i have just spent 20 minutes trying to explain ‘tipspromenad’ to one of my bangla colleagues. oh my that was tricky! how do you explain something that you just take for granted? googled but could not find any translation or explanation in english so will not be able to tell you non swedish speakers what a good old ‘tipspromenad’ is. sorry.

list in progress 2

may 17, 2007 i made the following post.


list in progress…

with only six months to go in the desh, i have started to think about what i want for my next posting

- internet connection – good enough to fully enjoy the beauty of the world wide web

- concerts – pop, classical any live music but cover bands…

- clubs and bars – i am not asking for a vibrant night life (even though i wouldn’t mind) but at least one or two clubs (as in hanoi) where you know you always can go to shake the booty

- functioning public transport – unless i have a car with ac and a driver. but as the public transport lover i am, i prefer to go public

- cheese - available at all times. i would rather eat my shoe than eat that horrible australian pre-sliced sorry excuse for cheese

- warm climate – if i’m going cold, it has to be close to skiing facilities

- airport – considering how often i’ve had to visit the zia airport in dhaka i’ve realised the importance of an airport where one can receive passenger inside. food should also be avaliable (bangkok airport is a very good example), not just mishit and other weird stuff.


ok then what happened?! yeah yeah i know, i could not say no to the tempting offer from h&m in dhaka. during that time, the following points were added to the list…

- closer to sweden or more free hometrips

- bread – dark brown bread that does not taste like sand

- cafés/coffee shops – i would even settle for starbucks


so…the time has come to disclose where i will move next…

- internet connection will be much better. hopefully will i even be able to look at youtube, download podcasts, and listen to web radio. inshallah.

- concerts – oh yes. perhaps not up and coming indie bands but a lot of big acts.

- clubs and bars – yes that too. but i have heard a rumor about clubs and bars closing already at midnight. i really really hope i am miss-informed.

- functioning public transport – would have to say no, but i will have car with ac and driver.

- cheese – not much improvement on that front…figured out where i am going, or at least which part of the world?! anyone?!

- warm climate – yes all year around. no horrible winters as i dhaka.

- airport – don’t know as i have not been there yet.

- closer to sweden – technically yes. half an hour in time difference and about two hours flight time. and more free home trips. not bad ha?!

- bread – no hopes there i am afraid…

- cafés/coffee shops – no starbucks but a few other with western touch.


to the million taka question…where am i going…to be able to keep the same brilliant blog name, i have decided to move to bangalore. or the reason was h&m offered me a job there. from march i would like to be addressed as regional csr project coordinator. thank you!

a dilemma

i just came back after a shopping tour. something that does not happen often these days…anyhoo. first i went to my favourite pearl shop. off to sweden soon so have a few deliveries to do. in the pearl shop a boy not older than fifteen opened the door. after realising i couldn’t get what i was looking for i continued to a food with imported food. behind a big pile of cat food i came a cross a little boy. through a few quite questions i got to know he was 11, from mymensingh (about four hours from dhaka), he was on his own in dhaka and did not go to school. now what do i do? never go back because i do not want to support child labour? or go back as it is good the boys get a chance to support their families?

someone recently asked me a question along these lines. since then i haven’t managed to get it out of my head. that is normally my strategy, just to block things out. would go mad if i didn’t. well were to begin. the definition of child is a bit problematic from a development context. 18. not to work before 18 is not realistic in bangladesh. access to education, hazardous non hazardous kind of jobs, and number of hours make more sense to look into. the discussion could go on for ever. but i am tired. need to sleep. finally caved in and put up the damn mosquito net after six night of sleepless mosha hunt. let’s hope i can, in some way during the 8 hours at work tomorrow, contribute to positive change for bangladesh.

so i was going to uae for new years. tawila reunion 2.0. found a very cheap ticket with an airline i've never heard of. no one had really heard of it. well, 350 USD cheaper. happy days. the reason for the cheap price is that it flies to an airport in the middle of nowhere, is 10 hours delayed and the only passagers are migrant workers. and me.

took some pics of the fellow passangers' bags. so cute, they have put their pics on their bags.





don't get me wrong. i have nothing against migrant workers. the opposite. i am very interested. especially migrant workers from bangladesh. of course. during the 10 h delay on the way back i came up with a few interesting research ideas. anyone up for funding a phd on bangladeshi migrant workers to uae?

2008 a la Loranga

1. Did you do something this year that you have never done before?
Got a personal trainer three times a week who has said ‘in two months I will look too much sexy’. I also slapped someone (a man), never done that before. Surprisingly nice feeling.

2. Did you keep your New Year resolutions?
Nope…not this year again…How difficult can flossing be one could ask? Well very difficult I would say.

3. Did any of your friends get children this year?
Oh yes. But will be even more next year. While I am drifting further and further away from having children. A bit sad.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
No, masallah.

5. Which countries did you go to?
Bangladesh, Sweden, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, India, Hong Kong, China and UAE.

6. Did you miss something in 2008 that you wish for in 2009?
A feminist man in my life. Hyfs and ordnung in general.

7. Which date will you always remember in 2008?
April 28 (was it the 28th?!) when I had my appendix removed in Dhaka. I have never felt so small. And homesick. Oh my.

8. What was your biggest success in 2008?
Biggest success, tricky question. I did a work thing really well. Hmm boring. Have to think about that one.

9. Your biggest mistake?
Same as every year. I trust people. And I believe in what people say. I hate to say, but that has proven to be a mistake.

10. Have you been ill?
Oh yes, even had surgery in Dhaka. See question 7.

11. Best buy?
Renting a donkey in Petra, Jordan.

12. What did you spend money on?
Travelling and food.

13.Did something make you really happy?
All short term and long term visitors to Dhaka.

14. Which tunes will remind you of 2008?
The hindi songs I’ve practiced Bollywood dance to. The Quiz by Hello Saferide. Dance dance dance by Lykke Li.

15. Where you more or less happy during 2008 compared to previous year?
Very difficult to say. There have been so many ups and downs. Hmm…perhaps a bit less happy actually. Hate to conclude that, because I have nothing major to complain about. But the risk of homelessness and unemployment has affected 2008. But all cool trips and amazing people should outweigh that.

16. What do you wish you would have done more of?
Moved on. Seen my family and friends in Sweden.

17. What do you wish you would have done less of?
Become attached to the opposite sex.

18. How did you spend Christmas 2008?
At work, with my cat and some friends in Dhaka.

19. Did you fall in love this year?
Almost.

20. Favourite TV show?
Oh I miss SVT sooo much.

21. The best book you read in 2008?
Bitterfittan. Stig Larsson and all books that made me cry.

22. Any music discovery?
Lykke Li.

23. Did you wish for something and got it?
Nope. Must be wishing for the wrong things.

24. Did you wish for something but did not get it?
Oh yes. A lot of things.

25. What did you do for your birthday?
Breakfast with a friend, lunch with my manager, dinner with selected friends in Dhaka.

26. Is there something that would have made your life better in 2008?
True love.

27.What made you feel good?
Friends, travelling and work. And food. Especially people who brought me cheese.

28. What celebrity did you find hot?
Alex Karev in Grey’s Anatomy. Yummy!

29. Who did you miss?
You know who.

30. The best new people you meet during the year?
At the end of the year I made a new good friend in Dhaka. But also during all the travelling I’ve met loads of really interesting people.

ring mig sen!

ja visst är det bra trist att spendera timmar fram datorn på fritiden. men vad göra om kvinna och man vill hålla kontakten med de som bor utanför kommungränsen?! ja nu kan vi tacka telia för möjigheten att RINGA billigt till bangladesh. ja det går alldeles utmärkt att ring hit!!

genom att betala 15 kr/månad och registrera mitt banglanummer, går det att ringa hit för 0.79 kr/min istället för 10.90 kr/min.

kom igen nu då!!

annoying bangladesh

annoying 1) after a weekend of hard work and a lot of sweat i have finally managed to get some what of a tan. this is what i hear when i got to the office this morning 'are you sick?!' i reply 'sorry...?' 'yea you look sick'.

annoying 2) went to a restaurant tonight with my team, 12 people. one of the colleauges get a piece of metal in his nan bread. only I get upset, not the waiter, not the other 10 people at the table, and not even the guy who now has a piece of metal stuck in his tooth.

sometimes i just do not get this country.

H&M bäst igen :-)

Svenska företag bättre på socialt ansvar än de talar om

2008-06-28

Svenska storföretag tar mer samhällsansvar och gör mer miljöarbete än de skyltar med. Det är en av slutsatserna i en färsk studie om CSR-arbete. ”Om konsumenterna fick reda på allt företagen gör skulle de säkert få en mer positiv bild av dem”, säger Susanne Ikonen, en av författarna bakom studien.

I en kandidatuppsats från Södertörns högskola har studenterna Susanne Ikonen
och Charlie Andersson undersökt hur 15 stora svenska företag, däribland H&M, Atlas
Copco och Telia Sonera, arbetar med CSR, corporate social responibility, och hur de
kommunicerar arbetet till omvärlden.

Då bolagen är sparsamma med att kvantifiera sina ansträngningar i kronor och ören
har författarna räkna antalet projekt som företagens berättar om i sina
årsredovisningar, hållbarhetsredovisningar och pressmeddelanden.

Resultatet tycker de är överraskade positivt.
”De flesta företag jobbar mycket mer med CSR än vad vi trodde från början.
Eftersom få kommunicerar arbetet till allmänheten känner man inte till det”, säger
Susanne Ikonen.

Totalt genomförde de 15 undersökta bolagen 140 olika CSR-projekt under perioden
januari 2006 till maj 2008. Men de berättade bara om 17 stycken, drygt 10 procent, i
pressmeddelanden, med avsikt att få publicitet och vidare uppmärksamhet. I stället
övervägde kommunikationsformen årsredovisnings- och hållbarhetsredovisningarna,
som i första hand vänder sig till investerare på aktiemarknaden.
”Vår tolkning är att företagen tycker det är viktigast att redovisa arbetet mot
investerarna”, säger Charlie Andersson, och fortsätter: ”Troligtvis ser bolagen CSR som ett sätt att reducera risken investerarna tar när de går in med kapital i bolaget. Om det skulle bli en kris inom exempelvis klädbranschen, där det visar
sig att arbetarna har dåliga arbetsvillkor, finns ett slags fallskärm eftersom bolagen visat att de arbetat med frågan.” Samtidigt pekar författarna på att
företagen ur en marknadsföringssynpunkt troligtvis skulle ha mycket att vinna på att
berätta mer öppet om sitt CSR-arbete.

”De stora företagen har många projekt som konsumenterna säkert skulle uppskatta. Om
de visste allt H&M och Ikea gör skulle de nog få en bättre bild av dem”, säger Susanne Ikonen.

”Fast visst ligger det något fint i att inte berätta. Det kan man se som att bolagen
har en vilja att på allvar ta ett samhällsansvar, utan att omedelbart gynnas av det.”

Något de tror hindrar bolagen från att berätta mer om sitt arbete är den hårda
mediegranskningen som de då riskerar att bli föremål för.
”Ingen vill ta en hjälteroll, för då får man allas ögon på sig och måste man vara
felfri”, säger Charlie Andersson.
Så förklarar författarna också att tjänsteföretagen i studien, bland annat Vattenfall, SAS och If, visade sig vara de som kommunicerade mest genom pressmeddelanden, trots att de genomförde färre CSR-projekt än både konsumentföretagen och de tillverkande företagen.
”Tjänsteföretagen har inte tillverkning utomlands så mindre kan gå snett”, säger
Charlie Andersson.

Efter er genomgång - vilket företag är bäst på CSR?
”H&M och Ikea. De har ju drabbats av en del bakslag tidigare och kanske lärt sig av
det”, säger Susanne Ikonen.
Och sämst?
”Nordea imponerar inte. De genomför inga egna projekt och är fortfarande kvar på
stadiet att de sponsrar vissa fotbollskupper och seglingstävlingar och kallar det CSRarbete”, säger Charlie Andersson.

Fotnot: Företagen som ingick i studien är Ikea, H&M, Ica, Coop, Shell, Atlas Copco,
SCA, Electrolux, Volvo group, Skanska, Telia Sonera, Vattenfall, SAS, Nordea och If
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