Alla Farmaceuters Hus new arena for Sweden's pharmaceutical experts

Alla Farmaceuters Hus - New pharmaceutical arena in Uppsala

One year after the Pharmaceutical Student Union took over full ownership of the Pharmen union building; they are opening the doors to Alla Farmaceuters Hus, a physical and digital meeting place for our nation's many pharmaceutical experts and students. The ambition is to create an arena for new networks and flows of knowledge, but also a quiet oasis where course mates can settle down with a cup of coffee and study for the next exam.

“Alla Farmaceuters Hus is a fresh start after the pandemic. Not least during the fall semester kick-off we saw the great need to meet in person again. Therefor we want to create an environment characterized by inspiring meetings. We are already preparing numerous exciting activities, but we also know that there is a diversity of valuable ideas out there just waiting to materialize, so anyone who wants to get involved in our activities is more than welcome to get in touch,” says Josef Edelsvärd, chair of the Pharmaceutical Student Union.

Owning a house does not only bring opportunities. For a year, the Student Union has been paying the running expenses entirely out of its own pocket, and with, among many things, a 30-year-old industrial kitchen on the premises, a financial buffer is necessary. The goal is set at half a million SEK, and with a variety of creative initiatives, the collected sum is growing fast.

“In October, we arranged a fundraising gala in Alla Farmaceuters Hus with both alumni, students and Faculty representatives on the guest list. It turned out a much-appreciated evening where we auctioned off opportunities to have the bidders name on meeting rooms and balconies, but also to have one's name engraved on a new board in the entrance hall. In total, the evening generated an amazing SEK 132,000, and for those who did not have the opportunity to attend, it is of course still possible to contribute financially,” says Josef Edelsvärd.

The list of planned and potential meeting places is extensive. At this particular evening, the ballroom is set for dinner for more than 100 students. Later on in the calendar conferences mix with the Alumni Association Farmis’ lecture series Profiles in the industry, where prominent people in the fields of pharmacy tell about everything that is possible with a pharmaceutical education. In addition, the steering group looks beyond traditional organizational boundaries.

“The fact that the Pharmaceutical Student Union has existed since 1896 and that Uppsala University has trained pharmacists for over 50 years has enabled us to grow an extensive Alumni network. This provides values ​​that we want to share with the other Swedish universities that have since implemented pharmaceutical training. Our initial contacts are met with great interest, and if we are able to unite our entire relatively small professional body with Alla Farmaceuters Hus as a hub, we all have a lot to gain,” states Josef Edelsvärd.