Update (5:30 p.m. Monday): It appears local donations will indeed top one million kroner due to additional money collected by Longyearbyen students and residents in Ny-Ålesund. Story below is updated with details.
Original story: By now it barely qualifies as news Svalbard finished first for yet another year among 423 municipalities in a nationwide TV auction fundraiser, but a few numbers are likely to raise eyebrows: the local total of 999,798 kroner is about 100,000 kroner more than last year, with some new fund raisers supplementing the usual intense efforts of regulars.
Yet it’s 202 kroner short of one million, which might trigger thoughts of how every individual can make a difference. But apparently not for long, since the “official” total listed as of Sunday night doesn’t include some late-arriving funds.