Thursday 15 of May Sia Spiliopoulou Åkermark, the director of the Åland Islands Peace Institute, held a speech for the Swedish Crown Princess Victoria, who is visiting the Aland Islands. Spiliopoulou Åkermark talked about the Aland Islands as a living example of an autonomous region under constant development. The authonomy is constantly renewed through different forms of cooperation and renegotiations between the Islands and the finnish state. There is also a dialogue between the Åland Islands and the states that have guaranteed their status, not least with Sweden.
The Crown Princess, who has taken peace- and conflict studies at the University of Uppsala in Sweden, at the coffee break mentioned to the director of the Åland Islands Peace Institute that she is acquainted with the status of the Aland Island from her studies. She also took the opportunity to ask more about the Åland Islands example in international conflict resolution.
Read the full presentation here (in Swedish).