Embry-Riddle Student Chosen To Attend Nobel Prize Ceremony & Youth Forum

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Daytona Beach, FL – An Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) civil engineering sophomore is headed to the Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony in Oslo, Norway on December 10.

Fanny Kristiansson, a Sweden native, has been invited as 1 of 24 delegates from 12 countries to the Telenor Youth Forum, a partnership between the Nobel Peace Center and Telenor Group, a telecommunications company from Norway. She was chosen out of 7,200 applicants and is one of two applicants from Sweden.

Throughout 2018, Kristiansson and other youths in the program will work virtually solving problems with digital technology. In May, each team will go to Bangkok to create a digital presentation of their projects with help from the Nobel Peace Center and the Telenor Group. The projects will be revealed in December 2018.

While in Oslo for the Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony, Kristiansson and other youths will be divided into their teams for the project. The teams will focus on global social problems. The youths will also attend the Nobel Peace Prize laureate exhibition, the Nobel Peace Prize Concert, and the Torchlight Procession through Oslo.

“It’s going to be so cool to experience the ceremonies firsthand,” said Kristiansson. “It’s an honor to be a part of something so big and to see people create something from their ideas and dreams that will make a difference in the world. I always wanted to make the world a better place and this (youth forum) is one way to do it.”

According to the Nobel Peace Prize, International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) will receive the 2017 award “for its work to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons.”

The first prize was given out in 1901. Sweden native Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite and other explosives, donated money towards awards in the fields of prizes in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology/Medicine, Literature, and Peace when he died. The distinction was then named after him.

Kristiansson says that she has always admired the Nobel Peace Prize winners. While in high school, she met Tomas Lindahl, the 2015 Nobel Prize winner in chemistry for research on DNA repair. In her application, Kristiansson wrote about that experience. “I was overwhelmed with the insight that he made a breakthrough that will affect millions by following his own dreams,” said Kristiansson.

Kristiansson is Red Cross volunteer, a certified Emergency First Responder with ERAU’s Medical Emergency Disaster Relief Club, public relations officer for the ERAU Chapter of Engineers Without Borders, a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers Club, and a goalkeeper on the ERAU Eagles Soccer Team.

“I’m very passionate about helping people and making a change, especially with disaster relief. That’s when people need you the most,” said Kristiansson. Kristiansson wants to work in disaster relief after she completes her bachelor’s and master's. She believes her coursework and team memberships will help her succeed during the Telenor Youth Forum.

“This tremendous honor reflects Fanny’s character and integrity,” said ERAU Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering, Scott Steman. “She tirelessly works to improve herself while positively impacting her peers and professors. The entire department is so proud of her and we are very excited she chose civil engineering as her path."

Copyright Southern Stone Communications 2017.