I am born on the island of Bornholm, Denmark, 19th of November 1963 by a Danish mother and a Dutch father. I have since the 1st of January 2011 been the director of The Danish Cultural Institute in Belgium, Holland and Luxembourg – The Benelux. I live in a small apartment in Brussels, where the institute is also located. My husband Jacob Kamp, who is a landscapearchitect, lives in Denmark. We don’t have any children.
The Danish Cultural Institute is an institution under The Danish Ministry for Cultural Affairs. The institute has divisions in 11 countries (Great Britain, Germany, Benelux, Russia, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Hungary, China and Brazil). See more at www.dankultur.dk.
My work at the Danish Cultural Institute in Benelux has given me a unique opportunity to combine my strong personal interest in Danish culture, art, society and European cooperation. My job is through dialogue, networking and exchanges to improve awareness of Danish culture, art and society in the Benelux. See more at www.dkibenelux.org.
Education:
- 1988 – 1992: Studied acting at Odense Theatres Actors School.
- 1983 – 1985: Trained as customs officer at The Danish Customs Service.
- 1982 – 1983: Studied to become a computer-assistant at Købmandsskolen (Scholl of Trade).
- 1979 – 1982: High school at Lyngby Gymnasium and Det Fri Gymnasium.
- 1969 – 1979: Primary school at Frederikssund Private Realskole and Trødrødskolen.
Employment:
- 2011 -: Director at The Danish Cultural Institute/Benelux.
- 2006 – 2010: Mayor in The City of Copenhagen (- se below).
- 2003 – 2005: General Manager at Folketeatret (-a 3 stage, total 1000 seat, major theatre in Copenhagen).
- 1996 – 2003: General Manager at Grønnegaardsteatret (- a 900-seat open air summer theatre in Copenhagen).
- 1995 – 1996: Administrative Manager at Mungo Park (- a small independent theatre north of Copenhagen).
- 1992 – 2010: Freelance actor, mainly in Copenhagen, at theatres, in films and on television including several major films and theatre productions and long running TV-series.
- 1985 – 1986: Customs Officer at The Danish Customs Service.
For several years during my professional acting career I also worked as a teacher at the National School of Dramatic Arts in Copenhagen and other jobs connected to my education and business.
Political Career, City of Copenhagen:
- 2010: Mayor for the Employment and Integrations administration and member of the Financial Committee.
- 2006 – 2009: Mayor for the Technical and Environmental administration and member of the Financial Committee.
- 2004 – 2005: Member of the Committee for Youth and Education
- 2002 – 2005: Member of the Committee for Democracy and Service.
- 2002 – 2004: Member of the Committee for Culture and Leisure.
- 2002 – 2005: Chairman of the Social Liberal group in the City Council.
- 2002 – 2010: Elected to the City Council in the City of Copenhagen.
- 1999 –: Joined the Social Liberal Party (Radikale Venstre) in Denmark. I have during the years held several honorary offices in the party.
Memberships of boards and committees:
- 2010: Chairman of the Copenhagen Advisory Board on employment (a cooperation between the different stakeholders in our local labour market)
- 2010: Member of the board of TAMU (a nationwide labour training project with several schools and institutions).
- 2008 – 2009: Co-chairman of Eurocities working group on Climate Change (an EU lobby organization for European cities).
- 2007 – 2009: Member of the National Heritage Buildings Supervision (appointed by the Secretary of Cultural Affairs).
- 2006 – 2009: Chairman of CTR (the public district heating company in Greater Copenhagen)
- 2006 – 2009: Chairman of the Green Council (public cooperation with ‘green’ NGOs)
- 2006 – 2009: Vice-chairman of the Emergency Commissions in the City of Copenhagen.
- 2006 – 2008: Chairman of Eurocities Mobility Forum.
- 2004 – 2007: Vice-chairman of the Scandinavian Arena (a cooperation between public authorities in the Oresund Region and the GO-region – Gothenburg and Oslo).
- 2004 – 2007: Chairman of Krogerup Folk High School
- 2002 – 2009: Member (vice-chairman from 2006) of the board of Copenhagen Capacity (a public/private organisation attracting foreign investments to Greater Copenhagen).
- 2002 – 2007: Member of Oresund Committee (a cooperation between Danish and Swedish public authorities in our region)
- 2002 – 2005: Member (vice-chairman from 2004) of the board of the Danish AIDS Foundation.
- 2002 – 2005: Member of the board at Ny Carlsberg Glyptoteket (a major classical museum in Copenhagen).
- 2002 – 2005: Member of the Copenhagen Advisory Board on Commercial Affairs.
- 2002 – 2003: Member of the board at Greater Copenhagen Committee for Theatres.
- 2001 – 2003: Member of the board at the European Theatre High School at Rødkilde High School.
- 2001 – 2003: Member of the board at Theatre Artibus.
- 2000 – 2006: Member of the board of the investments organisation BANCO.
- 2000 – 2003: Member of the International Advisory board on Cultural Affairs (appointed by the Secretary of Cultural Affairs)
- 2000 – 2001: Chairman of Mermaid Pride Copenhagen.
- 1998 – 2001: Member of the board at Mungo Park Theatre
- 1993 – 1995: Vice-chairman of the Danish Actors Union.
- 1990 – 1992: Chairman of the Actors Students Organization.
Other:
I have been a juror in several international architectural competitions (e.g. Carlsberg and North Harbour), film festivals and admission auditions at Odense Theatre School.
I have together with film-director Hella Joof written the script for the Danish movie block buster ‘En kort, en lang’ (Angel Film, 2001)
Languages:
I speak, read and write fluent Danish and English. I understand and read fluent Swedish and Norwegian. I speak and read French, German and Dutch at a low, but understandable, level.
Interests:
I like travelling to major busy cities all over the world and relax by reading an interesting book, going to the theatre, watching a good film and great television series, visit museums and reading newspapers intensively.
January 2011
