Chairman’s remarks:
Dear AmCham Members, Partners and friends,
Welcome to the 146th issue of your AmCham digital Newsletter! To us, it seems like it was only yesterday that we started this digital magazine. It was at the start of the pandemic that we reluctantly came to the conclusion that we should shut down our historic quarterly magazine. Our reasons were threefold. First, in the COVID crisis, a quarterly published paper magazine did not provide sufficiently frequent timely information to keep you, our readers, informed on what was going on. Second, we realized that, at that time, people were unwilling to touch anything because of their fear of infection. And third, advertising support dried up because of the first two reasons. I really was proud of that quarterly paper magazine because it helped us inform and connect with our English speaking audience, and hence, served a valuable purpose. But the decision was necessary, so we took it.
At the same time, we realized that, with COVID, there was an increased need for English language information about government policy and subsidies, health information and advice on how to cope and adapt to the realities imposed by COVID. So, over a two-week period, we created and launched this digital weekly Newsletter, with the first purpose being to give our readers, in English, the news and advice they needed to have. I remember one of our staff saying; “but we are not journalists and do not know how to create a digital newsletter”! And I remember replying: “that is why we have taken two weeks to do it”! Admittedly our first issues were a bit rough. But, we have improved over time!
I am glad we took on this project and, with 6,000 subscribers getting this Newsletter every week, I have the feeling our audience is happy with what we are doing too. To be clear, we are not formally trained journalists. But we work hard to do our best and speak from our hearts to try to help you all stay informed, and even a bit entertained as well! If you like what we are doing, tell us. If you don’t, tell us what to change to do better. We are here to serve you… and want to make you happy by serving your needs.
I am thrilled that Claude Wiseler, President of the Chamber of Deputies, has given us a great interview this week talking about the important role and responsibilities of the Chamber of Deputies. I have known Mr. Wiseler for many years and respect him (and his wife!) for their integrity, professionalism and their public service contributions. Enjoy this insightful interview.
Next month, we will have the elections for the EU parliament. Along with all of the other American Chambers of Commerce in Europe, we in AmCham.lu urge everyone who is eligible to register, to get informed on the policies and objectives of the candidates and vote on Sunday, 9 June, to elect those who will represent us in the European Parliament in Strasbourg for the coming five years. Democracy is the best form of government. But it only work if everyone who is eligible participates responsibly by voting for people who will work to implement policies that you believe in and want!Please get involved and vote wisely!
We have invited the most significant six candidate lists to answer three clear questions about who they are; who they plan to align with in the EU parliament if given a mandate to serve you; and what objectives and policies they will work to achieve during the period of mandate. We will publish their answers before the 9 June voting and urge you to read and share this content with your friends and colleagues.
We also are organizing a town hall meeting to give you and your friends a chance to meet, listen and engage with the candidates who likely will represent and serve you. I am delighted that Amazon has agreed, as a public service, to sponsor and host this event which will be moderated by Italo Di Lorenzo, the recently selected chair of our new Government Relations Management committee. Please watch this space for further details and, when the information is published, please sign up and join us.
On July 6th & 7th, we will partner with the Roude Léiw Polo Club and award an AmCham trophy cup at the 6th International Roude Leiw Polo Cup. Please see the details further on in this issue and join us for this free-two day event. AmCham will have a dedicated space in the middle side of the polo field, so please come by for a visit with us. Please also sign up and join the evening party!
Following you will see lots of other news, event announcements and additional useful information. Thanks for reading and enjoying this content and please share it with your friends and family.
With respect and our very best wishes!
Paul Schonenberg
Chairman and CEO
AmCham.lu