Since its inception, the ERSTE Foundation has built up enormous intellectual capital. The work of the foundation covers a wide range of thematics: from the reinvention of our liberal democratic way of life, to offering fresh perspectives on the economy, the welfare state, the media, art and culture. As Director of Communications I am dedicated to making the foundation's answers to navigating the challenges of our time accessible to a broad public.

In pursuit of this task, I draw on experience from two previous careers: For 25 years I worked as a journalist, first for the Standard in Vienna and then for a shorter period for the NZZ in Zurich and Berlin. After that, I headed the policy planning staff of the Austrian Foreign Ministry for almost four years. In this role, I was directly engaged with the political, economic and technological upheavals that are so profoundly shaping our present.

If there is one conclusion we should draw from these turbulent times, it is this: Those who want a future must actively shape it. For me, there is no better place to do so than at the ERSTE Foundation.