Dreaming Big - Philadelphia Op/Ed column

Nice day.  The Philadelphia Daily News ran the opinion piece I submitted back in May. To see it online, please click here, Philly.com, opinion piece. Or read the text below.

Europe's lessons for Philly
By SUSAN SCHAEFER

IN A COLUMN last year, Phil Goldsmith invited Philadelphians to dream big, particularly about what it takes to have a great city. He mentioned that it's good to leave home every so often to see what others are doing.

I'm a Philly girl, born in the Cradle of Liberty of the New World who's been curious to learn why the Old World seems to be outpacing us. And I actually left home to do it I came to Maastricht, the Netherlands, like some Alexis de Tocqueville in reverse, to study and learn as Europe forges its new democratic experiment called the European Union.

A while back, I caught up with author and economist Jeremy Rifkin, who literally wrote the book about Europe and dreaming big, "The European Dream."
Rifkin, who teaches at Penn when he's not trotting around the globe advising European movers and shakers, was the keynote speaker last year on Europe's Independence Day (May 9) at a conference celebrating the 15th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Maastricht, the document credited with launching the current EU.

I asked him what Americans, specifically Philadelphia leaders, could learn from European examples and why he believes the old American Dream is failing us.

The U.S. now ranks 24th among industrialized nations in income inequality, a crucial measure of a country's ability to deliver on the promise of prosperity. America is at rock bottom of the list with more poor people than 18 of the most-developed European nations. The U.S. homicide rate is four times higher than the EU's. Most disturbing, the rates of childhood homicides, suicides and gun-related deaths exceed those of the other 25 wealthiest nations!

Nowhere is the death of the American Dream more evident than in Philadelphia, which had 406
homicides last year, the highest number in nine years. This isn't the Philly of my youth.
What happened?

"The American Dream worked for two centuries," Rifkin suggested, but unraveled quickly after the '60s, when the civil-rights and anti-war movements divided the country. Neo-conservative, then neo-liberal, economics resulted in shareholders' needs trumping those of employees and the community.

"If one wants to understand how to make things right, one has to have a frame of reference, or a dream, that's based on good criteria," Rifkin said. What made America a great country for 200 years was the bond between citizens, government and the market. Somewhere along the line, Americans soured on thisbelief in a sense of solidarity with their fellow human beings, opting for the rugged individualism of: "Yo, I take care of me and mine."

These days, services that foster a healthy, safe society, like education and health care, are expected to turn a profit. But it would be smart to check out just who's profiting. Statistics say it ain't the guy on the street.

If Americans define freedom as autonomy and mobility, Europeans concentrate on inclusivity. They feel free only when they see that others in their communities are free, too.
What's the message? Although they complain, most EU citizens fork out huge percentages of their income in high taxes that fund a social safety net sometimes jointly administered by government agencies and not-for-profits to protect Europe's most vulnerable citizens. Sure, things in Europe are galloping toward a market economy, but most of my European friends wouldn't trade this expensively financed social contract for what they see as the busted up, mean streets of America. They want and expect all citizens to have access to good childcare, education and social services. They want a safe, nonviolent society.

Rifkin riffs: "Your dreams become your reality. If everyone thinks, 'I'm an island unto myself, I'm not responsible for my fellow human being, I'm only responsible for my own well-being,' then why do we get surprised when we don't have communities functioning with solidarity to people?"

Oh, yeah, Eurozone economic growth and productivity have lately outpaced that of the U.S. Seems "solidarity to people" may not just provide a safe, non-violent society, but even a healthy return on investment. So I agree with Phil Goldsmith, sometimes bigger dreams really do pay off. *

Susan Schaefer is a former editor of Philly's late South Street Star. A video featuring a portion of the Rifkin interview can be seen on her blog:
schaefermillennium3.blogspot.com

Inside the Brussels Beltway

Last Friday, January the 11th, was a whirlwind day. I departed from my home base of Maastricht, the Netherlands on the 7:07 AM international train for the one-and-a-half-hour trip direct to Brussels to meet Geert Laporte, who heads up Institutional Relations for the European Centre for Development Policy Management, (ECDPM), my new client. ECDPM is an organization that for the past 20 years has served as a fiercely independent, ‘honest broker’ in creating a level playing field between the European Union and its southern neighbors from Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific to optimize and operationalize development policy that has a big impact for both sides.

Geert collected me across from Gare Midi, (Central Station), shown above with an EU building in the background, at the posh Le Meridien Hotel. From there we trekked across Parc de Bruxxelles, past the Belgian Royal Palace on one side and the Belgian State Capitol (Parliament) or Palais de la Nation, shown here, on the other, ultimately arriving at the headquarters of the newly established “Permanent Residence” for Slovenia, the country that is the first of the new entrants of the recently expanded European Union of 27 Member States, and the first former communist nation, to hold the EU’s six-month rotating presidency. As of 2007, three countries share the EU presidency over an 18-month, each taking its six months at the helm. (This works like some non-profit boards where the current president is aided by the immediate past president and the vice president.)

The Slovenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs commissioned ECDPM to undertake a study on children affected by armed conflict, an issue that falls under the priorities agreed to by the current EU presidential troika of Germany, Portugal and Slovenia under a programme called ‘Strengthening the European Union’s Role as a Global Partner for Development’. ECDPM presented the study entitled “Enhancing the EU Response to Children Affected by Armed Conflict”, as one of the kick off events of Slovenia’s new presidency. It was my opportunity to view ECDPM work first-hand. These are members from the panel discussion following the presentation.

The majority of members of audience, who were from international organizations and government agencies such as: the International Rescue Committee, Instituto Portugués de Apoio ao Desenvolvimento, and the European Commission’s Directorate of Development, responded favorably to the report while asking for more concrete recommendations in the future. Women impacted by armed conflict will be the next topic to be covered in this series that overlaps many issues faced by the developing nations.

From this gathering on such a sobering topic I was whisked to a more festive reception for the first official representative of the EU to the African Union (AU), Belgian Koen Vervaeke, who will be based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. While Vervaeke is being called a full ‘ambassador,’ representing the EU Council and Commission, this formal title falls under a diplomatic corps that will only come into effect next January once the infamous EU Constitution, (once voted down by France and the Netherlands and now safely termed a “constitutional treaty ”) is ratified by all EU member states. Therefore, Mr Vervaeke, 47, who had been the director of the ‘Task Force Africa’ at the EU office for foreign affairs led by Javier Solana, is essentially a regional foreign minister with a mandate to talk on behalf of the entire EU.

Both events underline the intricacy of Brussels’s beltway politics, with their multilevel, multi-actor makeup. I continue to follow with interest this evolving experiment in democracy called the European Union, and to marvel and respect its machinations based upon extreme cooperative principles. I’m finding that US-, or even UK-style politics, seem too unilateral to be successful in today's global meshworks. While observing the layers of policy making here is akin to watching paint dry, this style of compromise and consensus is practiced as a high art, and along with the multiple language skills of its participants seems the way of the future. Having a seat at this feast speaks volumes to the fact that we unilingual, unilateral Americans seem ill-equipped indeed for truly global leadership.

Local color

Here the new year has been marked by milestones as impressive to Martijn and me as the Castle at Antwerp shown here. Yesterday the hospital bed that predominated Martijn's study/the main guest room exited with two friendly Maastricht 'green cross' medical movers. Adieu, adios, ciao! We were grateful for a medical system that provided such service and are equally grateful that for now, Martijn has no further need.


Also significant, yesterday marked the beginning of my working relationship with European Centre for Development Policy Management, aka ecdpm, located 10 minutes walk from our front door over this, Maastricht's elegant pedestrian bridge. I'll be assisting the Centre with a range of strategic communications beginning with crafting a positioning document. The Centre has been around for 20 years doing the nearly invisible yet rather heroic work of making sure that countries from Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific, known as ACP, are properly informed and represented in European Union development efforts. The organization is modest yet mighty, and now they are seeking new ways to tell their story. I'm thrilled to be involved.

Next week I'll step back in the classroom facilitating an all day workshop for the Masters Students in the Marketing Department in the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration at the University of Maastricht, the department where I am a lecturer. During this long period of Martijn's illness and recovery I've been unable to assume my former role in the Department. Teaching this business communication skills course that I developed will feel like the clouds parting over Liege pictured here.

All in all, 2008 has been gracious to us. We hope it has been for you as well.

Antwerp Solstice

Antwerp, about a two-hour drive from Maastricht, is a city and municipality in Belgium, the capital of the Antwerp province in Flanders, one of Belgium's three regions, a center for fashion and design, and where I spent my favorite holiday in December - Winter's Solstice, with good friend, Maurice Schofflen. It has long been an important city in the nations of the Benelux (Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands) both economically and culturally.This is Antwerp City Hall at the Grote Markt (Main Square) with the Christmas Market in full swing in the foreground. 


Here is Maurice ready to capture me seated in the comforting Hand of Antwerp (below) on the main shopping street.

Antwerp is located on the right bank of the river Scheldt, which is linked to the North Sea by the Westerschelde. Antwerp's seaport is one of the world's largest, and after the port of Rotterdam the second largest in Europe.



Antwerp is synonymous with Diamonds, and families of the large Hasidic Jewish community have traditionally controlled Antwerp's global centre of the diamond trading industry.It is also a rising fashion city, and has produced designers such as the Antwerp Six. The city has a cult status in the fashion world, due to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, one of the most important fashion academies in Europe. It has served as the learning centre for a large number of Belgian fashion designers.


With Martijn still unable to make a trip that requires so much sitting, Maurice gallantly offered me this day trip to one of my favorite nearby cities. There's lots to do and see. We toured the famous Ruben's House as our cultural offering for the day, ending up in the evening in the newly renovated indoor bourse shopping area, a great end to a fine outing.

Meuse Rhine Triangle

The holidays confirmed what a diverse and lovely area we live in. Four minutes from our door is this path towards the River Meuse (also called the Maas, hence the name Maastricht loosely meaning the place where one can cross the River). Heading south (a left from where Martijn is standing) along the path we pass the incredibly urban and sophisticated Bonnefanten Museum (see December 16th entry).

Continuing along this path we come to the architecturally interesting Province House (also covered in the Dec. 16th entry) emerging into a lovely and surprising rural landscape, complete with wild steers and horses who inhabit a protected wildlife area. My friend Audrey and her sweet Tibetan spaniel, Sparkle, are shown looking back towards Maastricht, just as the more rural portion of the trail begins.
Continuing southward some 25 minutes by car we can be in the Belgian city of Liege, one foot of the Meuse Rhine Triangle (the others are Aachen, Germany and Maastricht). Part of our wonderful two-week holiday was spent with good friends Ton Schaap and Herman Rouw, shown here with Martijn during our day in Liege.

Among other things Liege boasts 'the Citadel' a former lookout post scraping the clouds. One route to get there are the famous steps of Liege. Here I am already tilted by the strain of the ascent.




Martijn scurried these steps like a cat after its tasty mousie. We were all duly impressed with his increasing stamina. You get the idea looking here over Herman's shoulder as he viewed down from the top. More on about how we spent our holidays to come. We hope yours were all you wished for. Happy 2008!