Sopot: a beautiful little seaside town that Poles firmly associate with its music festival and many health resorts. Not anymore though; a year ago, EFNI (European Forum of New Ideas) took place for the first time, and this sleepy community in the shadow of Gdansk has been transformed into the center of European politics and business. This year, EFNI went even further, promising to improve the European economy and restore Europe’s image.

Local Affairs

Among the many Poland-related lectures and discussions, none were more publicized than the Polish Airways LOT’s upcoming last resort reform. For a while now there’s been talk of the company going under, but apparently they „knew (they had) to sell assets in order to maintain liquidity over the winter period”, mostly in order to pave the way for the new fleet of aircraft. According to Marcin Piróg, the chairman of LOT, the word of the day (and the Hail Mary pass for the Polish airlines) is Dreamliners.

Despite looming bankruptcy, the company’s plans are grandiose: to replace some of their fleet with shiny new Boeing 787 Dreamliners. The mighty steel birds are named this way owing to their top-of-the-line specs and having all the mod cons a demanding passenger could dream of. But, as is common in Poland, the reality may be less impressive: just one plane arrives in November, with more following somewhere along the way (3 according to the TVN24 news channel).

This year’s EFNI Lasting only 3 days and with over 1300 participants, EFNI is an extremely condensed conference, clearly designed to force the stars of the show to be succinct and eloquent. Think TED for politics and economy, and you won’t be entirely wrong; panels and plenary meetings have to be brief, the press have the chance to talk to almost every participant face-to-face and there’s an open-door day when anyone can take part in the discussion. EFNI is also unique in that participants can actually meet and talk to one another, and this year saw the likes of Mikhail Gorbachev, Lech Walesa, Günter Verheugen and Bernard-Henry Lévy drawing the attention of media and spectators alike. The names seem a bit all over the place, but that’s because the idea behind the event is to provide  common ground for politicians, economists and businesspeople of all stripes to meet and mingle in order to exchange  new ideas. This time around, the „new ideas” were mostly the hot-button issues: Poland’s relative well-being in the crisis, the future of the EU and the economic recovery and, finally, the place of Europe in the world.

Poland and Its Future

While LOT may indeed pass the next fiscal examination with flying colours, provided its initiative takes off, Poland as a whole doesn’t have much in the way of a universal solution.

Jan Krzysztof Bielecki, the government’s economic advisor and a former Prime Minister, is not optimistic about Poland’s future. „It’s been almost 23 years now, and so far it’s been too good to be true. In all our history we’ve not had such a prolonged period of stable economic growth,” he said at EFNI to Wprost. However, Bielecki is adamant about the government’s role in the recovery and crisis prevention: it’s to not spread panic, especially considering the complicated situation with Iran and the ongoing economic crisis. As far as Poland’s future goes, he is of the opinion that foreign investors, including the super-rich tycoons from the Middle East, see Turkey, Indonesia and Poland as the best markets to invest in, in the next 20 years.

EFNI or Eastern Davos? EFNI is held in a town that’s almost exactly on the other side of the country compared to its nearest counterpart, Krynica-Zdroj’s International Economic Forum. Everything else though, from the topics of the discussions to the actual invitees, is pretty similar. So is putting that much of a distance between EFNI and IES a happy coincidence, or are the two events in competition? „We’re not trying to compete with Krynica as far as International Forums go, and we don’t have as many meetings or as much diversity,” says Jacek Karnowski, mayor of Sopot, adding, „but all of our sessions are very good (…) it’s important for people taking part in our conference to actually meet one another.” According to him, Sopot is not competing to become „the next Krynica” of Poland, it’s more about maintaining the elite status of the meet by choosing quality over quantity. He might be right: EFNI does boast names of actual global prominence, but Krynica has tradition on its side. A relative newcomer, EFNI’s just celebrated its second outing, while the Malopolskie Krynica has played host to its international guests for more than 17 years.

 

Meanwhile in Europe…

The eagle-eyed EFNI participants didn’t fail to notice small but positive signs coming from elsewhere in Europe as well. Portugal and Ireland were noted as the only PIGS countries showing some signs of recovery. Prof. Leszek Balcerowicz (former Deputy Prime Minister) said in an interview for „Wprost” after EFNI; „The current stabilization in the eurozone is not the result of the ECB printing more money, but the result of Ireland’s and Portugal’s efforts to heal their ailing economies.”

Despite some positive economic steps being taken in Portugal and Ireland, it’s not all wine and roses for the social economy of the continent. During the conference, Orlen’s CEO Jacek Krawiec stated that the current socio-economic model of the European Union has run its course. He warned that the time when a European citizen could be proud of living in the all-providing and safe environment of the sheltered union is over; and it wasn’t just fearmongering on his part – Krawiec explained that social expenditure in Spain, Greece, Portugal and Italy – the infamous PIGS states – increased almost twofold since 1991. His views were echoed by Philip Blond, a British-born philosopher and leader of the „ResPublica” think-tank. According to Blond, there’s a need for a fundamental change in the capitalist paradigm adopted in post-communist Europe. The philosopher explains that choosing one of the existing systems and applying it Union-wide just won’t work. „It’s a false choice,” he said at EFNI, „The main question is, where does this wealth actually come from?” As Blond puts it, the existing system creates a culture of entitlement, and there are just too many people expecting something for nothing.

Does this mean that the EFNI panelists were opposed to the idea of social expenditure altogether? Thankfully, no. The nature of EFNI is such that there are many voices and many opinions, and all of them are heard. Adam Michnik, the legendary oppositionist, journalist and historian, supports the middle-of-the-road solution as far as welfare spending goes. In his opinion, the government shouldn’t flood people with benefits and possibilities to get „easy money”, but it also shouldn’t just doom the poor either, as this will simply reduce the overall competitiveness of the market.

That said, state support is a beloved tradition in Poland, with Michnik’s fellow party member (now deceased) Jacek Kuron lending his name to the special government benefit package  affectionately called a „Kuroniowka”  – as in, „the soup is on Kuron”.

The Eurozone Crisis v Sopot Declaration

Recent events in Spain and Greece have proved without a doubt that Europe as a whole, and not just its individual states’ markets, needs action. Just what  action should that be, though? The rather pompously named ‚Sopot Declaration’, signed by the most prominent panelists and experts at the event, can be summarized as a call to action for the European Union. Henryka Bochniarz, chairperson of the PKPP Lewiatan group which represents the private sector in Poland, stated that in order  not to leave our descendants ashamed of our generation’s actions, the EU has to break the mould of a passive watcher, „an extra” on the global scene, and take on a more proactive role in the world economy.

The experts at EFNI agreed with that sentiment, and provided some solutions. First on the order of business: the EU has to stop quibbling over details and start fighting its own red tape. It takes forever to enforce anything, and the EU administration is basically synonymous with bureaucracy and paperwork. The only winners in the crisis so far are quick thinkers and those who take risks, which is nigh on impossible in present-day Brussels. Secondly, monetary union must be maintained and strengthened – no abandoning ship, no changing one’s mind halfway. For no country in Europe is able to compete globally without a single currency and a common market backed by all member states. Considered individually, the European countries (even including  economic giants like Germany) pack simply too limp  a punch to go it alone; they can’t provide competitive prices, services and goods outside  the continent, and local trade just doesn’t cut it in the long run. Integration is key, and EFNI panelists went so far as to provide a seven-point plan that would outline clear goals for the EU to follow, explaining in simple terms what needs to be done in order to make Europe a truly important player internationally.

 

Among the seven points there are some pretty great ideas; the document calls for greater integration of the Union, more flexible policies that wouldn’t leave some members at a disadvantage, an actual shared fiscal, monetary and banking system, as well as maintaining a cohesive, strong presence on the international arena. This last part sums up the meeting in Sopot perfectly, as one of the goals of the conference was trying to improve Europe’s tarnished post-crisis image. That’s all well and good, but only time will tell if EFNI can really change anything in the grand scheme of things and help put Europe back on the map.

 

P.A.

VOCABULARY

firmly – stanowczo
to associate with – wiązać z, kojarzyć z
resort – kurort
community – społeczność
local affairs – sprawy lokalne
X-related – związany z X
to publicize – nagłośnić
upcoming – nadchodzący
last resort – ostatnia deska ratunku
to go under – zbankrutować
assets – aktywa
liquidity – płynność (finansowa)
to pave way for sth – utorować czemuś drogę
fleet – flota
aircraft – samolot/samoloty
chairman – prezes
the word of the day – hasło dnia, najważniejsza kwestia
Hail Mary pass – desperackie zagranie, zagranie va banque
to last – trwać
participant – uczestnik
extremely – niezwykle
to force – zmusić
succinct – zwięzły
entirely – zupełnie
plenary meeting – spotkanie plenarne
brief – krótki
face-to-face – twarzą w twarz
the likes of – ludzie tego typu, ludzie tacy jak
spectator – widz
all over the place – ni z gruszki, ni z pietruszki, chaotyczny, porozrzucany
to provide – zapewnić
common ground – wspólna płaszczyzna/platforma
of all stripes – ze wszystkich obozów/środowisk
to mingle – obracać się (w towarzystwie)
hot-button issue – paląca, istotna kwestia
relative – stosunkowy, względny
well-being – dobrobyt
economic recovery – odnowa gospodarki, uzdrowienie gospodarki
looming – nadchodzący, nadciągający
grandiose – wielce ambitny
to replace – zastąpić
mighty – potężny
top-of-the-line – najnowocześniejszy, najlepiej wyposażony
specs – dane techniczne
mod cons (modern conveniences) – luksusy, udogodnienia
demanding – wymagający
impressive – imponujący
somewhere along the way – gdzieś za jakiś czas
to pass sth with flying colours – doskonale się spisać, spisać się na medal
to take off – wystartować, tu: powieść się
to have much in the way of sth – mieć całkiem sporo czegoś
former – były, dawny, poprzedni
prolonged – przedłużający się
adamant – stanowczy
prevention – zapobieganie
to spread panic – siać panikę
considering – zważywszy na/że
tycoon – potentat
the Middle East – Bliski Wschód
to hold – organizować
compared to – w porównaniu do
counterpart – odpowiednik
invitee – osoba zaproszona
happy coincidence – szczęśliwy zbieg okoliczności
(to be) in competition – rywalizować ze sobą
diversity – różnorodność
mayor – burmistrz
according to – zgodnie z, według
to maintain – podtrzymać, utrzymać
elite – elitarny
meet – spotkanie
to boast – (móc) się pochwalić czymś
prominence – sława, znaczenie
newcomer – nowo przybyły
to celebrate – świętować, uczcić
outing – wyjście, wycieczka
to play host to sb – gościć kogoś
eagle-eyed – o sokolim wzroku
to notice – zauważyć
signs of recovery – oznaki zdrowienia/ulepszenia (się) sytuacji
deputy prime minister – wicepremier
ECB (European Central Bank) – EBC, Europejski Bank Centralny
ailing – niedomagający, chory
it’s not all wine and roses – nie wszystko wygląda tak pięknie, nie jest za różowo
CEO (Chief Executive Officer) – dyrektor naczelny
to state – oświadczyć
to run one’s course – wypalić się, skończyć się, dobiec końca
citizen – obywatel
sheltered – osłonięty, pod kloszem
fearmongering – sianie paniki, panikarstwo
social expenditure – wydatki socjalne
infamous – niesławny
twofold – dwukrotnie, dwa razy
to echo – powtórzyć (za kimś), odbić (się) echem
think-tank – zespół doradców/ekspertów
to adopt – przyjąć, wdrożyć
to apply – zastosować, wdrożyć
wealth – bogactwo
to be opposed to sth – być czemuś przeciwnym
oppositionist – opozycjonista
middle-of-the-road – nijaki, umiarkowany
welfare – zasiłek, pomoc finansowa (państwa)
benefits – świadczenia socjalne
to doom sb – skazać kogoś (np. na jakiś los), zgubić (kogoś)
overall – ogólny
competitiveness – konkurencyjność
state support – wsparcie państwa, zasiłek
fellow – kolega po fachu
deceased – zmarły
to lend one’s name to sth – użyczyć czemuś swego imienia
benefit(s) package – pakiet świadczeń socjalnych
affectionately – czule
sth is on sb – ktoś coś stawia, coś jest na czyjś koszt
without a doubt – bez wątpienia
individual – pojedynczy
action – tu: kroki, działania
pompously – pompatycznie
to summarize – podsumować
descendant – spadkobierca, potomek
ashamed of sth – zawstydzony czymś, wstydzący się czegoś
generation – pokolenie
to break the mould – wyzwolić się od szablonu
extra – statysta
to take sth on – podjąć (się) czegoś
sentiment – pogląd
first order of business – po pierwsze, rzecz największej wagi
to quibble over details – spierać się o szczegóły
red tape – biurokracja
to enforce – wprowadzić, wyegzekwować
to be synonymous with – być synonimem czegoś, być tożsamym z czymś
quick thinker – spryciarz, osoba błyskotliwa
to take risks – podejmować ryzyka
nigh on impossible – prawie niemożliwy
to strengthen – umocnić
to abandon ship – opuścić statek, tu: uciec (przy pierwszych oznakach złej sytuacji)
halfway – w pół drogi
currency – waluta
to back – wspierać
to pack a punch – mieć niezłego kopa, mieć sporo siły
limp – słaby, wiotki
to go it alone – pójść na własne, zacząć działać na własną rękę
to cut it – dać radę, powieść się
in the long run – na dłuższą metę
to outline – wyznaczyć, określić
in simple terms – prostymi słowy
flexible – elastyczny
to leave sb at a disadvantage – postawić kogoś w niekorzystnej sytuacji
tarnished – zszargany, splamiony
it’s all well and good but… – wszystko to dobrze, ale…
in the grand scheme of things – w szerokiej perspektywie, w największej skali
to put sb/sth on the map – rozsławić kogoś/coś

-by Prochor Aniszczuk

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