In mid-April, I took over the running of the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad (OSA) administrative office in Berne’s leafy Kirchenfeld district, not far from the embassies of South Africa, Israel and Belgium – an inspiring location for a job that requires an awareness of global issues.
Dating back over 100 years, the history of the OSA engenders respect. Tradition is valuable, but it can also hinder progress. Switzerland is no longer the country it was a century ago. Expat life has also changed.
After studying at ETH Zurich and the University of Fribourg, I spent a year abroad in Davis, California before deciding to embark on a career in the non-profit sector. Davis was a lovely university city offering an expanse of cycle paths as well as the relatively short distances from A to B that I had previously enjoyed in Switzerland.
But my Californian idyll was shattered after only a few days, when terrorists hijacked three passenger planes, slamming them into the World Trade Center twin towers and the Pentagon on 11 September 2001. The attacks had a lasting effect on me. I suddenly realised that even the most powerful nations have weak spots. The world had always been a dangerous place, but 9/11 brought this home. I learned that a nation’s social fabric was more important than ever.
Many of us Swiss share the same qualities. These are the ability to empathise and adapt as well as an innate modesty and the need for balance and equity. Structured from the grassroots upwards, Switzerland is a federal state that has always promoted the idea of personal responsibility. John F. Kennedy’s famous line “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” comes to mind.
It is the antidote to a self-absorbed existence that puts worldly things above spirit and community. Solidarity is a state of mind and not the exclusive domain of any political party. It is the glue that binds us, irrespective of our background or the groups we belong to. It is the key to tolerance and generosity, helping us to excel.
I look forward to working with my colleagues to negotiate present-day challenges such as federal cost-cutting and the new opportunities presented by the digital transformation. And to ensuring that the OSA continues to fulfil its remit of bringing the Swiss Abroad together and providing a link to home.
Do you have any suggestions, ideas or wishes? If so, leave a comment online or write to me at weber@swisscommunity.org.
LUKAS WEBER, OSA DIRECTOR
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