北歐

我們即將進入有著豐富航海歷史、壯闊冰川和湖泊，並以典雅簡約設計聞名的北歐。台灣傳統課本的北歐只有五個國家，但在聯合國標準編碼下，波羅的海三國、英國和愛爾蘭也被納入北歐範圍。如果要為北歐下個標籤，大概就是「零死角模範生」吧。聯合國公布的《世界幸福報告》前5名通通都是北歐國家；人類發展指數前15名當中，北歐國家佔了一半。無論是經濟發展、人權福利、環境保護，北歐都是佼佼者。 但北歐不是沒有憂慮。高社會福利仰賴高稅率，使得投資者和企業主卻步。從南端不斷湧入的難民亦享有社會福利，引發部分民眾不滿。極右派或民粹主義興起、聯合政府缺乏效率，這些都是北歐國家必須面對的問題。

We are about to enter a region featuring a rich history of navigation, magnificent glaciers and lakes and one which is known for elegant and minimalistic design brands. Traditionally, textbooks of Taiwan only list five countries in this region. However, UN M49 (Standard Country or Area Codes for Statistical Use) also assigns three Baltic States, the United Kingdom and Ireland, to Northern Europe. Want to give Northern Europe a label? "The immaculate model region" would probably do. The top five countries in the UN World Happiness Report are all Northern European countries and the Nordic states took up half of the places among the top 15 states on the Human Development Index. Be it economic development, human rights, social welfare, or environmental protection, Nordic countries come second to none. 

However, this does not mean that Northern Europe is an Eden. Heavy taxation supports stellar social welfare programs, but also keeps investors and businesses at arm’s length. Some people are also upset by the fact that refugees keep coming from the south to take advantage of their generous social welfare system. The rise of far-right or populism groups and the inefficiency of coalition governments are the primary issues that Nordic countries have to deal with.