President Halonen to New York

Office of the President of the Republic of Finland
Press Release 13 October 2011

President of the Republic Tarja Halonen will travel to New York on 18–23 October 2011 for the 100th anniversary celebration of the American-Scandinavian Foundation. President Halonen will also visit the UN and take part in an event relating to Helsinki’s year as World Design Capital.

The American-Scandinavian Foundation (ASF) promotes cultural and educational exchange between the Nordic countries and the United States. The heads of state of Sweden, Norway and Iceland, as well as the Crown Prince of Denmark, will also participate in the Foundation’s 100th anniversary celebrations. The main gala for around 800 guests will take place on Friday, 21 October. The festivities will also include the opening on 20 October of an anniversary exhibition on Nordic art. The heads of state will also visit and lay flowers at Ground Zero.

On Friday 21 October President Halonen will visit the NASDAQ Stock Market, where she will ring the closing bell. Televised live on international news channels, the ringing of the bell will also mark the beginning of Helsinki’s year as World Design Capital. The event is organised in cooperation with the World Design Capital Helsinki 2012 project.

The programme of President Halonen will also include meetings on 19–20 October relating to the UN High-level Panel on Global Sustainability. She will, for example, present the work of the Panel to the UN General Assembly. President Halonen co-chairs the Panel together with the President of the Republic of South-Africa Jacob Zuma. The Panel is due to submit its report to the UN Secretary-General by the end of the year.