You don't have to call him Sir Burce, but Norwegian booster Bruce Gjovig ( North Dakota, 1974) sports a prestigious medal bestowed by His Majesty King Harald of Norway.

The royal palace in Oslo has announced that Gjovig, leader of UND’s Nordic Initiative and founding director of the university’s Center for Innovation, received the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit, which is given for “outstanding service in the interests of Norway.”

Gjovig received the decoration Oct. 23 from Norwegian Ambassador Wegger Strommen at the embassy in Washington, D.C. The award includes an eventual audience with King Harald.

“There are no special rights or privileges bestowed on the recipient,” Gjovig said, “but a prescription to reduce swelling of the head seems appropriate.”

The award is the highest honor given by Norway to foreign nationals.

“I’m being honored because of the tremendous success of Nordic Initiative, so this is recognition for all the work we’ve done,” Gjovig said.

The Nordic Initiative has helped to make UND the leading destination for Norwegian students coming to the United States since 1998 according to Gjovig. The group has hosted more than 90 groups and individuals, from the crown prince and crown princess and three Norwegian ambassadors to business delegations, teachers, scientists and others.

“Building a tie with modern Norway: That’s what we have been trying to do.”

Gary Gandrud, newly appointed honorary consul for Norway in the Upper Midwest, hailed Gjovig as “a tireless and imaginative worker for North Dakota and for Norwegian Americans” throughout the country.

“What I find most impressive are his relevant and modern connections to Norway,” Gandrud said in an e-mail from Russia, where he is traveling. “As an officer of the Norwegian American Foundation, he carries his message and energy all across the U.S. and Norway.”

Rolf Hansen, who was the last career diplomat assigned as Norway’s consul general in Minneapolis before the consulate was reorganized as an honorary posting earlier this year, also praised the honors for Gjovig.

“He has done such a great job in bringing together all the Norwegian groups and interests in this part of the country,” said Hansen, who will leave Minneapolis later this week to become Norway’s ambassador to Syria. “For a number of years, the consulate has supported his work at Nordic Initiative because we wanted just that — more business contacts between the two countries.

“He’s Mr. Norway in that part of the country,” Hansen said.

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His Majesty King Harald V of Norway has awarded Mr. Bruce Gjovig, Grand Forks, the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit which is the highest official award a non-Norwegian citizen can receive. The order was established by King Olav V in 1985 and is given for "outstanding service in the interests of Norway". The order was presented to Mr. Gjovig at the Norwegian Embassy in Washington, D.C. October 23, 2008 and Mr. Gjovig will have an audience with HM the King in Oslo at a later time.

  Picture: Gjovig together with NF Council Member Steinar Opstad.