In 1880, after the successfully completing his expedition to sail the Northeast Passage, the Finnish-Swedish explorer and scientist Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld (1832–1901) published his essay <i>Förslag till inrättandet af Riksparker i de nordiska länderna</i> (A Proposal for Establishing National Parks in the Nordic Countries). In his essay, Nordenskiöld called for the creation of protected areas in which the original nature of the Nordic countries could be preserved for later generations. His <i>Proposal</i> eventually led to the passing of Sweden's Conservation Act of 1909, which established nine national parks - the first ever in Europe.
