After graduating she studied in the United States, attended the Stockholm School of Economics and worked in France.
She finally entered an education at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs where she remained and worked as a diplomat for 44 years.
[3] During twenty of Karlström Dorph's years within the diplomatic corps she worked in Africa where she was stationed in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and Gaborone, Botswana, among other places.
Her job was to get in contact with the leaders of the then prohibited anti-apartheid movement in South Africa and Namibia,[4] and find ways to transfer money from Sweden to support their cause.
[4] A significant part of the money was used for legal help in defending black persons accused of breaking any of the apartheid laws that were in effect at the time.