Dr. Baldur Thorhallsson

From my Facebook page:

A dear friend and colleague, Alyson Bailes, passed away in her home in the Scottish Borders on Friday. Alyson was an extraordinary woman. I first met Alyson in 2004 when she visited Iceland and gave a talk at the University. She told me over dinner that her dream was to retire in Iceland and teach part time at our Faculty. I was so impressed by her lecture and her ideas about teaching and research that I offered her to join us in the Faculty before dinner was over without having any authority to do so! Three years later, she had ‘retired’ (before planned) and was working full time in our Faculty as Visiting Professor 🙂

We worked together for 10 years, shared the same enthusiasm for small state studies, wrote several articles together and went on a lecture tour in Scotland. I have profound memories of the tour. We presented a paper on Scotland as an independent small state. Alyson was at her best in the lecture hall and the audience was always impressed by her knowledge and performance. She was a great public speaker. She was very pleased with the fact that both the 'Yes' and 'No' camps used our paper to provide evidence for their cause.
I learned a lot from working with Alyson. I always felt that I learned something new every time we spoke - even though we only exchanged few words in the Faculty's hallway.

She was a remarkable teacher and always willing to assist her students and young researchers. She helped many of our students to find a suitable carrier after graduation. She leaves a profound mark on our small society in Iceland.
Alyson was not only an outstanding scholar and diplomat (she served in the British Foreign Service for 30 years). She was a fan of heavy metal music and movies and sang in many choruses. Her favorite metal band was Týr, a Faroese metal band. It was fascinating to discuss all these topics with her.
The funeral is to be at the Borders Crematorium near Melrose on Monday 9th May at 1pm. However there is to be a Memorial service in Iceland and England at a later date.

Alyson was a dear family friend - Felix Bergsson, Álfrún Perla Baldursdóttir,Guðmundur Felixson. We miss her very much.

To my surprise, I was earlier in the year included in a poll where people were asked about their views on me serving as President of Iceland and my husband and I moving to Bessastaðir - the President's Residency. In the wake of this poll, I received a lot of warm words and wishes of goodwill. I am very thankful for all these warm wishes and to those who saw us as suitable for Bessastaðir . Despite this groundswell of support, I announced in no uncertain terms that I was not considering a run for the presidency. See below for news reports on my short-lived “presidential run”:

• Majority supports a gay couple at Bessastaðir according to poll
• Bald­ur og Fel­ix á Bessastaði?
• Kanna landið fyrir framboð Baldurs

Having announced earlier during his term that he would not seek re-election, the sitting Icelandic President, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, announced his intention to seek re-election. The President explained his decision by referring to the uncertainty in Icelandic politics and the need for an experienced, knowledgable President to oversee the coming parliamentary election. In several interviews yesterday and today, I gave my explanation for the President's decision. Fearing an unpalatable outcome in the next parliamentary election (the victory of the reform-minded Pirate Party) and disagreeing with the likely changes that a left-leaning coalition government headed by the Pirate Party would implement, the President seeks re-election to hinder these changes, which includes changes to Iceland's fishery policy, changes regarding Iceland's application or membership of the EU, and changes to the Icelandic Constitution. The President's decision to seek re-election has consequently been supported by status quo-minded institutions. A Morgunblaðið editorial, for instance, urged the President to seek re-election earlier. Also, after the President's announcement yesterday, parliamentarians in the Progressive Party expressed their support, including the new Prime Minister, Sigurður Ingi Jóhannsson.

Yesterday's interviews:

• 19.4.2016, X-ið in Harmageddon - Það er nettur Frank Underwood í Ólafi
• 18.4.2016, Stöð 2 - Kvöldfréttir
• 18.4.2016, Stöð 2 - Aukafréttatími

The last ten days have been tumultuous, as the release of the Panama Papers led to the resignation of the Icelandic Prime Minister, changes in the Icelandic government, calls for further changes, and protests and uncertainty. Discussion of the events during several extensive news broadcasts on Channel 2 (Stöð 2) during the tumultuous days that followed the release of the Panama Papers:

• 6.4.2016, Stöð 2 - Kvöldfréttir - þriðji hluti
• 6.4.2016, Stöð 2 - Kvöldfréttir - annar hluti
• 6.4.2016, Stöð 2 - Kvöldfréttir - fyrsti hluti
• 6.4.2016, Stöð 2 - Fréttir
• 6.4.2016, Stöð 2 - Hádegisfréttir
• 5.4.2016, Stöð 2 - Kvöldfréttir
• 5.4.2016, Stöð 2 - Aukafréttatími kl. 15 - fyrri hluti
• 5.4.2016, Stöð 2 - Aukafréttatími kl. 15 - seinni hluti

Also, an interview with the magazine The Market (Markaðurinn) about my background and research interests:

• 13.4.2016, www.visir.is (Markaðurinn) – Var í Bretlandi á róstusömum tíma

It is important that the course catalogue in the Faculty of Political Science at the University of Iceland provides our students, policy-makers of the future, with the tools and knowledge to understand and deal with many of the contentious issues facing Europe and Iceland today. Some of the courses at the Faculty of Political Science that feel highly relevant in the wake of the Brussels attacks are:

• 'Peace and Conflict', taught by Bylgja Árnadóttir.
• 'International Security', taught by Dr. Page Wilson.
• 'Forced migration: Causes, reactions and consequences', taught by Jóna Sólveig Elínardóttir.
• Our BA- and MA-level courses on European Integration, taught by Jóna Sólveig Elínardóttir and Dr. Magnús Árni Magnússon respectively.

The Brussels attacks pushed contentious issues regarding Islam and the West, refugees and immigrants, Schengen and European integration, and privacy and security to the forefront again. Discussion of some of these issues in several interviews yesterday and today.

Bylgja Árnadóttir, my colleague at the University of Iceland, and I discussed these issues at length with a RÚV radio show– 22 March 2016. Bylgja teaches a course on peace and conflict studies at the University of Iceland.

Interview on Channel 2 News – 22 March 2016

Interview on a special edition of Channel 2 News– 22 March 2016 

Interview on the X-ið radio show Harmageddon – 23 March 2016

Interviewed in a Morgunblaðið article – 23 March 2016

Lecture on the relations of small states with their larger neighbours: a close examination of the Nordic, Baltic and Scottish experience was broadcast on the RÚV radio show Vits er þörf.

The program can be accessed here.

40 students graduated from the Faculty of Political Science on Sunday. 5 completed an MA-degree, 26 a diploma and 9 a BA-degree. The student theses can be found here.

More pictures can be found here.

A new board was chosen to lead the Institute of Public Administration and Politics at the University of Iceland. Margrét S. Björnsdóttir will serve as chairman of the governing board, replacing Þorgerður Einarsdóttir. Also, Arnar Þór Másson replaces Ragnhildur Arnljótsdóttir as a member of the board.

The first Icelandic textbook on European integration launched on Thursday.

For additional pictures, go here.