www.sundsvall.se
Sundsvall with a city population about 94,000, is strategically located on the Swedish east coast, 350 km north of Stockholm. Today the town centre is a place where commerce flourishes and the alternatives for entertainment are varied and interesting, where the entire centre of Sundsvall is classed as an historical monument. Kulturmagasinet, The Culture Warehouse, is one of Sweden’s most popular tourist attractions with its 550,000 visitors each year and programme activities for both children and adults.

Sundsvall has a diverse business community with its focus on pulp, paper and fibre technology, IT/telecom, banking and insurance these leading fields serves to support the undertakings and development of other businesses. In addition, the primarily goal is to build bridges linking the university, research and business communities.
 

History:

The town of Sundsvall was established by royal decree in 1621. During the 1600s as a new great power, Sweden was constantly at war and in need of money and weapons. The town was encircled by customs’ walls and before being permitted the farmers to sell their products they were required to pay a customs duty which served as a source of revenue for the monarch.

During the 1700s and 1800s the town expanded and the population grew rapidly. Sundsvall became the important centre of an industrial district. There were a sizeable number of shipyards, ironworks and water-powered saws. It was however in connection with the advent of the steam-powered saw era that Sundsvall grew to be a big city by Swedish standards of the day. This also marks the beginning of what was to become one of the world´s largest sawmill district.

Sundsvall is still today home to many large industries. Most significant is the timber industry, which now produces mainly paper and pulp. But Sundsvall is much more than just industry. The service sector provides more jobs in the municipality than any other sector of the economy. Sundsvall has strength and a competitive edge in the fields of Cellulose/firer technology, banking, insurance and pensions, IT and telecom.

Famous for: 2005 Campus Åkroken had the Charter Award from the The Congress for the New Urbanism. 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2005 Sundsvall won title of Sweden´s Best Student Municipality . Ranked as Sweden’s best journalism programme at Mid Sweden University. The Fibre Science and Communication Network, FSCN. FSCN was founded at Mid-Sweden University on the initiative of the KK-foundation (Knowledge and Competence Foundation), representing the public interest, and the forest industry (the Swedish Forest Industry Research Foundation, SCA and others.

Sundsvall is strategically located on the Swedish east coast, 350 km north of Stockholm. It’s easy to get to and from Sundsvall. Fine roads, high-speed trains and a domestic airport give quick access to the region. Flying time to Stockholm is 40 minutes and it takes 3 hours 20 minutes to travel by train between Sundsvall and the capital city. The town is a traditional commercial centre with roots that stretch back to Viking times. Much of Sundsvall’s history centres on the forest and water, our greatest natural assets. When the town was burned down in 1888, for the third time in its history, the rebuilding started without undue delay. The architectural ideal was Continental and, instead of using timber, the town was this time built of stone. Today the town centre is a place where commerce flourishes and the alternatives for entertainment are varied and interesting.

Population: 94,000 in 43,000 households with 29 people per square kilometre.

Education:
Mid Sweden University is a network university with campuses in Sundsvall and three other sites in the region. The university has close links with industry and commerce, local authorities, governmental authorities and other bodies in the region. Mid Sweden University offers courses and undergraduate programmes in the following fields: the Humanities, the Social Sciences, Technology and the Natural Sciences, Teacher Training and the Health and Caring Sciences. In 2000 Sundsvall was proclaimed both Student City of the Year and Sweden’s Best Student Municipality. In 2001, the journalism programme was ranked as the best in Sweden by the periodical Moderna Tider.

Tourism & culture:
The entire centre of Sundsvall is classed as an historical monument. Kulturmagasinet, The Culture Warehouse, is one of Sweden’s most popular tourist attractions with its 550,000 visitors each year and programme activities for both children and adults. The building next door is home to Bildens hus: The House of Images with one of Europe’s most complete photo-history collections. The fine, old Knaust Building, representing the old timber magnate’s era, is now a comfortable hotel and the newly-opened casino adds even more to Sundsvall’s Continental atmosphere. For many years Sundsvall has been an active and prominent music centre. Several musical activities: the Chamber Choir, Chamber Orchestra and all the other choirs, orchestras and music groups. The greatest summer attraction is Sundsvall’s street festival, Gatufesten. This is where one can see and hear the hottest performers during the first week of July. To the south, on Södra berget, there is a first-class outdoor recreation centre which hosts both major and lesser events and where everyone who wishes can practice their skiing on tracks or going downhill. To the north rises Norra Berget with its network of splendid walking paths and the new outdoor museum.

Local economy:
Sundsvall has a diverse business community with its focus on pulp, paper and fibre technology, IT/telecom, banking and insurance. These leading fields combined employ 10,000 people in Sundsvall and at least twice as many jobs are indirectly dependent upon them. A positive development of these leading fields, serve to support the undertakings and development of other businesses. The local authority of Sundsvall has, together with the regional business community, newly established a new arena, Akrokens Sciencepark, for entrepreneurship, growth and research. The primarily goal is to build bridges linking the university, research and business communities.