Dear attendee,

Back in 1960s the Beatles eloquently commented on the difficulty of getting older when they sang: "Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm sixty four?" Today 64 is no longer considered to be an old age, but "a valentine Birthday greetings, bottle of wine" is not enough to give those who have reached that milestone.

The focus of the Ninth Swedish-American Life Sciences Summit is the challenges faced by every society with an aging population. The steady increase in life expectancy is the result of prosperity and growth. At the same time, a growing generation of seniors creates a need for new scientific and societal solutions to their health and welfare. The good news is that our societies are equipped with creativity, curiosity, and the capacity to find these solutions. And I believe that the bond between Sweden and the US is particularly strong in this regard.

Both Sweden and the US are forward-looking societies with a long tradition of promoting innovation. The Swedish Government and President Obama have introduced innovation strategies in recent years - political initiatives of crucial importance not only for advancing the field of life sciences, but also for sustaining our competiveness in the 21 stcentury. Furthermore, Sweden and the US understand the importance of partnership, and can take pride in the active exchange oftrade in the life science industry, as well as in the many innovative partnerships between universities.

The Swedish American Life Science Summit plays a crucial role in this fabric of collaboration, and in the ongoing dialogue about values and ideas that is taking place every day between Sweden and the US. It is an honor for me to welcome you to this year's conference, and I wish you a successful and productive summit.

Jonas Hafström
Ambassador of Sweden to the United States