P 271244Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY STOCKHOLM
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3837
INFO EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS STOCKHOLM 000716 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PREL SCUL SW IQ
 
SUBJECT: OPPORTUNITY FAIR ATTRACTS HUNDREDS OF PARTICIPANTS 
 
¶1.  (U) Summary: On October 16, Sdertdlje, the Swedish town of 
75,000 persons, about one third of whom are Iraqi born, collaborated 
with Embassy Stockholm to host the Sdertdlje Opportunity Fair "USA 
2009."  The fair was designed to provide information and advice on 
the myriad opportunities for people who would like to spend a short 
time abroad in the United States, whether as students, au pairs, or 
interns.  Ambassador Wood and Sdertdlje Mayor Anders Lago opened 
the event, expressing pleasure over the continued cooperation 
between the city and the embassy.  Over 700 people attended the fair 
where they could talk one on one with representatives from various 
placement organizations and participate in two panel discussions. 
The panelists for the first discussion were all returnees who shared 
their experiences living in the United States.  The panelists for 
the second discussion discussed how to apply to universities and for 
visas.  Both panels engaged in lively discussions.  The event was 
covered favorably in both printed and broadcast media. End summary. 
 
¶2.  (U)  The Opportunity Fair in Sdertdlje continues the 
cooperation between the U.S. Embassy and the city of Sdertdlje.  In 
the Spring of 2008, Anders Lago, Mayor of Sdertdlje spoke with the 
Ambassador about what could be done to help the Iraqi immigrants in 
Sdertdlje, suggesting that perhaps the Embassy could provide a 
number of green cards that the city could then distribute. 
Ambassador Wood explained that this would not be possible, but that 
there could be some form of cooperation to help the immigrants gain 
some kind of American experience.  Working with the city, it was 
decided to hold a fair to which organizations working with short 
term exchanges to the United States would be invited. 
 
¶3. (U) For many young Swedes, travelling abroad for a temporary stay 
is almost a rite of passage.  Most travelers abroad opt to go to the 
United States to pursue short term employment (such as Au Pair), 
practical internships or studies at both the High School and College 
levels.  Many long term residents of Sweden are intricately familiar 
with the types of opportunities available for such short term stays 
in the United States.  However, the immigrant community is often not 
aware of these opportunities.  Thus, a fair highlighting these 
organizations to the immigrant community was a welcome event. 
 
¶4.  (U)  In total, over 15 organizations participated in the fair, 
including the Swedish American Chamber of Commerce USA, the Swedish 
American Chamber of Commerce New York, the Fulbright Commission, the 
Center for International Studies, Youth for Understanding, Kilroy 
Education, Rotary International and others.  All of the 
participating organizations were pleased with the event, expressing 
willingness to engage in a similar event in the future. 
 
¶5. (U) Most of the 700 participants were pleased with the event and 
the information that they received.  One of the visitors, one of the 
visitors, David Hanna, said, "There are a lot of people that can 
help me out with the questions that I have...how I can reach people, 
how I can contact the universities.  So it's pretty helpful, that's 
why I'm here."  Although concerted efforts were made to inform 
Sdertdlje's population that the fair would be an information-only 
fair (i.e. there would be no internships, placements, jobs, or green 
cards handed out), some still arrived at the fair with that 
expectation and were disappointed. 
 
¶6. (U) Another highlight of the fair was two panel discussions.  The 
first panel was comprised of returnees from various programs, 
including one student, one au pair, and two interns.  Two members of 
the panel were of immigrant ancestry and thus resonated with the 
group.  One of the interns, Elham Nogoki, particularly poignantly 
related the process she went through to get the internship, 
explaining that neither she nor her family ever thought that she 
would get the internship, based on her appearance and name.  Due to 
her success, however, she inspired the attendees by letting them 
know that opportunities were out there for immigrants as well.  The 
second panel covered the "how to"s of applying to colleges in the 
United States and for Visas, with an educational advisor from the 
Fulbright Program and post's Consul as speakers. 
 
¶7. (U) The event was also largely covered favorably in the press, 
both in the printed and broadcast media, by local and national 
outlets, with just one outlet focusing on the fact that jobs were 
not available for the taking at the fair. 
 
¶8. (U) Long-term results of the opportunity fair remain to be seen. 
Follow up is planned with the participating organizations to see the 
effects of the fair on both applications and placements. 
 
WOOD