier effect which employment in the arts has on a country’s economy. The cultural sector can provide a dynamic engine of growth and diversification to your country’s economy

This type of government support is an excellent start, but the country could benefit further economically through stron-ger private sector support of the arts. Corporate sponsorship of cultural events can be a powerful public relations tool, just as promoting visibility for corporations in the realm of sporting events does.”

Headlines 3/200418

On August 19th Finpro celebrated 85 years of export promotion operations with 1000 invited guests represent-

ing client and partner organizations.The anniversary seminar was opened

by Matti Honkala, Chairman of Finpro’s Supervisory Board, who looked back on the history of Finpro and to the future challenges.

“The basic Finnish export will certainly continue to rely on strong information tech-nology, engineering and forest technology in the future, but sectors such as the service branch are increasingly interested in global business opportunities,” he said.

“In the future, retail business can develop into a very international business sector. We have already seen the arrival of several foreign retail shops and chains in Finland. The experiences we have from the Baltic countries and Russia are encouraging. The success in international, tense com-

Participants in the Finpro seminar panel discussion (from left): Tapani Kaskeala, President of Finpro ry; Pekka Leppälä, CEO of Finpro Marketing Ltd; Hannu Vaajoen-suu, CEO of BasWare Oyj; Jori Vilermo, CEO of Glassrobots Oy; journalist Matti Remes, who led the discussion; Anne Linnonmaa, CEO of Anne Linnonmaa Oy; Eero Kotkasaari, CEO of Joutsen Finland Oy; and Juha Vidgrén, Vice Chairman of the Board, Ponsse Oyj.

Finpro at 85:

National Approach to Global Strategy

Finpro provides services, support and information to help Finnish companies enter the international market swiftly, safely and efficiently. Finpro has

51 Finland Trade Centres in 40 countries around the world as well as in two Trade Centres in Finland.

The company name Finpro was preceded by Suomen Ulkomaankauppaliitto (Finnish Foreign Trade Association) and Suomen Vientiyhdistys (Finnish Export Association), which was founded by a group of businessmen in 1919, in the back room of a shoe shop in Turku in south-western Finland. Even after 85 years, the basic task for Finpro remains the same: to speed up the international-ization of Finnish companies, and to help companies to avoid pitfalls in global markets. In recent years Finpro has focused its operations and services on SME companies, helping them to utilize more open global business development.

www.fi npro.fi

Finpro in Brief

19Headlines 3/2004

petition can only come from finding and investing in new markets. Here I also see a lot of work for Finpro and its partners.”

National strategy

In his keynote speech Jorma Ollila, Chairman and CEO of Nokia Corpora-tion, analyzed the challenges the global economy places before Finnish society. He also emphasized the need for interna-tional business know-how in international competition.

“Nokia as well as other Finnish com-panies have been among the first ones in international markets, and I see that Finpro has had a significant role in this development. In the future, we all have a united goal: to make sure that the coming decades will be as successful. We have to find the right globalization strategies – nationally as well as in every company. We can best utilize the benefits of glo-balization by being well prepared. Very different strategies can lead to national success but, on the other hand, if we do not have a national strategy, somebody else will make the decisions for us.”

Representatives of the three Finn-ish companies, BasWare, Glassrobots and Ponsse, which have been awarded the “Internationalization Award of the President of the Republic” introduced their companies to the audience. In their lively presentations they all seemed to have similar keys to international success: listen to the client; do not be content with only meeting the client’s needs; deliver superior products and services.

Innovation center to Shanghai

As an example of public-private partner-ship Tapani Kaskeala, President and CEO of Finpro, introduced the FinChi innovation centre in Shanghai. The promoters of the innovation center project are the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Tekes, Nokia, and Finpro with Finpro as the operating orga-nization. The FinChi center will host both Finnish and Chinese companies and orga-nizations. In his closing speech, Kaskeala also mentioned that Finpro’s international network of Finland Trade Centers will have an increasing role in the intensified work for increasing foreign investments in Fin-land.• RIITTA KUOSMANEN

Finpro Houston in Texas has been serving Finnish companies since 1982. Today, the Houston office has a local team of two headed by Michael Lovejoy. He has over twenty years of experience in international business in all phases of the business development process, including planning, marketing, financing and negotiation. At Finpro Houston, he has served Finnish companies in the electronics, energy, logistics and telecommunications sectors.

www.finpro.fi/houston

Finpro Stamford’s five-man team is headed by Lasse Baldauf, in Connecticut. Baldauf is also Head of Fin-pro’s North American operations (Finpro Canada, Houston and Silicon Valley, in addition to the Stamford office). Baldauf has over twenty years of international experience in project and logistics management in various regions including Asia, the Middle East, Canada and the U.S. Before his Stamford appointment, he was Finpro’s Trade Commissioner in Houston, Texas.

www.finpro.fi/stamford

Finpro Stamford

Lasse Baldauf

Finpro Houston

Jussi Heinilä

Kari Janhunen

Finpro in Silicon Valley

Project Advisory Services in Washington has years of com-bined experience specializing in the development markets of the World Bank (IBRD, IDA, IFC, MIGA) and Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). The location of the Washington office makes it possible to get the most up-to-date and accurate information on the World Bank and IDB business opportunities. Financial Counselor Kari Janhunen heads the Washington services. The office is located at the Embassy of Finland in Washington D.C.

Finpro Project Advisory Services consists of offices in Helsinki, Brussels, Washington and Manila.

www.finpro.fi/pas/washington

Jussi Heinilä, Head of Trade Center in Silicon Valley, leads a team of six experts in Palo Alto, California. Silicon Valley office was established in 2000 to support Finnish SME technology firms in their U.S. entry. Silicon Valley offers a unique environment to increase global credibility and presence through powerful partnerships (80% of leading technology firms have offices in Silicon Valley). Eco-system is also supported by endless innovations and risk capital.

Heinilä has worked for some 20 years in the IT and Tele-communications sector with experience both as a project manager, and in management positions in sales and market-ing, as well as being in charge of channel development in international software businesses. He was also a co-founder of two successful wireless and e-commerce firms. He is experienced in assisting Finnish technology and service companies in their market expansions and new market entries. Prior to his Silicon Valley appointment, Heinilä was Senior Consultant at Finpro’s London office.

www.finpro.fi/siliconvalley

Michael Lovejoy

Finpro PAS Washington D.C.

Headlines 3/200420

Source: Etla1 2 3 4

Technological expertise of theacquired company

Current clientele of the acquiredcompany

Nordic markets

Marketing and businessexpertise of the acquired

company

Increasing the markets of theacquired company

Wholesalers andretailers

Industry

Services, energy,construction

Motives of companies subject tobusiness acquisition

1=no impact 4=significant impact

According to a recent Invest in Fin-land survey, foreign firms have invested a total of over €32 billion

in Finland and over 2200 foreign businesses operate in Finland employing over 185,000 people in the country. Compared with EU15 countries, Finland is below the average in attracting foreign investment. If the new member states are taken into account, Finland’s position is even lower.

During the first six months of this year 86 foreign companies invested in Finland, half of which were so-called ‘Greenfield’ start-up companies, mainly in the retail or service sectors. There are very few indus-trial investments, although these are usually bigger in size. Most foreign investments are from Sweden (30%), the U.S. (15%), Germany, Denmark and the UK.

Of the some 30 Russian companies currently located in Finland, 2-3 invest in Finland each year. An intriguing fact, how-ever, is that 6-7 Indian IT-companies have also set up operations in Finland. They have hired local staff especially for marketing and the actual programme codes are written in India. Their targets are the large companies with a need for big IT-solutions.

Invest in Finland, in conjunction with Tekes (the National Technology Agency of Finland), and Sitra (the Finnish National Fund for Research and Development), com-missioned a survey focused on the character

of operations of foreign subsidiaries, their motives for locating in Finland, and their views on the strengths and weaknesses of Finland.

“The Finnish and surrounding markets are proving a popular pull for foreign inves-tors,” said Sirkka Aura, Chief Executive of Invest in Finland when the survey was

published on September 3rd. “Finland’s excellence in technological expertise, its top-level business environment and its location as a business centre for Northern Europe continue to be very competitive factors for foreign-owned companies. The findings from the research confirm our thoughts and show that companies are coming here to stay with investment plans for the surrounding markets.”

Foreign companies have made signifi-cantly fewer Greenfield investments than acquisitions in Finland. In general, acquired companies are more export-oriented than new investment businesses and they are also larger in size with regards to person-nel. These companies are also more active in R&D and innovation activities than Greenfield businesses although the average spending on R&D does not differ signifi-cantly between the two groups. Majority of acquired companies are within the industrial sector whilst nearly 70% of foreign-owned Greenfield investments are centred on the wholesale and retail sector.

Motives for location

The company’s sector is an important factor in decisions relating to acquisition and loca-tion. An acquired company’s technological expertise has more significance for indus-trial companies, whilst wholesale and retails

Finland Attracts Wider Investment BaseInvest in Finland, Tekes and Sitra commissioned a survey on foreign companies in Finland.

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21Headlines 3/2004

and companies’ technological expertise. The greatest weaknesses were the level of personal and corporate taxation as well as labour costs. Foreign-owned companies regarded the strengths more positively and the weaknesses less negatively than domestic companies.

Growth objectives, future prospects

The study reveals that foreign companies have higher growth expectations for the next three years than Finnish companies, although this is explained by the sectoral

distribution of foreign and Finnish compa-nies. The industrial sector shows no great differences in growth expectations between foreign subsidiaries, domestic subsidiaries or domestic independent companies. The wholesale and retail sector as well as ser-vices show greater differences, and in this sector foreign subsidiaries have higher growth expectations. The highest expecta-tions of all groups are within foreign-owned service sector companies.

In terms of R&D intensity, the most inno-vative companies have the highest growth expectations. R&D activity shows a clear correlation with higher growth expectations. There are no statistical differences between foreign-owned or domestic companies. How-ever, foreign companies have made more so-called radical innovations or completely new innovations for the targeted market. Thus R&D would seem to be ‘more productive’ in foreign-owned companies.

The single most important factor for a company’s future prospects in Finland is domestic demand for their products. Finn-ish expertise comes second and the third factor is the group’s regional strategy beyond Finland. More than their Finnish counter-parts, foreign subsidiaries’ future prospects are affected by demand abroad and wider regional strategies outside Finland. For Finnish companies, the excellent Finnish expertise and the importance of companies located in Finland are more central than for foreign companies. The high cost level is also more problematic for Finnish compa-nies. • RIITTA KUOSMANEN

The survey can be found online at www.investinfinland.fi/topical_issues/en_GB/surveys/

operations for the service sector in Nordic markets have been an important factor.

Companies making Greenfield invest-ments have located in Finland primarily to acquire new customers and for co-operat-ing and networking reasons. Access to the Nordic markets is also an important factor. Raw materials or technological expertise remain secondary issues for this group. Nearly 70% of Greenfield companies are in the wholesale and retail sector. Motives for location were examined for the 1995-1999 period and later. However, motivation after the turn of the millennium showed little aberration for Greenfield businesses. The significance of co-operation and networks and the role of the Nordic markets have become more significant while the impor-tance of acquiring new customers and tech-nological expertise has declined reduced. In addition, the influence of corporate taxation and transport costs has grown.

The most important factor for a foreign company when acquiring a company in Fin-land was the need to expand its markets and the marketing and business expertise of the acquired company. The third reason was access to the Nordic markets. Raw materials, corporate taxation level, transport costs or public sector subsidies did not seem to have a big impact on decision-making. Motivation remained fairly similar for those entering the market before and after the turn of the millennium. Only preconditions for R&D activities are statistically significantly different.

Operations of foreign subsidiaries

The development of acquired companies has been relatively favorable after the change of ownership, in terms of growth of operations and profitability. The management of most subsidiaries located in Finland feels able to influence strategic decisions concerning the company such as the extent and focus of operations, within the group.

Over 60% of the surveyed companies support the view that foreign-owned subsid-iaries gain significant or fairly significant advantages from the technological expertise and financial channels of the group in ques-tion. Over half also believe that they have benefited from the group’s foreign units’ marketing channels. Technological expertise was seen as an important competitive advan-tage for industrial companies and they are more predisposed to working together with Finnish universities and other institutions than companies in other sectors.

Greenfield businesses’ R&D activities are mainly concentrated in adapting the products to local markets, while acquired companies’ R&D activities mainly consist of developing products either to local or global markets.

According to the study, Finland’s most obvious strengths are people’s honesty and dependability, the functioning infrastructure

Marketing and business expertise

Stability and functionality of the society

1 2 3 4

Level of income tax

Labour costs

Level of corporate tax

Price of energy

Knowledge of Russian markets

Cooperation between researchinstitutions and companies

Flexible operational method

Initiative of people

Level of education

Technological expertise

Functional infrastructure

Honesty and reliability of people

Strengths and weaknesses of Finland

1= significant weakness2= slight weakness3= slight strength4= significant strength

Foreign-ownedcompaniesDomesticcompanies

Source: Etla

Sirkka Aura, Chief Executive at Invest in Finland.

Headlines 3/200422

Contemporary bedroom.

Time to Design, Inc. in Georgia:

Designs with FiTime to Design, Inc received American Society of Inte

Finnish born Helena Stokes’ Time to Design, Inc, was recently awarded the prestigious American Society of Interior Design-ers (ASID) Atlanta Chapter Award for her Epic Lindmont

Leasing Center renovation. “The work of Time to Design Inc. is awe inspiring,” notes client

representative, Velinda Bowman. “Literally every day since their Atlanta project began someone walks into our office and exclaims ‘I had no idea how beautiful this would be’. They often add ‘if the apartments look like this, I’ll take one’. We really like that!”

The project involved renovating the apartment leasing office built in 1949 and located in the heart of Atlanta’s trendy Buckhead residential/shopping district. The office, with its low ceilings, was earlier adorned with crown moldings and mismatched mahogany furnishings. The color scheme was hunter green and burgundy. The crown moldings and chair rails were stripped down. “Run-ning trim, so appropriate in many Southern buildings, does not belong in this retro-modern style building,” says Helena. “Now the walls are painted with soothing, fresh colors. The space has an art gallery feel.”

The space, which lacked organization and proper adjacencies, now provides a work flow for the staff and visitors. The copy area is now located centrally within the office. To make it “not so ordi-nary”, Helena installed fire truck red tool cabinets to serve as paper storage and hung white cubes on the wall to support some earthy pottery. “I like the juxtaposition of the materials; the unexpected among the ordinary”, says Helena. In the hallway natural color wooden doors with frosted glass panels were installed creating interest and rhythm along the hall. Even when used in their closed position, they allow natural light to flow into the hallway. Lighting fixtures for the entire space were also carefully considered.

Classic references

Most of the furnishings used were designed in the 1950s with a Scandinavian flair. When the leasing office manager suggested using the classic Eero Saarinen (world famous Finnish architect) table, the Finnish born Helena was delighted to oblige. “I added classic Arne Jacobsen chairs and hung a ‘PH4/3’ pendant fixture by Jacobsen over the vignette, the function of which was to provide a comfortable meeting area for the leasing agents and customers. The manager wanted to incorporate two vintage photographs taken on the property into the reception area. It all works together well.

“True to my design concept, it was then natural to utilize some more contemporary touches in the interior. The leasing agent’s desks are imported from France, the chairs are by popular Ameri-can designers and the modern leather sofa is Italian. By utilizing furnishings and light fixtures designed in either the 1950s or later in 2000 and beyond, we are paying homage to the era the building shell was constructed, while channeling the clients use of current technology and their bright outlook toward the future,” Helena explains.

Time to Design provided all documents necessary for the demolition and new construction features, including partitions, lighting, electrical/data outlet placement and their relationship to furnishings/equipment; finishes and detailing the wall mounted recessed shelving. Helena also worked very closely with the com-pany, which provided built-in work surfaces for the offices.

“This office got a much needed facelift,” says Helena Stokes. “It is now a fresh haven for its staff and visitors alike. The space was

Leasing center rear reception area.

Traditional bedroom.

23Headlines 3/2004

designed to be a well-functioning, happy working environment. In developing our design concept we wanted to respect the era of the building, while promoting the present. Additional design features were to be budget conscientious, specify construction materials that were readily available and methods that were fairly easy to accomplish. We wanted to provide a feel of rhythm, energy and grace to the space.”

Highly qualifi ed

Before establishing her company, Helena worked as Project Coor-dinator for Gensler, formerly Godwin Associates, in Atlanta and before that for several years she was Senior Designer at Carson Guest, Inc. in Atlanta. “I first arrived in the U.S. in 1985 when I was only 21, planning to stay only six months for horseback riding. But things turned out differently,” observes Helena, “I have been living permanently in the U.S. ever since and today I have a family with two children in Chamblee, Georgia.”

Helena Stokes is certified by the National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) and is a Georgia registered Interior Designer. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in interior design from The American Intercontinental University, formerly The American College, in Atlanta and her associate degree in

Finnish FlairInterior Designers award.

marketing from the Finnish Businessmen’s Commercial College in Helsinki, Finland. She has taken numerous ASID continuing education courses from 1992 to present. “Due to my internationally influenced background, I am eager to embrace various cultural and life/work lifestyles and I base my designs on clients’ needs rather than implementing one style in my design work. I have experience on a variety of projects in a wide array of industries.

Time To Design in Atlanta, Georgia provides space planning, test fits and field surveys, design and drafting, mill work detail-ing, construction administration, selection of furnishings, fixtures and equipment, and preparation of time schedules. Drafting of projects is performed utilizing the industry standard AutoCad and Micro-Station drawing software and by hand when needed. The firm specializes in high-end and mid-range projects, with approxi-mately 90% commercial and 10% residential clientele. • RIITTA KUOSMANEN

Helena Stokes, founder of Time to Design Inc.

Contemporary living area.

Headlines 3/200424

Until Nov 10FIDM, Los Angeles, CAMarimekko exhibit

Until Nov 28 (2005 national dates to be confirmed)University of Nebraska-LincolnExhibition: Mirror of the Wood: A Century of the Woodcut Print in Finland

Nov 5 - 7, 8pm - 11pmWalt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, CAMikko Franck conducts Los Angeles Philharmonic

Nov 9The Rasmus in concertKnitting Factory, NYwww.therasmus.com

One of Europe’s longest established jazz festivals is also an annual celebration of mostly American musical influences. The Pori Jazz Festival, staged in the small

town of the same name on Finland’s west coast, has attracted its fair share of musical legends in its 39-year history. The ‘jazz’ label is interpreted fairly liberally, and big-name soul and blues acts, from B.B. King to James Brown, have headlined over the years. The top act at the 2004 event was Motown stalwart Stevie Wonder, who played to a packed arena at the festival’s scenic Kirjurinluoto island park on July 18. Ticket sales for this day alone topped 16,000, out of a total of 70,000 for the whole nine-day attraction.

Pori, normally a relatively sleepy community, comes alive for the annual festival, with the riverside turned into a buzzing ‘Jazz Street’, churches opening their doors to performances, and pubs and bars throbbing to the beat of bass guitars across the town. In all, Pori Jazz 2004 was the umbrella for 110 concerts, 60 of them with free admission, with 100 bands, 60 from outside Finland.

The venue for the main outdoor concerts is traditionally the Kirjurinluoto, filled to capacity twice at Pori 2004. A second arena, the nearby Delta Arena, was unused this year but according to the festival’s founder and artistic director, Jyrki Kangas, it will almost certainly be used as a venue in 2005, when Pori celebrates its 40th anniversary.

“During the autumn we are planning new concert con-cepts for the area,” he says. “At the same time, we’ll be taking a new look at the use of the Karjaranta area and one option is to develop it for staging younger people’s music events.” www.porijazz.fi • TIM BIRD

Events calenderwww.fi nland.org

Nov 11-13Avery Fisher hall, Lincoln Center, NYCKarita Mattila & New York Philharmonics (Sakari Oramo)

Nov 12-Dec 4HIM U.S. Tourwww.heartagram.com

Dec 3-12, 8pm -11pmWalt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, CATristan Project (Esa-Pekka Salonen)

Dec 10, 8pmScandinavia House, NYC‘WIDE’, a concert of contemporary Finnish music (Jukka Tiensuu, Kaija Saariaho and Sampo Haapamäki) www.counterinduction.com

Dec 17, 21, 25, 29, Jan 12Metropolitan Opera, Lincoln Center, NYCKát’a Kabanová, by Leosˇ Janásˇek (Karita Mattila & Jorma Silvasti)

Star of Wonder Wows Pori

Pori Jazz 2005 will be staged from July 16tthto 24th, 2005.

Pho

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25Headlines 3/2004

Finnish Woodcuts in Nebraska

Mirror of the Wood: A Century of the Woodcut Print in Finland” is on exhibit at the Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery and the Eisentrager-Howard Gallery

at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln until November 28th.

A national tour of the exhibition through 2005 will include the Nordic Heritage Museum in Seattle and Carleton College Art Gallery in Northfield, Minnesota.

The exhibition considers the evocative aura of Finland, a country of pristine forests and lakes, distilled into a love of naturalness and aesthetic sophistication in the 70 prints by 39 artists from throughout the country.

“The mystique of the Finnish character enables these artists to remain attuned to their heritage and nature,” says Professor Karen Kunc, the exhibition curator and organizer, of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Wood is a strong, assertive material that endures the assault and energy of the carver, who leaves a residue from tools that cut into once-living materials, making a readily understood mark of the hand.

Wood, as the abundant material in the forested land of Finland, has determined the characteristics of Finnish houses, saunas, folk crafts, and is a ready material for printing blocks. Wood is a carrier of our narrative records that endure through the ages. Today wood suggests the endangered wilderness and forests, as well as the literal and figurative acidic degeneration of information in newspapers and our throw-away “pulp culture”.

In this exhibition these issues are a subtext to the graphic power so readily apparent and utilized in the woodcut prints by the earliest artists in Finland, to the innovations and challenges undertaken by the contemporary artists who have become significant in Finland and around the world.

This exhibition is supported by grants from the Nebraska Arts Council, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Arts and Humanities Research Fund, the Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts UNL, MEDICI, the American-Scandinavian Foundation, the Finlandia Foundation, and by FRAME, Finnish Fund for Art Exchange. www.finland.org

Opposite Side of Water, 2002, Heli Kurunsaari.

Skier, 1945, Erkki Tanttu.

Woodpecker, 1999, Outi Kirves.

Headlines 3/200426

The cooperation of the FACC Chap-ters has intensified during the last 18 months. The Annual FACC National

Meeting was organized by the FACC-Mid-west in Chicago, and the follow-up meeting in Washington D.C. on October 1st. The hosting organization was the Finnish-American Business Council the Greater Washington Area (FABC). The FABC was established for networking and promoting Finnish know-how in the area. The FABC has 35 members and it is chaired by Kari Janhunen, Head of Finpro’s Project Advi-sory Services in Washington D.C.

The program started with opening reception of the Sacral Space Exhibition at the Embassy of Finland on Thursday September 30.

Next morning the group of some 50 people headed to the Federal Reserve (the Fed) where Senior Advisor in the Division of Research and Statistics Thomas Simp-son shed some light on the U.S. central bank’s operations. The Fed was created by the U.S. Congress and enacted in 1913 when President Woodrow Wilson signed the Owen-Glass Act into law. The Federal Reserve System is composed of a central Board of Governors in Washington D.C. and twelve regional banks in major U.S. cities. Chairman of the Board of Governors is Alan Greenspan.

The Fed visit was followed by a tour of the National Press Club (NPC) hosted by Press Counselor Kristiina Helenius form the Embassy of Finland. The visit and lun-

cheon at the NPC was sponsored by Antero Lahtinen of Finnair. The speakers were Gil Klein, former NPC President and syn-dicated Washington correspondent. Matti Anttonen, Minister, Deputy Chief of Mission and Pekka Voutilainen, Minister-Counselor for Economic Affairs at the Embassy of Finland, discussed the topic “Why Finland? – How to boost coordination between the Embassy and the FACCs?”

Luncheon speaker was Rick Dunham, White House correspondent for Business Week and President of NPC from January 2005 onwards. Dunham reported the latest interesting news from the presidential can-didates’ first debate in Florida.

Activity Intensifi esFACC Chapters Meet in Washington D.C.

The Finnish-American Chambers of Commerce representatives at the Federal Reserve in Washington D.C.

27Headlines 3/2004

Semi-Annual Meeting

The FACC semi-annual meeting was opened by Arto Saarinen, Chairman of the FACC-Midwest, at Ambassador Jukka Valtasaari’s residence. Saarinen gave a brief background of the previous national meetings in New York and Chicago. One of the resolutions of the Chicago meeting was agreement on the-soon-to-be-published first national FACC directory. Maija Julin, Markku Vartiainen, Bo Long, Janine Paavola and Jari Satola were nominated to sit on the National Membership Directory Committee.

Discussions about the rules for membership were on the agenda as result of variation in practices. There was emphasis on the need for consistent rules of membership, but acceptance that regional needs and differences should be taken into consideration.

Distribution costs for Headlines magazine were also discussed. The FACC-New York has subsidized distribution costs and it was agreed that the future costs should and will be prorated based on the number of copies mailed per region.

An FACC website with a national front page was also proposed. The objective of the site should be to promote business contacts, and local Chapters would have the responsibility of maintaining their own sites. Currently New York, Minnesota, Pacific Coast, Dallas and Washington D.C. have websites of their own. The Web-site Development Committee was nominated with representatives from each Chapter. The goal is to go live by December 6.

The meeting was followed by a reception and a cocktail buffet hosted by Ambassador Valtasaari.

The next national meeting will be held in Atlanta on April 22nd, 2005 hosted by the FACC-Southeast. • RIITTA KUOSMANEN

Gil Klein, former NPC President and syndicated Washington correspondent was one of the guest speakers.

(front l-r) Pia Baroni, FACC-Midwest; Leena Lahti, FABC Washington DC; Ann-Christine Westerlund, FACC-New York; Päivi Spoon, FABC; Ilona Linnoila FABC; and Katariina Anderson, FACC-Midwest. (back l-r) Maija Julin, FACC-Midwest; Sari Heiskanen, FABC; Anna Grönlund, Embassy of Finland; Gabriella Riska, Embassy of Finland; and Kristiina Helenius, Embassy of Finland.

(l-r) Erkki Liikanen, Governor of the Bank of Finland; Aneta Owens; Etel Valtasaari and Ambassador Jaakko Valtasaari.

Visiting the National Press Club: (l-r) Kari Janhunen, FABC in Washington DC; Matti Anttonen, Embassy of Finland; Antero Lahtinen, FACC-New York; Kristiina Helenius, Embassy of Finland; guest speaker Rick Dunham; and Pekka Vouti-lainen, Embassy of Finland.

(l-r) Esa Pernu, Nordea Bank Finland, New York; Jarmo Sahlstedt, M-real USA Corp; Antero Lahtinen, Finnair; Tage Lindholm, Finnsteel; Fred Niemi, FACC-Midwest; Bo W. Long, FACC-New York.

Headlines 3/200428

HELSINKIc/o FINTRA, PO Box 50 (Kaupintie 2), FIN-00441 HelsinkiTel. +358-9-228 28 406 Fax. +358-9-228 28 328Email: mimmi.petrelius@fi ntra.fi Matti Sundberg, President & ChairmanMimmi Petrelius, Secretary General

NEW YORK866 UN Plaza, Suite 250New York, NY 10017Tel. (212) 821-0225Fax. (212) 750-4418Email: finnchambr@aol.comAntero Lahtinen, PresidentHannele Turja, Secretary

MIDWEST950 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 209Glenview, IL 60025Tel: 847-298-8980Fax: 847-298-8590Email: facc@rexxell.comArto Saarinen, PresidentPia Baroni, Secretary

PACIFIC COASTPO BOX 3058Tustin CA 92781-3058Tel. (310) 547-9705 Fax. (310) 801-4848 Mobile (310) 457-8783 Email: info@faccpacific.comMatt Railo, President

SOUTHEASTFACC Southeast c/o Andritz Inc. 10745 Westside Parkway Alpharetta, GA 30004 Tel. (770) 640 2430 Fax. (770) 640 2575 Email: pekka.ignatius@andritz.com Pekka Ignatius, President Barbara Nichols, Secretary

NORTHWESTc/o Ekono, Inc.11061 NE 2nd Street, Suite 107Bellevue, WA 98004-5810Tel. (425) 451-3983Fax. (425) 451-8864Email: jarmo.wallenius@faccnw.comJarmo Wallenius, PresidentTom Uusnäkki, Secretary

SOUTHWEST1300 Post Oak Blvd, Suite 1990, Houston, TX 77056Tel. (713) 627-9700Fax. (713) 784-1412

OTHER TRADE ASSOCIATIONSFINNISH BUSINESS GUILDSharon RoseIrving Chamber of Commerce, 3333 N. MacArthur Blvd, Suite 100Irving, TX 75062Email: hannu.impola@nethawk.fiHannu Impola, President

THE FINNISH-AMERICAN BUSINESS COUNCIL OF THE GREATER WASHINGTON AREA Helena Nenonen-Latchman, c/o Embassy of Finland3301 Massachusetts Avenue, NWWashington DC 20008Tel. (202) 298-5836Email: Helena.Nenonen-Latchman@fi npro.fi Kari Janhunen, President

HELSINKI • The FACC-Helsinki held a luncheon meeting at the Hotel Palace on September 9th in honor of the U.S. Ambassador to Helsinki, Earle I. Mack. This was Ambassa-dor Mack’s first speech to the FACC members. He presented his credentials to the President of Finland in June.

Ambassador Mack Meets FACC

(l-r) Martin Granholm, Raimo Waltasaari, Jarl Köhler, Ambassador Earle I. Mack, FACC-Helsinki President Matti Sundberg and Carl-Christian Rosenbröijer.

NEW YORK • Members of the manufacturing club at the Helsinki University of Technol-ogy visited the Consulate General of Finland in New York on August 23rd. Vice Consul Seija Haarala welcomed the students to the Consulate. The New York Chamber was introduced by Sue Pregartner , who

Tech Students in New York

also gave an interesting presentation of the iittala glass-making company, while Mikko Turtiainen introduced Finnair’s operations in the U.S. The group was invited to lunch by Neal N Beaton and Michael J Student at their offices at Holland & Knight LLP.

Sue Pregartner of iittala (left) and Mikko Turtiainen of Finnair (front center) introduced their companies to the technology students.

29Headlines 3/2004

NEW YORK • The FACC-New York held its annual Nordic Open Golf tournament on September 13rd at the Golf Club at Mansion Ridge, Monroe, New York. Nearly 50 golfers enjoyed the beauti-ful day on this Jack Nicklaus signature golf course under bright and sunny skies. The Platinum Sponsors of the tournament were Finnair and Finlandia Cheese, Inc. The Gold Sponsor was Nordea and Silver Sponsors were iittala, Inc., and Stora Enso N.A. Fredericks Michael & Co. sponsored a hole. Prizes were donated by Finnair, iittala, Wilson, Polar Electro Inc., Circle Line World Yacht, Nordea, Liberty Richter/Fazer, Finnish Tourist Board and Danisco.

Nordic Open Golf

Low Net Individual Shawn Garrison (66)Low Gross Individual Peter Mersmann (81)Longest Drive: Heun Linden (men) Sue Pregartner (ladies)Low Net Foursome Leena Parker, Jussi Koski, Shawn Garrison, Paavo Leppämäki and Esa PernuLow Gross Foursome Sue Pregartner, Mark Kamen, Eve Doyle and John PregartnerLow Net individual Shawn Garrison (66)Low Gross Individual Peter Mersmann (81)

(back l-r) Shawn Garrison, Francis Gallagher, Todd Arthur and Peter Mersmann. (bottom l-r) Christo-pher Franco and Sue Pregartner.

Bo Long’s style at the Nordic Open Golf.

Autumn Golf Classics

MIDWEST • The FACC-Midwest teed off the fall season with the traditional Autumn Golf Classic at Cog Hill Golf & Country Club just outside Chicago on September 17th. Thirty or so play-ers, including FACC members and business associates, enjoyed their rounds in picture-perfect weather. The Peoria scoring system made the tournament exciting - and rewarding - for aspiring pros and duffers alike.

Veteran tournament organizer Tage Lindholm of Finnsteel acted as master of award ceremonies during a lively luncheon at the 19th

hole. A wide range of prizes were donated by Wilson, Madison Paper, UPM-Kymmene, the Norwegian Chamber, Feralloy, and Finnsteel. Everybody got something to stuff in the golf bag!Because of the Ryder Cup in Detroit and an active hurricane season in Florida, some of the traditional foursomes were not able to tee up this time. We look forward to seeing all of them on the fairways and greens next year, when the FACC Midwest Autumn Golf Classic will be played on September 16, 2005.

(l-r) Raija Casey, Glenn Jarvi, Pertti Johansson, John Davis and Timo Vierimaa. Getting ready (l-r) - Glenn Jarvi and Tage Lindholm.

Headlines 3/200430

The Finnish American Club 1932 held their annual crayfish party on August 17th at

Brandö Seglare, Kulosaari. Also present was the new Ambassador to Finland, Earle I. Mack, and the Club’s new Counsellor, Robert Peaslee.

Accordionist Onni Hellsten and Esko Haavisto entertained the guests with summer melodies.

The 1932 Club was delighted to attend an exhibition pre-view of ‘Paintings by Mrs Lea Cristina’ on September

15th, opened to the public on the 16th. Some 20 club members, including guests from the Finlandia Foundation, George Sundqvist and Matti Sarkia, were introduced by the event’s hostess and close friend of the artist Eeva Pinomaa.

Helsinki born, Lea is an artist who has lived and worked in Brazil, New Orleans and now Brussels. She spent most of her childhood in Ahtiala, Finland, with highly respected artists such as her aunt Lea Ignatius and her cousin Elina Luukkanen. She mostly paints with oil, but also uses pen, ink, pencil, and watercolor.

(l-r) Poppe and Kitty Taucher; with Lea Cristina.

(l-r) Mrs Carol Dickey Mack; Chairman of the Club 1932 Teppo Rantanen; and U.S. Ambassador Earle I. Mack

Annual Crayfi sh Party

Gallery Preview

U.S. Ambassador Earle I. Mack invited members of the Finnish American Club 1932 to a reception at his Resi-

dence in Kaivopuisto, Helsinki, on October 7th.Some 50 members took the opportunity to meet

Ambassador and Mrs Mack and exchange views with them. Teppo Rantanen, Chairman of the Club, presented the Ambassador with a book of Alvar Aalto’s work. The Ambassador is known to be an admirer of the late Finnish architect’s buildings.

Ambassador Hosts Reception

Club ‘32 Chairman Teppo Rantanen (right) presents Ambassador Earl I. Mack with a book about Finnish architect Alvar Aalto.

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Headlines.indd 1Headlines.indd 1 29.9.2004 14:14:4829.9.2004 14:14:48

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