Mozaika media release on political debate “Diversity. An Unnecessary Good?”
Within the framework of this year’s Friendship Days, Alliance of LGBT People and their friends “Mozaika” in cooperation with politika.lv is organizing a public discussion for politicians with a theme that might be of special interest to business leaders, trade unions, and students of economics and political science, namely “ Diversity. An Unnecessary Good?”
The discussion will be moderated by journalist Dita Arāja, introductory remarks will be provided by Atis Zakatistovs, Head of the Board of the Partners In Ideas Fund. The panel will consist of representatives of political parties. The discussion will be organized around the following questions: whether and how Latvia’s politicians promote equal participation of all residents in the public life of the country regardless of their gender, age, skin color, sexual orientation? Does the exclusion of a particular group from political and economic processes not harm the state and render each of its residents less competitive?
The only national brand produced in Latvia so far—The Land That Sings—does not fully correspond to the information needs of Latvia’s residents or to those of foreign tourists and investors. It is not sufficiently precise. It does not explain what kind of a song does this land sing. However, it is precisely this information that is essential in order for us to decide whether we want to live in this singing land and for others to decide whether they want to visit Latvia, to invest their capital here.
As demonstrated by Simon Anholt’s National Brand Index ( www.simonanholt.com) [1], a country’s competitiveness is influenced not only by economic indicators, the investment environment and government stability, but also by such socio-political indicators, as enforcement of human rights and environmental protection. Socially responsible business principles are becoming increasingly popular in the corporate world, both due to social pressure and increased social consciousness of business leaders.
Observance of human rights constitutes the minimal threshold for civically conscientious and socially oriented investors and tourists. Usually, people expect a positive attitude towards diversity and promotion of diversity, especially since the corporate world itself is diverse and gains from it. People want to know if in Latvia they will be welcomed or threatened. It is doubtful that a land that sings a discrimination song corresponds to the investors’ and tourists‘ understanding of a friendly business and tourism environment.
Moreover, diversity is advantageous. Economists have calculated that diversity of experience enables flexibility with regard to change, and diverse ideas produce greater creative potential. Internal variation contributes to the competitiveness of companies. The same with countries. Realizing the benefits of this kind of politics, corporate leaders can make diversity an internal rule. State leaders could act similarly.
Friday, May 30, at 9:30am in Auditorium W32 at the Riga School of Economics, Strēlnieku 4a (in Latvian with simultaneous translation in English).
[1]It should be noted that Simon Anholt has been invited by the Latvian Institute to assist with developing a brand for Latvia.
