The authorities of the university of Lund in southern Sweden intend to dump a ton of chicken droppings in the central park in a bid to deter up to 30,000 residents from gathering there for traditional celebrations to mark Walpurgis Night on Thursday, Guardian reports.

“Lund could very well become an epicentre for the spread of the coronavirus on the last night in April, [so] I think it was a good initiative,” the chairman of the local council’s environment committee, Gustav Lundblad, told the Sydsvenskan newspaper.

“I am not a fertiliser expert, but as I understand it, it is clear that it might smell a bit outside the park as well,” Lundblad admitted. “These are chicken droppings, after all. I cannot guarantee that the rest of the city will be odourless. But the point is to keep people out of the city park.”

Gustav Lundblad, head of the municipal environmental commission, said the authorities are trying to prevent the spread of coronavirus in this way.

The Swedish government prohibited residents from gathering in groups of more than 50 people, and also recommended that they keep a distance of two meters from each other.

Shops and restaurants in the country remain open. Mortality from Covid-19 in Sweden is several times higher than the statistics of neighboring Scandinavian countries, reports BBC.

Sweden remains one of the few countries that have not yet introduced hard quarantine from the coronavirus pandemic. Initially, residents welcomed this approach, but as the number of coronavirus victims in the country increased, the actions of the authorities became more and more criticized.

There is an opinion that in Sweden, it is always cold and dark, so people there are lonely, unhappy, and prone to depression. However, it is not. In the ranking of the happiest countries, Sweden occupies one of the leading positions, rising one step every year.

 

The Swedish ideology and mentality are primarily determined by a sense of balance and moderation in everything. While people are unhappy in a world of abundance and an overabundance of information and opportunities, the Swedes have learned to live comfortably on the principle of “why spend more if everything is enough” and be content with what they have.

 

Facts about happiness

 

To find out the secret of universal national happiness, it is better to get acquainted with such a characteristic cultural phenomenon as “lagom” for a start.

 

Philosophy of moderation

 

The origins of the term "lagom" date back to the Viking Age. They had a tradition of passing the cup of mead around so that each person could take a sip and pass the cup on. So the drink was enough for everyone, and no one was offended.

 

From the phrase "laget om", which means "in a circle", not only a modern term arose, but also a national Swedish ideology was born, which is based on respect for others, equality and measure.

 

Lagom has no specific translation into Russian. This is a conscious consumption of resources, and balance in life, and moderation in everything - in work, food, clothing, rest. This is the golden mean - no more, no less.

 

Swedes prefer to take everything from life in moderation, exactly as much as they need for a comfortable life. Buy a lot of clothes and not wear? Order more food than you can eat? Staying at work for a couple of hours? This is definitely not about the Swedes!

 

People in Sweden are considered quite modest. It is not customary for them to stand out and brag about wealth.

 

You will hardly see business-class cars on the roads, because more budget brands or even a bicycle are suitable for comfortable movement. Two-wheeled transport is quite popular in the country, everyone moves on it - from waiters in a cafe to members of the government.

 

Also, Swedes, even with a decent income, can buy clothes in second-hand stores and are not shy about it. If a thing has perfectly preserved its appearance and does not even meet the standards of modern fashion for a long time, there is no need to throw it away. This reflects the national cult of reasonable consumption.

 

 

Basic principles of the philosophy of lagom:

 

• practicality - first of all, comfort and benefit are valued;
• minimalism - abundance only interferes with happiness;
• equality - all people have the same rights and must adhere to the same principles;
• balance in everything - the talent to combine work and leisure, to find beauty in practicality;
• caring for the environment is the responsibility of every citizen of the country for the state of the environment and the reasonable consumption of resources.

 

These values ​​find their application in all areas of Swedes' life. They influenced not only social life, but also cultural.

 

Lagom is also embodied in architecture, which strikes at the same time with its rigor, sophistication and minimalism. The success of the IKEA store, a corporation originally from Sweden, is due to a combination of fairly low prices, cozy interiors and useful things.

 

Rules of life for the Swedes

 

Lagom determined the direction of the national ideology and influenced the formation of moral values. Why rush somewhere, be zealous at work, strive for luxury, if you can live in peace in pleasure, do everything in time and have everything you need for happiness.

 

Of course, this does not mean a complete rejection of pleasure.

 

• If you buy an expensive thing, then it should be useful, and not serve as a source of pride and boasting.
• If you go to an expensive restaurant, then order as much as you can eat.
• If you buy a car, then only for the convenience of moving.
• Equality in society
• It is not customary for Swedes to stand out because of wealth or position. All society strives for equality. The smaller the apparent gap between rich and poor, the more comfortable each person feels.

 

For example, a princess (Sweden is a constitutional monarchy) can walk the dog through the Swedish streets, and the prime minister can bike to work.

 

Swedish deputies lead a fairly modest lifestyle. They do not enjoy special privileges. For example, one of the benefits provided to officials is free travel on public transport.

 

The housing he provides surprises with modesty and minimalism. Most often, this is a small one-room apartment with a maximum of 50 square meters, which may not have washing machines and dishwashers.

 

Another example is IKEA employees. Store employees during business trips can only stay in 3-star hotels and are not allowed to fly in business class. The founder of the billion-dollar corporation Ingvar Kamprad himself led a very modest lifestyle.

 

Working in Sweden

 

The Swedes never recycle. This is not welcomed by the employees themselves and the authorities too. As soon as the working day is over, a person must leave his place and go to rest.

 

The average salary in the country in 2022 is 3,700 euros.

 

If a person falls ill and does not go to work, missed days are not deducted from the salary. The insurance agency is responsible for the reimbursement.

 

Increasingly popular not only in Sweden, but throughout the world, is gaining a ritual of taking coffee breaks among the worker. It's called fuka. It was invented to bring together employees of different incomes and ages.

 

Most of the working day in the country ends at 18:00. Many companies in Stockholm offer flexible working hours and the ability to leave the office as early as 3pm. Many people try to strike a balance between rest and work, so that everyone can devote their free time to loved ones or hobbies.

 

Another phenomenon in their society is that not only women are sent on maternity leave. Maternity leave is paid and lasts 480 days. But 90 of them, according to the law, the father must spend with the child.

 

Education

 

Pre-school education in the country is available to every citizen, regardless of income. An interesting fact is that until the 6th grade, students study without grades.

 

The Swedes are sure that evaluation at this age of work can negatively affect the psycho-emotional development of the child and interfere with his individual growth.

 

That is, in this way they minimize competition among classmates and maintain a calm psychological atmosphere in the team. The child, even if he fails to complete the task, will not think that he is worse than others and lags behind the team.

 

Caring for the environment

 

In Sweden, from childhood, they teach the culture of reasonable consumption. It is customary in society to sort garbage. Only 1% of waste ends up in landfills, the rest is processed by incinerators.

 

Sweden even buys garbage from other countries. This is not only about caring for the environment. The Swedes have learned to burn garbage to produce electricity.

 

Saturday for the Swedes is not exactly cleaning the territory. They devote the day off to collecting unnecessary utensils, for example, unnecessary furniture or appliances, and then they take everything to a special sorting center for garbage.

 

Attitude towards things

 

In the country it is considered bad form to use things to show your income and social status. Everyone should be equal.

 

The Swedes don't spend money on buying things they don't need. They choose what they really need at the moment. They prefer comfortable and concise clothes, comfortable furniture, simple and tasty food.

 

For example, H&M is a Swedish brand of women's and men's clothing and accessories. Stylish and practical, affordable prices, the ability to hand over old things for recycling - all this reflects the concept of lagom.

 

Interior

 

Basic principles in the interior: bright space, minimalism, functional furniture and zoning.

 

The Swedes also do not welcome luxury in arranging their homes and apartments. Everything should be, first of all, comfortable and convenient for households.

 

Recently, the corporation launched the "Live Lagom" project, the purpose of which was to teach people to use resources wisely and abandon the consumer lifestyle.

 

The collection featured eco-friendly products: energy-saving batteries and light bulbs, food storage containers, LED lighting, and more.

 

The creator of IKEA himself, having a multi-billion dollar fortune, was distinguished by modesty in spending and thrift. He always flew economy class and drove an old twenty-year-old Volvo car.

 

How to live in lagom style

• Don't waste money on unnecessary things. Learn to determine what purchases are currently the most priority for you.

• Try to find a balance between work and leisure. Avoid rework whenever possible.
• Stick to an eco-friendly lifestyle. The simplest thing is to start sorting garbage. We wrote more about this in the article "How to live more environmentally and how much it costs."
• Organize your space the right way. Various convenient storage systems are suitable for this.
• Find time for yourself and your favorite activities.