“Being half naked or sometimes even completely naked allows for deeper conversation,” said Mikko Hautala, Finland’s ambassador to the United States. “You talk in a way that doesn’t happen when you’re sitting around a table with a tie on or at a formal function.”
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Diplomacy takes many forms: formal meetings and state dinners at the White House; informal receptions at embassies; and one-on-one meetings over martinis in the lobbies of five-star hotels.
And then there’s the way Finnish officials prefer to do business. They like their meetings and networking to be conducted in the sauna, and for the most part, naked.
“We have a golden rule: whatever happens in the sauna stays in the sauna,” said Ambassador Hautala. “We try to make sure there is absolute trust.”
In Finland, saunas are part of everyday life, the Ambassador said. “There are 5.5 million people and 3 million saunas,” he said.
Finns use it several times a week, in a ritual that involves taking a shower, sitting in extreme heat and cooling off in cold water. The practice, traditionally performed naked, is repeated several times before sauna-goers consume a healthy meal.
Sixteen years ago, the Finnish Embassy in Washington decided to invite influential people – politicians, diplomats, officials and academics – to experience the sauna together as a way of networking.
The Sauna Diplomacy Society, as the meetings are now called, is now a coveted invitation in the US capital, thanks to Finland’s influence in international affairs and the desire of practitioners to live healthier lives.
“There are a lot of people trying to get a ticket,” said Robbie Gramer, 33, who writes about diplomacy and security for Foreign Policy magazine.
There are two types of Diplomatic Sauna Society events in Washington. (Similar events are held at Finnish embassies around the world.) At the first, the Finnish delegation gathers a group of 15 to 20 people at the Embassy about once a month. The evening begins in a dark bar on the ground floor. Attendees are separated by gender and each group is taken to a changing room provided with robes.
Participants remove their clothes – nudity is encouraged – and then perform the sauna ritual. After a few rounds, everyone changes and returns to the bar area. Traditional Finnish drinks and snacks are served.
The Ambassador also hosts diplomacy sessions in the sauna at his residence.
Gramer said the sauna gatherings were a welcome change from other events in Washington, which are often “pretty formal and boring.” The sauna, she said, “is a lot warmer. It’s a lot more cozy.”
Walter Landgraf III, a senior fellow at the Eurasia Program at the Foreign Policy Research Institute in Philadelphia, said he would treasure an invitation to the sauna. “It really allows people to let their guard down,” he said. “It’s also private. You’re behind closed doors; people are more willing to talk.”
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