Photo courtesy of Asgeir Helgestad/Visitnorway.com
Norway´s Constitution Day celebrates the signing of the Constitution of Norway at Eidsvoll on May 17, 1814, but this year, the celebration of this important day will be different. NBCC wishes Norwegians and friends of Norway a Happy May 17!
No children´s parades will color the streets of Norway red and blue this year. In Brazil, the traditional business seminar organized by Team Norway and the family celebration for Norwegians in Rio, have also been cancelled, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and we will have to adapt and find new ways of celebrating
Team Norway in Brazil invites you to share and hashtag photos from your May 17 celebration in Brazil, to give us all a taste of your May 17: #hurrafrabrasil #norwaydaybrazil #17mayinrio2020
Your photos will be shared here and on Linkedin.
As part our commemoration of this important day, NBCC also invited Norway´s Ambassador Nils-Martin Gunneng and General Manager of Dream Learn Work, Jeanette Lorvik Camargo to share their thoughts with the readers:
“Bring out your flags”
The 17th of May 2020 will be different. It happens amidst a silent war being fought in the hospitals and from our home-offices, through social distancing and by trying to hold businesses afloat. Regardless of where in this fight we find ourselves, we all miss the hug from a relative and the Friday night out with friends. We are reminded of our own vulnerability and reflect on how social interaction is taken for granted in our lives. Routines are upended, habits are shaken, and traditions will have to be forgone.
There will be no gatherings on the 17th of May 2020. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be celebrating. 17th of May celebrates our future in the shape of our children. We celebrate the next generations continuing to build the Norwegian nation on the foundations of our forefathers. Norwegians and Norwegian business will suffer the consequences of the virus. But thanks to those foundations we have a safety net for those who lose their jobs. We have the economic and innovative strength to rebuild and create new, competitive jobs. And, not the least, we find ourselves together across political divides in times of crisis. That is worth a celebration. So bring out your flags, hot dogs and unhealthy amounts of ice-cream at home, online or wherever you feel safe. Gratulerer med dagen!
Ambassador Nils-Martin Gunneng
“Expectations of a better world”
When I think about 17th of May, I think about expectations. I remember as a child in Norway the preparations for the constitution day and all the expectations I had for the happenings that would fill the day. The children’s parade, the ice cream, the carousels, the pretty clothes and all the smiles. After moving abroad 13 years ago, I missed the 17th of May so much, but after moving to Rio de Janeiro in 2014, I started feeling the expectations again and the big day entered back into my life. This year, with COVID-19, we will not gather the Norwegian community in Rio on the day, but I do have expectations. Expectations of a better world after COVID-19, with humans that have more social and environmental conscience. I believe that crises occur for us, as individuals, as a society or as a united world to build us up to become even stronger, and perhaps this is what we need, a stronger world and humans, regardless of financial results. In Norway we have something called ‘’dugnad’’ which means we gather to join our forces to do something as a community. This year 17th of May will be celebrated with a global ‘’dugnad’’, which warms my heart and creates expectations for a better future. Happy 17th of May!
Jeanette Lorvik Camargo
Photo courtesy of Asgeir Helgestad/Visitnorway.com
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