View from the chair


View from ANDERS ÖSTBERG


It’s with great pleasure, and a large dose of humility, that I introduce myself to you as the new chair of HSS. After several years of initiating and overseeing essential changes to the organisation our previous chair, Les Mitchell, decided to step down from the Board of Trustees this April. In a show of humanist open mindedness the board elected me as the youngest and most foreign chairperson to date. This is a big responsibility, but fortunately I have two very competent new office bearers, Ben McKendrick as vice chair and Lynne Ramsay as treasurer, to help me in this task, as well as a fine collection of enthusiastic and experienced trustees. Joining Les in a life free from


board meetings are Marilyn Jackson and Alec Spencer, and on behalf of HSS I would like to extend a huge thank you for the years of hard work and dedication that they have given to the society as trustees. It is important to


the chair


remember that most trustees are not paid for their contributions, so it really is a labour of love. Having said that, I would encourage anyone who feels they have something to bring to the board to contact me. It’s never too early to start planning ahead for next year. So, who am I? As a Swedish


freelancing opera singer who has lived in the UK for 13 years I have worked for many of the UK’s main opera companies and I have an especially close relationship with Scottish Opera. With work in the arts being what it is I also run a translation business to make ends meet. Having grown up in the


wonderfully secular Sweden I’ve been an atheist all my life and in my late teens I discovered that humanism was the label that fitted my worldview and ethics. When I came to Scotland I joined HSS to support an organisation that was standing up for my views of what society should be like in the 21st


century. I have been a trustee for several years now and vice chair for the last two. Since I first joined HSS I have seen the Society move forward in leaps and bounds during challenging times, and I hope this will continue for many years to come.


This issue focuses on humanist action, a subject that covers a huge and diverse range of activities – running the gamut from local group meetings, to ceremonies, to lobbying in parliament. Humanists will be drawn to different aspects of these activities, some looking for the community feel of a day out litter picking, while others like getting into the nitty-gritty of policy – and as an organisation we try to give everyone a way to join in the action. The great thing is that being the independent, nice people that we humanists are it is your choice how much you get involved. Your Sunday morning lie-in is under no threat. So get out there and take action, or sit back and enjoy the magazine! l


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