HRH Prince Carl Philip's greeting at Storytel Finland Awards
(The spoken version shall take precedence)
Ladies and gentlemen,
I believe most of us try very hard to teach our children to be themselves. To be proud of who they are.
But, as we all know: being yourself can sometimes be difficult. Especially if you are a child. And even more so if you are struggling with different challenges.
Five years ago, my wife, Princess Sofia and I launched our foundation – Prinsparets stiftelse.
The foundation works in two areas: A safer environment online, and creating respect and understanding for everyone with dyslexia.
We wish to do our part to contribute to an inclusive society; a society that supports the uniqueness of every individual.
Today, we are very excited to launch the audiobook “Dyslexia as a superpower” together with Storytel here in Finland.
As you may know, I too have dyslexia.
I have been lucky to receive support and understanding. But I know the prejudice and the stigma that so many children and young people have to face. It can be devastating to your self-esteem.
For example, as you will learn in this audiobook, many people still believe that dyslexia just means having difficulties with reading or writing. While in fact, it can also be associated with qualities such as:
creativity, ability to see the bigger picture, and strong problem solving skills. These are just a few positive examples.
It is our hope that this audiobook will contribute to more knowledge and better understanding of different ways of functioning.
And if you have dyslexia yourself, I hope you will feel
that you really can be yourself, that you can be proud of who you are and of your unique qualities.
And that dyslexia really can be your superpower.
Kiitos paljon! Thank you.