Inside Sweden: Who are the foreigners doing cool things in Sweden right now
One of the goals I've set for us at The Local is to do more interviews with foreigners doing cool things in Sweden in 2025 – because there are so many of you, as I found out when I posted an appeal for tips on LinkedIn.
If you're a long time reader, you may be familiar with our My Swedish Career series. It got put on hold due to the extremely busy news cycle of the past few years, but we've picked it up again and hope to make it a weekly feature.
We're doing this for a few different reasons.
One, at a time when so many harmful stereotypes about immigration are being spread on social and in the mainstream media, it feels important to show the range of individuals who have moved to Sweden, who are all unique and have nothing in common, while at the same time having so much in common.
I said "doing cool things" at the start of this email, but I think pretty much everything everyone does is cool, so if you're interested in being interviewed for our My Swedish Career series, please don't hesitate to get in touch, regardless of whether you're an entrepreneur, teacher, shop worker, doctor, student, job seeker, lawyer, on parental leave, cleaner, researcher or anything else.
Two, research suggests that people are tired of being force fed ONLY negative stories by the media. Bringing negative stories to light is of course our job, but sometimes it can feel like an endless flow of despair that you can't avoid.
At the same time, I don't think that means that people are interested in just happy, fluffy stories about kittens and puppies. But stories that are inspiring, that show you new thoughts and perspectives, that are useful, constructive and relatable – I don't know about you, but I want to read more of those.
In other news
My latest My Swedish Career interview features Nina Lipjankic, who moved from Bosnia Herzegovina to Lund in southern Sweden to do a master's degree in molecular biology and managed at the 11th hour to find a job and stay after her graduation. Her journey had its up and downs, but recently, mostly ups.
This week's episode of Sweden in Focus Extra for Membership+ subscribers features an interview with Sophia Omarji, a former Spotify worker who's navigating life in Sweden after a layoff.
Sweden's highest migration court, the Migration Court of Appeal, overturned a rejected work permit application, setting a precedent that evening and weekend pay can count towards the minimum salary threshold.
After feeling like he was just going through the motions, Stockholm-based Australian Jake Farrugia, 33, decided to abandon the world of dating apps in favour of a completely different approach.
FI, the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority, is urging property owners to try and negotiate a better deal on their mortgages. Apparently it's the ideal time!
In his speech to the nation after the Örebro mass shooting, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson avoided political punchlines. But was his message of unity the right one, asked Richard Orange in this week's Politics in Sweden column.
This week I also wrote about how Kristersson as well as opposition politicians would do well to reflect on how their rhetoric, not just the Örebro attack, has caused many foreigners to feel vulnerable, unsafe and unwelcome in Sweden.
The Internationella Engelska Skolan free school chain is closing its flagship upper secondary school in Stockholm district Södermalm, leaving 66 students with nowhere to complete their International Baccalaureate.
The two Malmö artists behind Anonymouse, the street art collective which charmed the world with mouse-sized bistros, cafés, and nut shops, this week revealed their identities as they brought the viral project to an end.
And finally, this petition wants your help to stop the new Swedish citizenship rules from applying retroactively to those already in the queue.
Have a relaxing weekend everyone,
Emma Löfgren
Editor, The Local Sweden
Inside Sweden is our weekly newsletter for members which gives you news, analysis and, sometimes, takes you behind the scenes at The Local. It's published each Saturday and with Membership+ you can also receive it directly to your inbox.
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