Swedish light shines on UHI

A special gift from Sweden has been presented to the new University of the Highlands and Islands as a tribute to its creation.

The beautiful ceramic and glass bowl – representing the unique light from the northern region of Sweden – was given by Akademi Norr, a federation co-ordinating higher education in the north of Sweden, with many similarities to Scotland’s newest university.

It was presented to James Fraser, principal and vice-chancellor, by Linda Stewart, the university’s head of European development, on behalf of Akademi Norr, during title celebrations in Inverness.

Mrs Stewart said: “We have been working with Akademi Norr since it was formed in 2000, participating in its launch event in Lyksele and in the celebrations for its 10th anniversary last year. We presented a commemorative quaich from UHI.

Over the past 10 years, we have had student and staff exchanges and joint project working, including a comparative study of learning centres in remote, rural areas. We also developed and ran an online course for staff on the challenges of higher education provision in such circumstances.

We were delighted to receive a commemorative gift from Akademi Norr to mark our celebration of university title. It was made by local artist Monica Edmondson and represents the unique light from this far northern region.” Jan-Olof Karlsson, chair of the board of Akademi Norr, offered his warm congratulations to UHI on achieving university title and hoped the two institutions would continue to work together.

Media contact

Glenda Johnson
Media relations officer
01463 279222
Glenda.johnson@uhi.ac.uk