The Norwegian Crown Princess Couple visit Sweden

Monday 2 May

Haga Palace and Karolinska Institutet

The visit began at Haga Palace, The Crown Princess Family's residence. The Crown Princess Couple and The Crown Prince Couple then travelled to Karolinska Institutet to take part in a symposium titled 'Norway and Sweden – stronger together than individually'.

The Crown Princess and The Crown Prince gave opening speeches, after which discussions were held on stage with Norway's Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre, Sweden's Minister for Business, Industry and Innovation Karl-Petter Thorwaldsson, Chairman of Investor AB Jacob Wallenberg, Idar Kreutzer from Finance Norway and CEO of Schibstedt Kristin Skogen Lund.

In her speech, The Crown Princess said:

Our two countries have great spirit of innovation. We have the green solutions that the world needs. But if we are to lead this transition, we cannot work individually. We need to work as a team, as a knowledge team, across national borders.”

HRH The Crown Princess

Kulturhuset

At Kulturhuset, the visitors were shown the library and the Room for Children cultural initiative. The library contains books in more than 50 languages aimed at children up to the age of 9. During their visit, The Crown Prince Couple and The Crown Princess Couple met writers Anna Fiske and Elias Våhlund, as well as pupils from Husby Gård School. The heirs to the Swedish and Norwegian thrones and their spouses also had the opportunity to speak with the children about the two writers' books, Starting School and Handbook for Superheroes.

The visit to Kulturhuset concluded in the auditorium, where The Crown Prince Couple and The Crown Princess Couple spoke with agents and writers linked to NORLA (Norwegian Literature Abroad) and the Swedish Arts Council.

The King and Queen then hosted lunch for the heirs to the Swedish and Norwegian thrones and their spouses at the Royal Palace, together with Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia.

Meeting with Swedish and Norwegian industry

During the afternoon, The Crown Princess Couple and Crown Prince Haakon visited the Norwegian Embassy where they were given presentations and held discussions with representatives from the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise, the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise, and Swedish and Norwegian businesses.

The Norwegian reciprocal reception

In the evening, Norway's Crown Prince Couple invited their Swedish hosts to a reception at Norra Latin. During the reception, The Crown Princess Couple and The Crown Prince Couple had the opportunity to speak with representatives from Swedish and Norwegian businesses.

Tuesday 3 May

The second day of the official visit from Norway began with The Crown Princess Couple and Crown Prince Haakon attending a symposium on sustainability, circular solutions and offshore wind power. Sweden's Minister for Foreign Trade Anna Hallberg and Norway's Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre spoke during the symposium.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

At the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, The Crown Princess Couple and The Crown Prince Couple took part in a symposium on the future of the seas, with a focus on sustainability. The symposium began with speeches from The Crown Princess and Crown Prince Haakon.

In her speech, The Crown Princess said:

There are many bold promises that look good on paper. But what we need now is no more promises, but to think and act together, and to demonstrate real results.

“It is my hope that today’s symposium will be a step in that direction. I look forward to learning more, and to achieving more – Norway and Sweden, together.”

HRH The Crown Princess

Fryshuset

During a visit to Fryshuset, The Crown Princess Couple and The Crown Prince Couple were given a presentation of Fryshuset's operations, which enable young people to create and participate in youth-driven activities, education and work.

The heirs to the Swedish and Norwegian thrones and their spouses then visited the gymnasium, where they spoke with young people. The visit concluded with lunch together with young people, who had also prepared the food.

The Norrsken Foundation

After lunch, The Crown Princess Couple and Crown Prince Haakon visited the Norrsken Foundation, a Swedish non-profit organisation that aims to support businesses and associations aiming to have a positive impact on society.

Space

The afternoon ended at the Space cultural centre, a forum for digital culture including gaming, music and content production.

There, The Crown Princess Couple and Crown Prince Haakon had the opportunity to visit a coding lesson for young people, speak with entrepreneurs and attend a workshop arranged by Music Norway: '20 under 30'.

Stockholm Surfboard Club

The Crown Prince, The Crown Princess and Prince Daniel visited Stockholm Surfboard Club, where they were welcomed by CEO Anton Edberg and learnt about the company's history, surfboard production and product development.

Wednesday 4 May

The third and final day of the Norwegian Crown Prince Couple's official visit to Sweden began in the royal waiting room at Stockholm Central Station, before Crown Prince Haakon and The Crown Princess Couple travelled by train to Gothenburg.

On arrival at Lindholmen Science Park, The Crown Princess Couple and Crown Prince Haakon were met by Sweden's Minister for Foreign Trade Anna Hallberg and Norway's Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre. CEO of Lindholmen Science Park Tord Hermansson and CEO of Business Region Gothenburg Patrik Andersson spoke about the region's development and presented a model of the future of Gothenburg.

Symposium on renewable energy

The Crown Princess Couple and Crown Prince Haakon then took part in a symposium on renewable energy. There, The Crown Princess gave a speech in which she said:

Linking arms with Norway – our most important trading partner and export market – comes naturally to Sweden. Norwegian and Swedish businesses have a fantastic opportunity to contribute towards sustainable development together, and also to emerge as winners as more and more countries demand green solutions.”

HRH The Crown Princess

Norway's Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre and Sweden's Minister for Foreign Trade Anna Hallberg held a discussion on the stage about moving from words to action. The symposium concluded with a panel discussion with representatives from Norwegian and Swedish businesses on the transition to renewable energy.

Visit to the Maritime Dynamics Laboratory

At the Maritime Dynamics Laboratory, The Crown Princess Couple and Crown Prince Haakon were welcomed by SSPA's CEO Stefan Eliasson and CEO of the Swedish Shipowners' Association Anders Hermansson.

They then learnt about the Orcelle Wind concept, green shipping and wind-powered RoRo ships.

Visit to the research vessel Skagerak

Acting County Governor Lisbeth Schultze hosted lunch for the royal guests at the County Governor's official residence.

The Crown Princess, Prince Daniel and Crown Prince Haakon then walked to Stenpiren, where Station Manager Louise Newman welcomed them to the research vessel R/V Skagerak.

On board, The Crown Princess Couple and Crown Prince Haakon learnt about the ship's capacity and the research, education and cooperation carried out within the marine sciences of oceanography, chemistry, geology, biology and atmospheric science.

Reception at the House of Norway

The official visit concluded in the afternoon with The Crown Princess Couple and Crown Prince Haakon attending a reception at the House of Norway, where students from the University of Gothenburg's Academy of Music and Drama provided musical entertainment.