Letter from the Mayor of Stockholm
Dear All,
It is with great pride and joy that I welcome the Swedish-American Life Science Summit, featuring some of the world's most distinguished investors and life science experts, to Stockholm. Our city is beautiful the year round, but there is something extra magical about Stockholm in summertime. I hope your schedule will allow you a few moments to experience some of that magic.
Some invitees might have asked themselves why the Swedish-American Life Science Summit takes place in Stockholm. After all, geographically speaking, Stockholm is hardly in the center of Europe.
The situation is quite different, however, when you look at medical research and the life sciences in general. The Stockholm region is the home of Karolinska Institutet, the Nobel Prize Foundation, and also the birth place for companies such as Astra and Pharmacia along with some 50 per cent of all life science research in Sweden.
In other words, Stockholm is important in this sector in absolute terms – and per capita, it is actually more fair to say that we are in the center of the world, rather than merely in Europe.
However, in order for any research to be able to materialize into a large, world-wide company, there is a constant need for capital, competition, competence and access to the international markets. All of which there is an abundance of in the largest market in the world, the United States.
I am therefore most happy for this opportunity to welcome all delegates to this year's Swedish-American Life Science summit. I wish you the best for the coming days discussions.
Kristina Axén Olin,Mayor of Stockholm
Stockholm, June 5, 2007