April 28, 2011 - DESIGN LEADERSHIP SUMMIT, Børsen, the Old Stock Exchange

Good Morning.  Welcome to Copenhagen.  This city is a wonderful choice as the site of the 6th Annual Design Leadership summit.  And you have chosen to kick off your day by meeting in one of my favorite buildings in Copenhagen.  I am inspired by the title of your seminar:  Living Design.

Thank you Keith Granet for your introduction - and for making clear that I am not a design professional.  What you hear from me today will be my personal views about Danish design and architecture.

It is an honor and privilege to represent the United States as its Ambassador to the Kingdom of Denmark.  It is a special privilege for me because I have family roots - and relatives - in Denmark.

100 years ago, my grandfather emigrated from Denmark to the United States.  I grew up knowing that I had Danish relatives and Denmark was an important part of my heritage.  My first visit to Denmark was in 1970. Even on that visit, this unique building was my favorite.  In 1997, I brought my nearly adult children here, and walked them down to see this building with its fabulous tower  -- depicting four dragons' tails twisting towards the top and ending in a spear with three crowns.  These represent The Kalmar Union among Denmark, Norway and Sweden - which were united under the Danish crown from the late 1300s to the early 1500s.

This building is the Old Stock Exchange.  It was built in 1640 by King Christian IV, often referred to as the builder king.  He seemed particularly fond of the Dutch Renaissance style.   To many of you, I'm sure the title conjures up the image of today's financial markets.  Christian IV had the same intentions - that this magnificent building would help turn Denmark into a financial and trade center.  The great hall - where we now gather - was then filled with 40-50 booths of striving merchants, selling everything from corn to merchandise.  Unfortunately, the builder king also lost several wars and ran up a lot of debts, and had to sell this building to a wealthy merchant.  King Frederik III, Christian's son, bought the building back again for the Royal Family.  In the mid 1800s, King Frederik VII sold the building to the Merchant's Guild.  It remains in the same hands today, although the Merchant's Guild has become the Danish Chamber of Commerce.  This was also the first preserved building in Denmark.

So, thank you for choosing my favorite Danish building.  It is a symbol of the importance of design in Danish history and culture.

It is also a functional building and showcases durability, adaptability, and sustainability -- all important characteristics of design.

Ever since I first traveled to Denmark in 1970 I have been impressed by the creativity, the originality and the vision of the Danish designers and architects.  The distinctive patterns of hand-tooled silver of Georg Jensen, Florica Danica and Royal Copenhagen porcelain, lamps by Louis Poulsen, the furniture from Fritz Hansen, the utensils from Stelton and the hi-fi from Bang and Olufsen.

Arne Jacobsen is one of my favorite Danish architects.  Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Radisson Blu Royal Hotel last year -- was a delight, but the real treat was visiting Room 606, which is preserved today in the original décor of Arne Jacobsen in 1959.  He designed not only the hotel, but everything in it, right down to the flatware used in the hotel dining room.  His famous Swan and Egg chairs were designed for this hotel.

Out on the beach road north of Copenhagen by the US Ambassador's residence is a gas station designed by Arne Jacobsen.  It is the cutest building.  I send all my visitors to see it.  He designed it for Texaco in 1937.  The service area is an oval shell supported by a single pillar.  Yesterday, I was visiting Lego - and the CEO of Lego agreed with me that this filling station looks like it should be in a Lego village of the 1950s. This is only one of many Jacobsen treasures still in use in my neighborhood.

Copenhagen is a marvel.  The Danes are masterful at mixing their treasured historical Renaissance buildings with modern and contemporary design. The fit seems so natural.

We're sitting in a beautiful example of this harmony.  The old symbol of economic wealth -- the Old Stock Exchange -- balances so well with its modern counterpart across the canal -- Arne Jacobsen's iconic modern building that houses Denmark's National Bank.

I understand that you will be visiting Fritz Hansen here in Copenhagen tomorrow.  I am sure you will be able to see, first hand, some of his most classic products, still very fashionable and extremely popular.  Many great Danish designers created for Fritz Hansen - including Arne Jacobsen.

During your seminar, you will have the opportunity to visit many interesting sites of Danish design - I truly wish that I could spend the next two days with you!

You will also have the opportunity to share inspiration with speakers and from various professions and multiple countries.  This is extremely important. Nothing spurs creativity and innovation better than coming together to share thoughts and ideas.

And now, I'd like to challenge you.  In his State of the Union Address last January, President Obama called on Americans to "win the future together" and demonstrate our ability as a world leader to develop a prosperous and secure future through a sustainable energy-based economy.  He identified five pillars on which we will "Win the Future."

The first pillar is innovation.  This is one of the areas in which I believe that architects and designers are key.  Calling this our "Sputnik" moment, President Obama called on America to devote the level of research and development we did after the Russians put Sputnik -- the first satellite -- into space.

When we were confronted with the reality that the Soviets beat us into space in late 1957, the US was in catch-up mode.  We responded by launching our own satellite a couple of months later and creating NASA - the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.  President John Kennedy made landing a man on the moon a priority.

NASA and space research unleashed four generations of top-notch scientists, dominated space and created new industries and technologies no one had imagined.  NASA technology helped sustain the Chilean miners who were trapped underground last year, and now NASA technology features prominently in development of sustainable cities.

Today, our challenge is not to put a man on the moon.  Rather, the challenge is use innovative approaches to design energy efficient buildings and cities --  to better use the precious water resources we have, and to create work and living spaces that accommodate healthy and happy citizens across the globe.  It is our challenge to do so with the same urgency our nation felt in 1957.

The second pillar identified by President Obama is education - and the importance of continuing to increase the number of young people who obtain advanced degrees.  It seems to me that Design has much to offer here as well.  New designs for schools, classrooms that provide an appropriate environment for fostering curiosity, creativity, research - open to sharing of ideas and collaboration - and in energy efficient ways.  I believe that these future educational environments will be built upon the best of modern American and Danish design.

 "Winning the Future" - the President's theme in the State of the Union address - also applies to the relationship between the US and Denmark.  "Winning the Future" acknowledges that we have the potential for a better future - and "together" acknowledges that we have the best prospects if we work together.

In this effort, the United States, Denmark, and our other European allies are partners.  We must join in our efforts to lead to the creation of new standards of energy efficiency and "green design."  We must find a way to lead on these fronts.

The benefits are environmental and economic, but aesthetic as well.  To achieve the kind of sustainable schools, living and work spaces we need will only be possible if architects and designers are committed to these goals.  That is another great advantage of choosing Denmark as the site of this design leadership conference - Denmark has many examples of beautiful modern energy efficient homes, office buildings, and even utility facilities.

Last year, with representatives of the U.S. military and the Danish Embassy in Washington, D.C., I visited a municipal incinerator energy-producing facility that makes the community of Thistead energy neutral.  I also visited a wood-chip burning energy facility in Thu.  It was such a beautiful building that I took photos of it!  The structure was painted a charcoal gray color; the boiler inside was bright red; the floors were clean enough to eat off; and it was operated offsite by computers.

Even some of the large energy producing facilities here in Copenhagen are examples of modern Danish industrial design.  This is one of the ways that Denmark deals with the "NIMBY" - not in my backyard" syndrome, discovering that there is less opposition to such facilities if they are attractive.

Yes, you have private clients.  But I hope you will use the opportunity here in Denmark to see what Danish design has to offer in homes, yes, and in office buildings - but also in heavy industrial facilities.

I hope that your sessions and visits will be productive and thought-provoking, and that you will leave you with an appreciation for Denmark as an innovator in design and architecture.  I am confident that each of you will return to your businesses and that even better, more innovative products, buildings and designs will result from this conference.

Tusind tak for idag.