Delano June 2015

LUXEMBOURG IN ENGLISH

WWW.DELANO.LU

€4

06/2015

ISSUE 36

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SHOULD FOREIGNERS GET THE VOTE?

BUSINESS What Michael J. Fox funds in Belval

LIFESTYLE Get fit

THE KEY REFERENDUM QUESTION

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Write to PO Box 728 L-2017 Luxembourg Offices 10 rue des Gaulois, Luxembourg-Bonnevoie ISSN 2220-5535 Web www.maisonmoderne.lu Founder and CEO Mike Koedinger Administrative and financial director Étienne Velasti Innovation, quality and operations director Rudy Lafontaine

EDITORIAL

Text by DUNCAN ROBERTS

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OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS

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In accordance with article 66 of the law of 08.06.2004 on the freedom of expression in the media: the company that publishes Delano is indirectly held, by a stake exceeding 25%, by Mike Koedinger, an independent editor registered in Luxembourg. Mike Koedinger is chartered with daily management. Delano™ and Maison Moderne™ are trademarks used under licence by MM Publishing S.A.© MM Publishing S.A. (Luxembourg) COVER PHOTO

Julien Becker shot Raphaël Kies and Philippe Poirier in the foreign ministry’s courtyard off place Clairefontaine.

NOTE TO OUR READERS

The next print edition of Delano will be published on 8 July.

For news updates, commentary and our weekly what’s on guide, visit www.delano.lu.

A

s Delano went to print, opinions polls showed that the referendum vote on whether non-Luxembourgers should be given suffrage in parliamentary elections was too close to call. The Luxembourg population is fairly evenly divided between the “Jo” and “Nee” camps, and with campaigning only getting underway seriously in the final weeks before the 7 June vote there is still all to play for.

As our cover story reveals, arguments on both sides of the fence are valid. It is understandable that Luxembourgers want to protect some sort of national identity and encourage those who settle here to learn the local language. But they must also recognise that Luxembourg is a unique case, with an unusually high proportion of foreign residents who make a valuable contribution to the economy and to social and cultural life.

Unfortunately, negative emotions play a big role in such a momentous decision. Some no campaigners have been playing on the fear that too much influence will be given to foreigners if they are allowed to play an active role in deciding the make up of parliament.

But yes campaigners are just as guilty of over dramatising the exploits of their opponents--labelling anyone who has indicated they might be in favour of a no vote as racist is hardly constructive. The sceptics in turn point to the

almost embarrassing participation level of eligible non-Luxembourgers in local elections as an argument that foreigners aren’t interested in politics in any case--an argument that is at odds with their fear of losing influence in their own country. The progressives counter argue that a failure to open up the electoral roll will leave members of the CGFP union as one of the largest voting groups in the general election, and Luxembourg will remain mired with a civil service all too happy to retain the status quo.

The referendum, then, is an opportunity to showcase Luxembourg as a modern, innovative, forward-thinking country that regards those residents who make a valid contribution to its wealth and well being as equals, regardless of nationality. It would hopefully encourage non-Luxembourgers to take more interest in politics, to feel as though they are part of the decision-making process. Because if the opportunity arises, it must be one that foreign residents seize gleefully with both hands.

LEGENDE TITRE CLOSED DOORS Only Luxembourgers are currently allowed to vote in elections for the Chambre des Députés June 2015

CONTENTS

5

DELANO JUNE 2015 CURRENT AFFAIRS 6

7

UPFRONT Carte blanche

Why was the religious funding question dropped from the upcoming national referendum, asks Jérôme Faber.

8

SNAPSHOTS Yellow fever

BUSINESS 26

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48

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UPFRONT Grand Duchy files

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SNAPSHOTS Secondhand umbrella, anyone?

Jos van Bommel, the director of the Luxembourg School of Finance’s master’s in wealth management course, who has just sent off his first cohort of graduates.

SNAPSHOTS Are investors benefitting?

30

COVER STORY Should foreigners get the vote?

LIFESTYLE

UPFRONT Catching up with…

Legal specialists expressed scepticism about new EU fund rules during a recent ALFI conference.

It is the only time of the year people are allowed to go quackers and throw stuff into the Pétrusse river. But no one is trying to duck their responsibility.

DELANO DIGITAL HIGHLIGHTS

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FUNDS Closer to China

How “Duke’s night” became one of the biggest bashes for Luxembourg’s international community.

50

The capital’s monthly “vide grenier” sale is great for clearing your attic or filling it up with bargains.

54

BE TRUE TO YOUR SCHOOL! Why alumni associations are important for European universities. www.delano.lu/news/ be-true-your-school

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SPORT & FITNESS Get into shape

How the Grand Duchy’s financial centre has secured better footing with the Middle Kingdom’s markets.

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RESEARCH Links under the microscope

EXPORTING LION

Is warmer weather motivating you to get more active? Check out Delano’s guide to fitness clubs and finding a personal trainer.

Luxembourg will be a top global trade winner this year. www.delano.lu/news/luxembourg2015-exporting-lion-survey

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INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE Coming full circle

The Rotondes culture and arts venue returns to the former engine sheds in Bonnevoie.

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POLITICS “Right path”

The prime minister struck a broadly upbeat note in his annual “state of the nation” address, although the leader of the opposition said it was short on details.

In the science sector, efforts to “help build Luxembourg’s brand” abroad are starting to yield positive results… at least with the Michael J. Fox Foundation.

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TECHNOLOGY Getting the equation right

Luxembourg lacks the e-skills that local business needs. Will a new programme, that changes the way IT is taught in state schools, make the grade?

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KIDS Express that creativity!

SONGS AND DRAGONS

St. George’s students mark England’s national day. www.delano.lu/news/songs-anddragons-st-george-s-day Six activities to help youngsters find their talents.

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MY FAVOURITES Different strokes

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MY OTHER LIFE 4,000 rackets

LOOKING FOR A NEW JOB? Actress Sabine Rossbach shares three favourite swimming spots.

CORRECTION

In the May edition’s guide to alumni associations, we mixed up the websites for the Belgian and French business schools both named HEC. The alumni group for the HEC in Liège can be found at www.hec.ulg.ac.be/section/alumni. Luxembourg alumni of the HEC in Paris can be found at www.luxembourgforhec.com. Back to school for Delano.

Apple farmers in eastern Luxembourg are reviving a classic craft. Crack open a bottle.

Tax consultant Michel Guilluy serves his passion for tennis.

Check out Delano’s job listings. www.delano.lu/jobs

HAVE A COMMENT? Delano is always looking for reader feedback and guest contributors: news@delano.lu

June 2015

Luc Deflorenne (archives) Alexander Johmann (CC BY-SA 2.0) Natasha Stone Neetal Parekh (CC BY 2.0)

Luxembourg citizens head to the polls on 7 June to decide if non-nationals should receive suffrage after a decade’s residence.

It is surely a symbolic question. But will the result only be symbolic as well?

FOOD & DRINKS Cider makes a comeback

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UPFRONT

CURRENT AFFAIRS

SYRIAN REFUGEES WELCOMED Family minister Corinne Cahen (left) was on hand to welcome some 43 Syrian refugees at Findel airport on 5 May. Members of eight families, 16 adults and 27 children, have been granted refugee status by the government and will not have to make any application to remain in Luxembourg. They are being temporarily housed in the Centre Heliar in Weilerbach. The Office Luxembourgeois de l’Accueil et de l’Intégration, whose new director Yves Piron was also at the airport to greet the refugees, will handle finding more permanent lodgings as well as providing social

care and assisting with the education placement of the children--the youngest will be placed in special classes at the Centre Heliar while those of secondary school age will join so-called classes d’accueil. Adults will be offered language classes.

Luxembourg had already taken in 28 refugees from Syria in 2014 and another family of three arrived later in May. “It is unimaginable, what they have been through,” Cahen posted on social media. “I will do everything I can to allow these 46 people to integrate as quickly as possible.”

June 2015

35,702

37,639

39,957

43,087

Crime figures released at the end of April show that some 7,839 offences per 100,000 inhabitants were reported in 2014, up from 7,440 in 2013. The most alarming increase was in the number of burglaries and attempted burglaries, which for the first time exceeded 4,000 cases. However, incidences of car theft and rape fell compared to 2013 and there were just four cases of unlawful killing.

30,532

CRIME ON THE RISE

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

Overall crime figures 2010-2014 (Police Grand-Ducale)

Rugby and hockey players using the Boy Konen sports complex will go home with cleaner shirts in future after the Ville de Luxembourg confirmed plans to install new artificial pitches in the Cessange grounds.

Rugby Club Luxembourg, which hosts much of its training programme and league fixtures at all levels at the stadium has long complained about the deteriorating state of the grass pitches.

At one stage the senior team was playing matches in Trier in Germany and training in Longwy in France, so bad were the conditions of the grass.

In 2014 RCL formally petitioned the Ville de Luxembourg to do something about the situation, and a collapse of part of the grounds, which will require reinforcement, seems to have spurned the city into action.

RCL will be pleased it can stay in the city, as many of its younger players use public transport to get to and from training. Hockey Club Luxembourg will also welcome news that the artificial pitch it uses will be replaced by a state of the art facility. www.rcl.lu www.hockey.lu

Charles Caratini/SIP Steve Eastwood

END TO MUD BATHS

CARTE BLANCHE

ERNY GILLEN

The former vicar general of the Luxembourg Catholic church has written a book, available in English, titled How a pope might treat curial diseases, which has been described as “an open letter of support for Pope Francis.”

OFFICIAL ART

Mike Zenari Christian Mosar Steve Eastwood Annabelle Denham

Artist Filip Markiewicz unveiled his Paradiso Lussemburgo multimedia project at the Luxembourg pavilion of the Venice biennale on 7 May. The project is a “critical and sentimental ‘portrait’ of the Grand Duchy.”

LEVENT SAHINKAYA

The Turkish ambassador was recalled to Ankara for consultation following the decision by Luxembourg to recognise the 1915-1922 killing of Armenians as genocide. The Turkish government said it “condemns and strongly rejects the unfair resolution.”

CHURCH AND STATE IN LUXEMBOURG Why was the religious funding question dropped from the 7 June referendum, asks Jérôme Faber.

When I was asked to write an article about the views of AHA on the agreement between the government and religious institutions in Luxembourg and the [referendum] question, I had briefly considered this issue resolved because of the government’s decision to remove one of the essential questions for the Luxembourgish people from the ballot [ed. note: see cover story]. However, if you’re an avid follower of recent developments, things may look a bit different. Let me very briefly point out some of the main pillars of the current debate. On the one hand, the government has displayed a broad consensus towards an evolving society by significantly and outspokenly reducing faith-based ceremonies and traditions. On the other hand, as our society has moved forward in recent decades, rigid landmarks have persisted and it was only a matter of time before a critical mass would develop to claim a fairer and less discriminating policy towards every individual.

The ongoing debate surrounding the withdrawal of that important referendum question suggests that the churches were afraid of the revealingly low number of supporters the ballot would expose and therefore forced themselves into negotiations. Despite the pretence of a clear division between the secular and religious worlds, however, the Catholic church might still be up to something.

The recent agreement suggests that churches (mainly Catholic) will still be funded, while the amount will progressively decrease each year.

For decades, there has been a mystery around the financial situation of the clergy. The archdiocese itself is in debt, but hundreds of smaller associations, congregations and foundations have been hoarding financial benefits and property.

Part of the new deal involves the creation of a

global fund, where the assets, originating from taxes, of all these structures would be merged, thus increasing the transparency of the clergy’s financial situation. But then again, this has yet to be put into regulations.

The removal of religious education in both primary and secondary school will be of the utmost importance for us as a civil society with secular tendencies. Religious practice in Luxembourg has always been tightly linked to the exposure to religious rites at young age, public schools being a place where the church could interact directly with juveniles and young adults. Although the current roadmap foresees the creation of a new school subject roughly translated as “civic and social life”, including the teaching of religious beliefs without the missionary component, by the end of 2016, the Cercle de Coopération des Associations Laïques, a union of secular groups in which AHA is involved, states that some of the people behind the implementation of that curriculum remain utterly connected to the Catholic church. Even the mediator, Jürgen Oelkers, a professor of pedagogy who was involved in the creation of a similar project in Switzerland, seems biased since he clearly favours an emphasis on religious instead of secular and global values as stated during his presentation in March 2015.

As we can see, a lot of work remains. It has always been one of our primary visions that one day, we could leave a society to our children or grandchildren in which science and kindness and not religion are used to find a purpose in life.

Jérôme Faber sits on the board of the Alliance of Humanists, Atheists and Agnostics of Luxembourg (www.aha.lu).

June 2015

CURRENT AFFAIRS

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SNAPSHOTS

Text by AARON GRUNWALD

Photography by MIKE ZENARI

YELLOW FEVER IN THE PÉTRUSSE

I

t is the only time of the year people are allowed to throw stuff into the Pétrusse river. Of course the stuff is several thousand plastic duckies and the people are members of the Luxembourg Round Table, a community service group.

The 14th annual Duck Race was organised by the outfit’s 150 or so members, said volunteer Lars Goslings.

Each duck had a “godparent” who, based on how their duckling fared in the race, won prizes like a new Citroën.

Proceeds went to three charities helping youth: Little Sequoia in Rwanda, Shalom Orphanage in Ghana, and Study Help in Romania.

“I lived in Germany for the [previous] five years and I hadn’t heard about anything like this before,” said Divya, who moved to Luxembourg six months ago. She came with Karthik, who has lived in the Grand Duchy since 2010 and bought ducks the four previous years. But “I never won” so this time he was “just watching”.

Shortly before the starter gun fired at 3 p.m. the group had sold roughly 12,000 “real” ducks, plus around 400 souvenir ducks to take home. www.duckrace.lu

QUACK, QUACK A. A raft of ducks B. Alain Tam and Dylan Dacosta with Hak-Gwai (Black Ghost) C. Michèle, Raissa and Ivan D. The Eustachi family E. The Marchesi family F. And they’re off!

G. Capturing a unique experience H. Pauline and Margot with Lou I. Hello Mr Duck

MORE DUCKS:

WWW.DELANO.LU/ DUCKRACE2015

B

C

F

D

G

H

A

E

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COVER STORY

June 2015

Text by STEPHEN EVANS

Photography by JULIEN BECKER

SHOULD FOREIGNERS GET THE VOTE? Luxembourg citizens head to the polls on 7 June for a three-part, consultative national referendum. The question that has probably attracted the most debate is whether or not non-nationals ought be granted suffrage after ten years residence in the Grand Duchy (the other two questions are lowering the voting age to 16 and capping ministers to ten years in government).

It is a symbolic question. Is the symbolism the importance of nationality or of welcomeness? But does the answer even matter?

CHANGING ELECTORATE University of Luxembourg researchers Philippe Poirier and RaphaĂŤl Kies say voting change would be slow and might not tip the political scales June 2015

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COVER STORY

CONTINUED

"A DISCONNECT BETWEEN VOTING AND NATIONALITY IS NOT THE WAY TO GO, AND THIS IS THE CASE IN THE VAST MAJORITY OF COUNTRIES." CLAUDE WISELER

T

o decide whether non-Luxembourgers should get the vote you first have to know who is and who isn’t a Luxembourger.

Only a third of us in this country were born here to parents who were also born in Luxembourg. While a bit over a half of the population has a Luxembourg passport, three-quarters of residents speak the language. This country is wealthy thanks to the financial sector, yet less than 5% of working age Luxembourgers work in the industry.

All nationalities are hard to define, but it is particularly difficult in this extremely multinational country. Hence the concerns the country is having with the referendum question about whether foreigners (or are they non-Luxembourgers?) should be able to vote in national elections.

WHAT IS A LUXEMBOURGER? Asked “what does being a Luxembourger mean to you?” an opponent and a supporter of foreigner voting gave similar answers. One said: “What characterises the country is diversity: national, cultural and economic. Multilingualism is also important.” The other commented: “It is a difficult question. It is about being open, multicultural, accepting of multiculturalism, and being open to all.” The first quote is from Sérgio Ferreira, spokesperson for Minté, an organisation that represents about 20 migrant groups. The second was by Claude Wiseler, head of the main opposition Christian Social People’s party (CSV).

“Most Luxembourgers define themselves with their language: Lëtzebuergesch. If you speak Lëtzebuergesch to me, I consider you to be a Luxembourger. Other defining features are the school system, the knowledge of German and French and traditions.” This answer was given by Fred June 2015

Keup, a secondary school teacher who has become a leading voice for a “Neen” (no) in the referendum. He founded the non-party political Nee2015.lu website and Facebook page with his friend Steve Kodesch earlier this year. His definition of Luxembourgerness is also very generous. It suggests that anyone willing to make the effort to communicate and understand can make themselves at home here.

Being radically open and accepting is being a Luxembourger, argues Étienne Schneider, the socialist (LSAP) deputy prime minister. “Foreign nationals having the right to vote will represent an added value for our society. Luxembourg, and each Luxembourg citizen, depends on our foreign citizens.” He goes further, saying that given immigrants’ contribution to the country, “we feel honour-bound to give foreign citizens the opportunity to feel recognised and represented on a political level.”

Beyond this, Keup is convinced that taking Luxembourg nationality has important symbolic value. “If you truly want to be a part of this society, go down the path of double nationality and show us your commitment to learn Lëtzebuergesch.” Wiseler of the CSV agrees: “The link between nationality and voting is very important.” After all, the criteria for taking the nationality are pretty low: the ability to hold a basic conversation in Luxembourgish, seven years residency, four hours of civics lessons and filling out a form.

But by the same token, if the criteria are weak, what does that prove? “A passport doesn’t say whether I am or aren’t Luxembourgish, it is just a document to help me move from one country to another,” argued Ferreira. “I have been here 18 years and I like Luxembourg more than Portugal. One day I will take the nationality to show my Luxembourgish friends, but this will just be symbolic,” he added.

WHAT ARE THE PLANS? The government would give the vote to: All those who have been resident for more than 10 years… …who already voted in the previous local election. …and are still on the electoral roll.

The main opposition CSV are opposed to this but would like to make it easier to acquire double nationality.

The CSV would make the current rules easier by: Relaxing the language requirements.

Reducing residency requirements to five from seven years.

They would also give an automatic option of nationality to: Anyone born here.

People living here for 20 years or more.

Spouses of passport holders.

This would give people the vote and allow people to stand for election.

formerly known as

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COVER STORY

CONTINUED

Supporters of a “no” vote say that it is impossible to fully engage with the political process without a good command of the language. After all, how else to understand what is being said on the TV and radio and in the Chamber of Deputies? This is true, but then how many trilingual voters with all four grandparents born here are fully engaged anyway? Also, there is ample local printed media in English, French, German and Portuguese to be informed of the issues.

Plus, the language requirement for nationality is so low that it is insufficient to follow political debates. And there is political consensus for easing this condition further.

VOTERS MUST SPEAK LUXEMBOURGISH? In the end, so much of nationality appears to come down to the symbols we individually and collectively think of as important. “Jo” voters will tend to think of their country as open, welcoming and that only the desire to belong is needed. “Neen” voters also see their country as open and welcoming, but even though getting the passport is just about filling out a form and taking a couple of tests, to them it has significance.

If defining Luxembourgishness is difficult, then it is doubly so when trying to understand how to “integrate into Luxembourgish society.” Keup sees language as the key: learn it yourself and make sure your kids learn it by going to Luxembourg schools. Schneider sees it the other way around: “Giving non-Luxembourg citizens active voting rights will further integrate them in the society and encourage them to apply for Luxembourg nationality.”

But given than 46% of the population are non-Luxembourgers, could you not be “fully integrated into society” if you just mix with foreigners? A monolingual Englishwoman who works hard, pays her taxes, gives to local charities, joins a sport or cultural club, and is open for a chat with anyone is surely not “cut off”. Ferreira agrees that participation is the key. “A Portuguese working in a construction firm who only speaks Portuguese with Portuguese friends is contributing to the wealth of the country,” he argues.

FERNAND FEHLEN Older voters likely to say “no” while younger voters more likely to opt for a “yes”

PROS OF FOREIGNER VOTING It would change little Media is sufficiently multilingual to keep everyone informed

Some supporters: the government including Étienne Schneider, employers groups, most trade unions

June 2015

51% of the voting age population don’t have the vote

Affirming the country’s multicultural nature

Foreigner apathy is more dangerous to the country than foreigner activism Encourage integration

Over half of voters work in the public sector or semi-state businesses

Boost the country’s image abroad for openness and originality Politicians would have to reach out more to foreigners

Étienne Schneider: Andrés Lejona (archives) Claude Wiseler: Sven Becker (archives)

Looking at this another way, could it be that it is Luxembourgers who are not integrated? Less than 5% of working age voters earn their living in banks, financial services companies and insurance firms (this is an estimate based on figures from Luxembourg’s central bank and national statistics bureau). Moreover, much of the figures for Luxembourgers relate to high street banks, not the international operations that generate billions of imports. Luxembourgers are also vastly outnumbered in the consulting and audit sector that employs thousands, although they do predominate in the legal sector.

ARE VOTERS INTEGRATED? Very crudely, some might say foreign labour generates most of the country’s wealth, while Luxembourgers spend it.

Pensions are high and public sector pay and conditions are great, and voters benefit most. However, these perks are judged by international and local observers to be unsustainable over the long term. New arrivals moan about home prices, but if you are a farmer or you bought a house decades ago you won’t complain. Politicians know these problems need to be addressed, but they are fearful of the political consequences if they act.

CUT THE ECONOMY? Moreover, due to this disconnect there is a danger of voters losing sight of what needs to be done to keep growth going.

Keup appears to back up this argument by suggesting that maybe the country is growing too quickly. “The LuxLeaks scandals [regarding legal but controversial corporate tax avoidance] have divided Luxembourgers on the question of whether we have gone too far. We need the industry to pay our high salaries and pensions, and therefore we have become addicted to more and more growth, which requires more and more foreigners coming to Luxembourg. There is no simple solution. And the electorate might even recognise that it is better to sacrifice some growth and revenue to maintain stability.”

FRED KEUP Foreigners voting could cause political instability

CONS OF FOREIGNER VOTING Would cut incentive to take nationality and learn the language... ...hence reducing integration

Downgrading of the Luxembourgish language The true public debate happens in Luxembourgish

Unpredictable outcomes It would change little but rules might be relaxed later

Voting is symbolically important

Potential increase in community tensions

Some supporters: the main opposition CSV party including Claude Wiseler, the ADR party, the 4,000+ people who have liked Nee2015’s Facebook page, the CGFP public sector trade union

June 2015

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COVER STORY

CONTINUED

The corporate tax avoidance debate has been embarrassing for many Luxembourgers. But being embarrassed is not always the best motivation for deciding what is right and wrong for the country. Not least because many economists and market observers believe the Grand Duchy has nothing to be ashamed of regarding its hosting of international companies. On the contrary, it can be argued that Luxembourg’s expertise in cross-border business is a contributing factor to facilitating EU and world trade, investment and growth.

"A PASSPORT DOESN’T SAY WHETHER I AM OR AREN’T LUXEMBOURGISH, IT IS JUST A DOCUMENT TO HELP ME MOVE FROM ONE COUNTRY TO ANOTHER." SÉRGIO FERREIRA

HOLD ON A MINUTE! But, we all understand what national pride is, even if putting a clear definition on it is impossible. Just because Luxembourgers are possibly the most welcoming people on the planet, does this mean they have to relinquish something that feels important? The passport and the right to vote are maybe just symbols, but symbols are important because people respond to them. Maybe one of the integration touchstones is the need to watch or listen to the RTL news, and then discuss it, preferably in Luxembourgish.

“A disconnect between voting and nationality is not the way to go, and this is the case in the vast majority of countries,” Wiseler pointed out. Only a handful of countries have opened the vote to non-nationals, but none has immigration on the scale we have here. “Giving the vote away easily will destroy any incentive to become fully integrated,” argued Keup.

Two opinion polls have shown a country divided 50/50 on the result of the 7 June referendum. This mirrors the split people feel. Perhaps the most Luxembourgish of traits is pragmatism, but then it was the language that most clearly separated the occupied from the occupiers from 1940 to 1944. “The opinion polls show people over 50 years of age tending to support a ‘no’ vote, while the under 34s generally would vote ‘yes’,” noted Fernand Fehlen, senior lecturer in sociology at the University of Luxembourg.

The speed of change has also been shocking. The foreigner population was about a quarter of the population in 1981, but now it is touching a half. Luxembourgish is heard infrequently in the City and, with the exception of the occasional restaurant and hat shop, the retail sector is staffed overwhelmingly by foreigners. Small wonder that some voters feel lost in their own capital.

FOREIGNER VOTING IN 2018?

The referendum is only consultative and not binding.

“Foreigner voting would require a change to the constitution, but this can only be done with two-thirds of the support of the Chamber of Deputies,” said Philippe Poirier, senior lecturer in political science at the university. “The CSV has more than one-third of the seats, and even in the case of a narrow ‘yes’ vote they would feel within their rights to veto this measure,” he argued. “However, if ‘yes’ receives strong popular backing they would find it very difficult to [do] so out of fear of heavy sanction at the next general election.”

June 2015

"IF YOU TRULY WANT TO BE A PART OF THIS SOCIETY, GO DOWN THE PATH OF DOUBLE NATIONALITY AND SHOW US YOUR COMMITMENT TO LEARN LËTZEBUERGESCH." FRED KEUP

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COVER STORY

CONTINUED

"FOREIGN NATIONALS HAVING THE RIGHT TO VOTE WILL REPRESENT AN ADDED VALUE FOR OUR SOCIETY. LUXEMBOURG, AND EACH LUXEMBOURG CITIZEN, DEPENDS ON OUR FOREIGN CITIZENS." ÉTIENNE SCHNEIDER

“Are foreigners ready to vote and do they really want to?” asked the political science researcher Raphaël Kies, who has been working for the Research Chair for Parliamentary Studies at the University of Luxembourg. He pointed out that only 17% of foreigners bothered to take the simple steps needed to register to vote in the 2011 local elections, despite the communes playing an important role in our daily lives. “Don’t care” or “don’t know” were the excuses given by half of non-registered eligible foreigners in a survey by the local research organisation CEFIS. “People are comfortable here and do not have such an incentive to get involved,” he commented. “We found 84% of foreigners we surveyed to be happy with the democratic process in Luxembourg, twice the figure of their countries of origin.” Much of the public sector is now open to non-Luxembourgers, and discrimination is an oddity.

Moreover, under the rules as suggested, the electorate would only increase by about 7% and, research suggests that foreigner voting at the 2013 election would have been broadly in line with Luxembourgers’ preferences.

views and I don’t like asking a ‘yes/no’ question about such a complex issue.” He went on: “We have been very careful with our language as we do not want to give any encouragement to xenophobes. We want Luxembourgers to get involved in politics, but not this way.” Keup broadly agrees but he sees a potential cause for concern. “Foreigners have not voted in a bloc in local elections, but if this were to start, on economic or language issues, political instabilities and tension will arise. People could become nervous,” he said.

There are fewer concerns from Fehlen, though. “The referendum campaign risks creating tensions, but these debates have not got out of hand,” he said. “Certainly there is latent xenophobia in Luxembourg as there is everywhere, but this would only become a problem if it led to acts against people or if it developed politically. But truly xenophobic behaviour is very rare.” Why? Poirier points to the nature of the country’s consensual democratic system. Also, experience around the world shows that contact with other cultures dissolves xenophobia.

STIRRING RACISM? Is there a danger that this debate could upset a delicate balance? More than most places, racism and xenophobia are taboo in Luxembourg, but could shining a light on our differences change this? Schneider sees “no negative, but only positive effects.” However Wiseler is more concerned: “It gives an opportunity for people to express their

LIKELY OUTCOME A crushing victory for “yes” could well see non-voters going to the polls in 2018. A big victory for “no” would close this issue for years. More likely, though, is that this question will be shelved but that nationality requirements will be relaxed further. And moderate, pragmatic, open Luxembourg will continue on its way. But will that be enough?

June 2015

MIR WÖLLE BLEIWE WAT MIR SIN: AN EVER CHANGING COUNTRY Until double nationality was introduced in 2008, the number of Luxembourgers had been stable for decades at about 275,000. Now there are 304,300 passport holders, thanks largely to the more or less 4,500 people becoming naturalised each year, about 3,000 more than pre-2008.

However, immigration has nearly tripled over the last 35 years.

In 1981 foreigners made up a quarter of the 364,600 population, and now 46% of the 563,000 of us here are not Luxembourgers. 82% of this growth has been due to net immigration.

This figure would have been closer to 90% without double nationality.

New buslinesst, stops and timetables as of 1 June 2015 s

ge We support you through the chan Due to the dissolution of the Hamilius bus station, the City of Luxembourg reorganizes its bus network to maintain an efficient and high quality of service for all clients.

You’ll find more details on these changes at your bus stop, on our web site autobus.vdl.lu as well as our mobile application (City App).

Download our City App free of charge!

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CURRENT AFFAIRS

June 2015

INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE

Text by DUNCAN ROBERTS

Photography by MIKE ZENARI

COMING FULL CIRCLE After seven years in a temporary but much loved location in Hollerich, CarréRotondes --rebranded simply as Rotondes --returns to its original site in June. Now revamped and cleansed, the iconic former engine sheds turned cultural venue in Bonnevoie are a fine example of how Luxembourg’s industrial heritage is being preserved and put to good use.

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he finest legacy of the 2007 European Capital of Culture programme, CarréRotondes in Hollerich has been a magnet for experimental youth theatre, cool indie music and fringe exhibitions for the last seven years or so. Housed in premises formerly used by steel company Paul Wurth, the makeshift CarréRotondes offered a generous space for performances and was designed to provide a warm welcome--especially in the summer when its wooden terrace was awash with hipsters, indie kids and casual visitors enjoying a drink in the yellowing glow of the evening sun.

Even though the Hollerich location was always a temporary solution, many visitors became attached to the venue and it is no exaggeration to say that a hardcore crowd of regulars at Exit07, CarreRotondes’ bar and live music venue, became something of a “family” during the tenure of Manu da Costa and his team including Vanessa Goudrange at the bar. The concert line-up at Exit07 put together by music programmer Marc Hauser, especially for the annual Congés Annulés series in August, introduced Luxembourg audiences to up and coming bands on the cusp of a breakthrough and gave local artists a chance to shine in an intimate venue packed with knowledgeable music fans.

REBRANDING The Congés Annulés will take place again this year, in the new venue’s Klub space in the “second” rotunda, whose interior has been left largely as an empty shell fitted out with a bar. But unlike the Exit07 venue, the Klub’s

bar will be run by the team from the Bouneweger Stuff and will serve a brasserie style service of food and drinks at lunch and dinner.

The Klub is not the only rebranding taking place. The CarréRotondes name has been dropped in favour of the shorter Rotondes and a new logo, encompassing an aerial view of the two rotunda, has been designed by the Comed agency.

Across the Rotondes campus, the shining new rotunda 1 is ready to host live stage shows. It will be used primarily for young audiences, which is part of the Rotondes’ remit, and a semi-circular 350-capacity seating arena has been installed to meet popular demand. On occasion, the lateral gallery will be opened for exhibitions by upand-coming artists, innovative events and will also be available for private hire. The area occupied in 2007 by the Serre bleue restaurant has been revamped as a light-flooded space able to host conferences, projections and meetings in the so-called Open Square.

And artist dressing rooms are also included in the design by the Teisen-Giesler architecture bureau.

UNCERTAINTY In addition to the public spaces, a container city on the Rotondes campus will house administration offices and also the headquarters of Radio Ara, including the English-language station Ara City Radio.

But it was not always a certainty that the Rotondes would move back to Bonnevoie. Immediately following the end of the capital of culture year a return to the former engine sheds was

scheduled for 2010. But difficulties in the clean-up operation and budgetary problems caused delay and at one stage the government made a public appeal for projects to exploit the rotundas and the Ville de Luxembourg had suggested one of the buildings might be used to house an indoor crafts market in the style of Covent Garden. Ironically, the first exhibition at the new venue, Rotondes 2.0--Les possibilités, features many of the ideas presented to the ministry of culture for the buildings during its initial appeal in 2000.

However, once the final decision was made in 2012, Rotondes director Robert Garcia (who has announced he will step down in 2016) spoke about the sword of Damocles being lifted from the cultural institution. Even so, in a recent interview Garcia admitted that the new venue is rather limited in capacity and he talked once again about a project proposed in 2010 to make a sort of annex of the Rotondes at the former abattoir in Bonnevoie (which is currently being used as a skatepark). What happens to the abattoir remains to be seen--local residents in that part of Hollerich were famously up in arms when it was rumoured to be under consideration as a new venue for the den Atelier concert hall.

The final Rotondes project has so far cost some 5.7 million euros, with a further 10 million put on ice to complete renovation of the second rotunda. The project also includes a cycle shed and a new bus stop (part of a major rescheduling of bus routes in the city) and there are also plans for a future children’s playground and an urban allotment.

GLORY IN THE ROUND The former engine sheds are now beautifully appointed rotunda that will be used for culture and arts June 2015

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INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE

CONTINUED

WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN One of the more outlandish ideas for the rotunda, by local artist Serge Ecker, is on show at an exhibition titled “Rotondes 2.0-Les possibilités”

The clean-up operation to decontaminate the ground inside the two rotundas has been a lengthy process that started at the beginning of the century in the first building and in 2010 for the rotunda 2.

LEGACY The rotunda were first built in 1875 and used by the national railways, the Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois (CFL) to service and repair steam engines.

Eventually new engine sheds were constructed and in their later years the rotunda were used to service and maintain the CFL’s buses. The CFL handed over the key of the sheds to the ministry of culture in early 1999 after the government decided that they could be June 2015

used for cultural purposes. But even before then, renowned architect I.M. Pei had visited the site with then prime minister Jacques Santer with a view to possibly converting the Rotondes into the modern art museum. That plan never materialised as the engine sheds were deemed unsuitable and the art museum--Mudam--was eventually built on Kirchberg.

The sheds in Bonnevoie, meanwhile, would undergo a major clean-up and restoration programme to be ready to welcome visitors during Luxembourg’s reign, alongside the Greater Region, as the capital of culture in Europe in 2007.

That year the Rotondes complex hosted exhibitions, including a very

popular show by British photographer Martin Parr, installation art, and a youth programme in the second rotunda and the Exit07 venue. The latter proved to be popular in bringing small and relatively unknown artists to Luxembourg as well as some, such as Blood Red Shoes, on the verge of a breakthrough on the indie scene. The legacy of that programme was continued by Marc Hauser at the site in Hollerich, and will now continue at the new Klub venue when the Rotondes re-opens (the opening weekend programme already includes a performance by Dan Deacon, one of the most memorable artists to appear at Exit07 over the last two years). The Rotondes has, indeed, come full circle.

OPEN WEEKEND The new Rotondes opens to the public over the weekend of 13-14 June with an eclectic programme of theatre, shows, exhibitions, installations, music and DJ sets--all free of charge. Among the highlights are music acts including Luxembourg’s No Metal In This Battle, electronic duo Binary & Dyslexic with live drummers Jeff Herr and Joel Heyard, and gigs by Dan Deacon and the UK’s Alex Banks, and a DJ set

by Kuston Beater. www.rotondes.lu

Serge Ecker

YOU ARE NOT HERE

«10 Years Philharmonie» It’s all about Luxembourg.

26.– 28.06.2015 free entrance www.philharmonie.lu Partenaire officiel: Partenaire automobile exclusif:

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CURRENT AFFAIRS

POLITICS

Text by DUNCAN ROBERTS

RIGHT PATH, SAYS BETTEL Xavier Bettel’s second ever state of the nation address to parliament was a shopping list of broad plans for the immediate future of the country with an upbeat tone. rime minister Xavier Bettel’s second state of the nation speech at the beginning of May failed to fire up MPs, the media or the public. Cutting the length of his address to one hour--he spoke for twice as long on his maiden state of the nation speech last year-Bettel was later accused by the leader of the opposition CSV, Claude Wiseler, of failing to provide enough detail of his government’s plans for the coming twelve months.

Bettel launched his address by tackling the education system, as the government continues to hold talks with teachers’ unions on its seven-point reform plan.

But the prime minister claimed that the country was keeping up with educational demands, pointing to the planned opening of a new state run international school in Differdange this autumn, and in the north the Lycée de Clervaux.

Indeed Bettel insisted the country was “on the right path” in many respects, even though he said the government

would keep an inter-ministerial task force in place in light of the LuxLeaks scandal, and he also hinted at a revamp of the government’s official press and information service, SIP. Bettel also said work on a budget reform package would continue, citing a recent report by the intergovernmental think-tank OECD. However, critics were disappointed that the subject of tax reform was mentioned almost in passing, some saying it seemed as though the coalition partners were clearly not in agreement.

Making a clear plea for Luxembourgers to vote in favour of giving suffrage to non-Luxembourgers in June’s referendum (see cover story), the prime minister also talked about the need for what locals like to call social cohesion.

STATESMAN Xavier Bettel was accused of being light on detail in his state of the nation address

THIRD TOWER

The construction of a third tower for the European Court of Justice in Kirchberg has been given the go-ahead. Like its adjacent gold-clad twins, the new building will be designed by French architect Dominique Perrault. The new tower will be slightly taller than the existing buildings, and will be clad in the distinctive gold only on one side. It will cost close to 169 million euros and should be completed by 2019. The existing twin towers were inaugurated as part of the new palais in 2008 and stand at 107 metres tall, housing some of the court’s 2,144 staff on their 24 floors.

ADEM BOSS MESS

The court of administration has annulled the appointment of Isabelle Schlesser (photo) as director of unemployment bureau Adem and reinstated Mariette Scholtus to the position she held until 2012. Employment minister Nicolas Schmit has confirmed that Scholtus will be given back her old job, while Schlesser will be downgraded to serve as her deputy.

But he says reform of Adem will continue.

June 2015

Christophe Olinger Olivier Minaire Sven Becker

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UPFRONT

BUSINESS

DIGITAL INNOVATION CERTIFICATE Techies looking to boost their “smart ICT” skills might want to check out a new professional training course that will start this autumn. The certificate programme is being organised by the Luxembourg Institute of Standardisation, Accreditation, Safety and Quality of Products and Services (ILNAS) and the University of Luxembourg.

It is the first year this programme will be offered.

“We decided to put into place a university certificate, ‘Smart ICT for business innovation’, to support the economic development policy of the government on one side and on the other side, to help Luxembourgish ICT companies to find highly qualified personnel with a deep

understanding and knowledge of standardisation,” said Jean-Marie Reiff, director of ILNAS. Classes will cover concepts from smart cities and sensor networks to big data and digital trust.

Coursework will be followed by an internship.

The training programme is intended for “professionally active ICT profiles with some experience”, an ILNAS spokeswoman said. Classes will be conducted “entirely in English” evenings and weekends from September to May. The application deadline is 31 May. For more information: Search for “Smart ICT for business innovation” on www.uni.lu.

6TH MAJOR CHINESE BANK IN LUXEMBOURG

Zeng Xianqi, China’s ambassador to the Grand Duchy, Song Shuguang, chairman of Bank of Communications, Pierre Gramegna, Luxembourg’s finance minister, toast the opening of the bank’s first operation in the euro zone.

June 2015

The Luxembourg City Tourist Office reported tourist activity in the capital rose 3% between 2013 and 2014, the fifth consecutive year of growth. >>> “Net assets managed by investment funds under Luxembourg law grew by 30.10%” in the 12 months ending 31 March, said the Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry. >>> A European Parliament committee approved stricter rules for money market funds (which represent roughly 10% of Luxembourg’s retail fund sector) that are opposed by many in the industry. >>> The consulting firm PWC forecast that Luxembourg’s “office and residential [real estate] markets will grow by nearly 60% and 50% respectively over the period from 2012 to 2020.” >>> The Luxem­ bourg Institute of Health (formerly CRP-Santé) inaugurated its new 2,900 square metre “House of Biohealth” research facility in Esch-Alzette. >>> Despite heavy business headwinds, freight carrier Cargolux reported a net profit of $3m for 2014; and it launched direct service between Zhengzhou in China and Chicago. >>> The EU General Court said that internet firm Skype could not trademark its logo because it was too similar to the way broadcaster Sky prints its name. >>> The European Court of Justice ruled that Spain could not block the system for granting EUwide patents. >>> The European Central Bank made JP Morgan Bank Luxembourg the 7th Grand Duchybased bank subject to extra “stress tests”. >>> The Luxem­bourg School of Finance granted 68 master’s degrees (see page opposite).

Olivier Minaire (archives) Christophe Olinger Mike Zenari (archives)

TICKER

URBAN IMPACT

To mark the 5th anniversary of Archiduc magazine, editor Céline Coubray looked back at architectural highlights and lowlights, and ahead to the capital’s new tram.

Full report: www.delano.lu/Archiduc5thAnniversary

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ARCHITECTURE FÊTE A. Archiduc editor Céline Coubray and Andrea Rumpf of LUCA B. Paul Fabeck, Vincent Lazzari and Jérôme Krier C. Diane Heirend and Claudine Arend D. Élodie Lenoir and Arnaud Decolle

CATCHING UP WITH…

JOS VAN BOMMEL The course director of the master’s in wealth management

at Luxembourg School of Finance has just sent off his first cohort of graduates.

The University of Luxembourg started developing a degree in wealth management together with the Private Banking Group Luxembourg in 2010. “The demand initially came from the industry,” says professor Jos van Bommel, who joined the faculty shortly afterwards to help set up the curriculum and become course director at the launch two years later. “I realised very quickly it would be successful. Wealth management is a unique niche and there is an immediate connection with Luxembourg’s widely recognised financial centre.” This May van Bommel proudly watched the first cohort of the master’s programme graduate. The students, representing 20 different nationalities, had completed their courses but also an internship of three to nine months and spent a week in residence at Singapore Management University to deepen their understanding of Asian markets. They are now all heading for jobs in private banks, foundations, investment firms, family offices and such. Many, even among those from afar, chose to stay in Luxembourg after obtaining their degree. “Wealth management has a strong future and there is a continuous need for talented specialists,” says van Bommel. “However, the industry is changing and clients have to be convinced differently than in the past. What is sought after are hunters, people with strong analytic skills but also strong social skills, creative people who know how to take initiatives and who are fully committed to their job.” Despite Luxembourg’s reputation as a tax haven, the professor is not concerned about the Grand Duchy’s future in the field: “There are still very good reasons to come to here. We live in an increasingly globalised world and clients’ demands are getting more complicated.

Luxembourg has expertise on international issues that local banks cannot provide.” Word about the school’s wealth management programmes (there is also an executive one for seasoned banking professionals) has spread quickly. Today van Bommel receives hundreds of applications for the master’s course and interviews three times as many students as he accepts. “It’s important to favour quality over quantity, so classes are kept small with no more than 30 students in each cohort. I’d like to keep it that way.” www.lsf.lu Text by NEEL CHRILLESEN Photography by ANNABELLE DENHAM June 2015

BUSINESS

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SNAPSHOTS

Text by STEPHEN EVANS

Photography by STEVE EASTWOOD

ARE INVESTORS BENEFITTING?

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he fund industry is managing to digest new regulations but not everything is working out as well as was hoped. This was the broad conclusion of a panel discussion at an ALFI conference on global fund distribution in May. One of the key parts of the EU’s “Mifid II” regulation is the idea of seeking to eliminate conflicts of interest by preventing fund companies paying financial advisors that sell their products. However, Jean-Christian Six of Allen & Overy suggested that the result might be for the small investor to end up receiving no advice at all, as independent guidance would be too expensive. “I think the solution might be web-based distribution,” he said, with sites being able to offer decent basic generic advice.

This is possible, but there is little such distribution at the moment, pointed out Claude Niedner of Arendt & Medernach.

Non-EU alternative fund managers appear to be able to circumvent the “AIFMD” by using private placement schemes, Hermann Beythan of Linklaters later pointed out. www.alfi.lu

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FUND DISTRIBUTION TALK A. Daniela Klasén-Martin (second row from bottom, second from right) during ALFI’s distribution conference held at RBC’s Esch-Belval complex in May B. Anne-Pascale Feis, Camilla Lindberg and Patricia Bouchard C. Gregory Surply and Sophie Dupin D. Ana Maria Valldecabres Polop and Diego Fernandez De Cordova E. Evelyne Christiaens said Mifid II regulation setting could be disrupted if the European Commission reshuffles officials F. Sandrine Leclercq and Caroline Denies G. Holly Gardner and John McCann H. Michael Maldener and Michael John Flynn I. Giovanni Frau, Maria Teresa Fulci, Samia Rabia, Iya Martkoplichvili and Edouard Albaret

QUESTIONS ABOUT ELTIFS: WWW.DELANO.LU/ ALFIDISTRIBUTION15

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BUSINESS

FUNDS

Text by STEPHEN EVANS

Photography by MIKE ZENARI

CLOSER TO CHINA A pair of announcements this year have put the Grand Duchy’s financial centre on better footing with the Middle Kingdom’s markets.

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he business relationship with China has become closer over the last two months. Most significantly, Luxembourg-based funds are now able to invest directly into China, buying shares, bonds and so on with the local currency, the renminbi (RMB).

Luxembourg was granted a quota under the “renminbi qualified foreign institutional investor” (RQFII) scheme by the Chinese central bank on 29 April.

This is part of China’s policy of gradually opening the economy and making the RMB a globally traded, convertible currency. The country likes to take things easy, with the RQFII scheme beginning in 2011 with a few China-based firms benefiting. This was expanded in March 2013 when a dozen international banks and asset managers with a presence in Hong Kong were given some access.

In actual terms the move is quite small, as it will allow investment of RMB 50bn (€7.2bn), a figure which equates to 0.2% of all the funds based in Luxembourg. This will give this country around 16% of all RQFII quotas granted. This is justified due to this country being the world leader in international cross-border funds with 9.3% of global assets based there. Not having a quota had meant Luxembourg based funds had to use Hong Kong until this spring. Around RMB 300bn (€43bn) in funds are currently domiciled in the Grand Duchy. Now asset managers will be able to request a share of the Luxembourg quota after meeting requirements set by Chinese authorities.

LONDON & FRANKFURT However, the symbolic value is huge as it demonstrates again the plans the Chinese authorities have for this June 2015

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QUOTA POWER A. Robert Scharfe wants to “demystify” China’s currency B. Nicolas Mackel reckons renminbi revelation is “good news for Luxembourg”

country. “The announcement indeed is very good news for Luxembourg,” commented Nicolas Mackel, chief executive of the trade promotion body Luxembourg for Finance. “After the designation of a clearing bank last year [ICBC Luxembourg], we now have all the necessary tools onsite a fully functioning renminbi centre needs to have.” These are early days, though, with non-Chinese investors still only having access to less than 0.5% of the combined market capitalisation of the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges.

So the ramping up of Chinese presence in this country continues, with Luxembourg becoming a hub for renminbi-­ denominated investment funds, capital markets activity and banking in Europe.

This gives it a complementary role to London and Frankfurt, which the Chinese are making their EU centres for foreign exchange and trade finance. As well as the six largest Chinese banks having their EU headquarters here, there have also been 63 issuances of RMB denominated bonds on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange, to a total value of RMB 35bn (€5bn).

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WWW.RMB-FORUM.COM

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“Our main objective is to demystify the renminbi, why it is used and what can be done with it,” explained Robert Scharfe, the exchange’s chief executive.

International investors have a problem because China’s strict capital controls prevent them from investing most of the renminbi they hold. Luxembourg is part of the solution.

“Renminbi is not freely convertible but in other respects it is like any other currency with a full range of products, allowing investors to diversify their investments and earn a higher yield,” he added.

Scharfe is confident that they are about to see the first Chinese non-bank corporate bond listing in Luxembourg. He is pleased with the growing diversification of issuers.

“In 2011, listing was by traditional international corporations and banks, but today we are seeing a wide range from the west and Asia,” he pointed out.

Chinese banks have recently come on board. Longer term, the potential is huge because China needs western investment.

“Thousands of securities are listed on the Chinese stock markets, and so if a fraction of these decide to move into international capital markets then we can really expect a lot more,” he added.

BEIJING-BACKED BANK Coincidentally or not, 40 days before the RQFII announcement Luxembourg was the first non-Asian country to be accepted as a candidate as a founder member of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. This body is seen by some as a Chinese challenge to the American-based World Bank and International Monetary Fund, and the US was thought to have asked its allies to not sign up to this initiative.

The Grand Duchy is now competing with other members (including the UK,

Italy, France and Germany) to host the AIIB’s EU HQ. So how complicated is it to do business in China for Luxembourg firms? “It is not more or less than in many other places of the world,” said Michael Ferguson of the consulting firm EY Luxembourg.

“Articulate a concrete strategy and be clear in expectations before tapping into any new market,” he advised. “Some questions are: What do you want to accomplish? Is your vision to merely participate in China’s growth to some degree or are you seeking a larger presence? Is the investment long-term oriented?

What do you want to accomplish, by when and how?”

It’s a question of taking the time to understand the risks that may be encountered and to appreciate cultural differences. That said, he points out that “risk can never be completely avoided, no matter whether you are in China or in Luxembourg.” Obtaining unequivocal cooperation can be a challenge, with resistance coming in different, more subtle ways than one might be used to.

“Foreign firms should always try to clearly understand the needs and interests of all relevant stakeholders in China,” he added.

2ND LUXEMBOURG RENMINBI FORUM Around 300 participants are expected at this year’s Luxembourg Renminbi Forum on 3 June at the Philharmonie.

It will feature contributions from a wide range of local and international experts, including locally based Chinese bankers.

“The main purpose of the forum is to make a substantive contribution to general knowledge and understanding of the renminbi business,” said Nicolas Mackel, the CEO of the event organiser, Luxembourg for Finance.

The programme starts with a round up of the latest news about China’s economy and financial reform plans. Last year featured discussion of European hubs, with this year having a more international focus. There will also be discussions about clearing activities, appetite for RMB products and the structuring of RMB funds.

June 2015

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LOBBYING

Text by DUNCAN ROBERTS

Photography by LALA LA PHOTO

BUILDING ON EXISTING PLATFORM The recently elected first female chairman of the British Chamber of Commerce, Alison Macleod talks about her ambitions for the business group and the chal­ lenges faced by Luxembourg.

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efreshingly forthright, Alison Macleod says she would not have put her name forward for the position of chairman of the British Chamber of Commerce for Luxembourg “if I did not wish to build on the existing platform.”

Macleod, a partner at KPMG, has targeted four areas of focus for the BCC, including improving the UK’s position within the EU, which she believes is not strong at the moment. She wants the chamber to put forward a strong message that the UK is a vibrant country with lots of opportunities for trade and mutual interest in Luxembourg. “A key component of this is our need to reach out to other industry groups and chambers of commerce from other countries to promote Luxembourg as a place to do business,” she says.

Macleod is not afraid to confront criticism, and agrees that the chamber may not have tapped sufficiently into the younger generation and is keen to look for ways of expanding the BCC programme to attract younger business people. She would also like to make tweaks to the nature of BCC events, to make them a little more social. “Networking is an important aspect of business life in Luxembourg.”

Ensuring that Luxembourg remains competitive is a challenge on a broader scale. “Luxembourg has been brilliant in reacting to changes and finding new opportunities for the country. This has never been easy, but I suspect that it is going to become harder in an environment of greater international regulation,” she explains. The chamber’s tax group is in dialogue with the government specifically about this issue. But Europe’s June 2015

ALISON MACLEOD The British Chamber of Commerce is as much about talking up Luxembourg towards the UK as the other way round

less clear role in the global economy also represents a challenge for the Grand Duchy. “As a small but very influential country, Luxembourg has to show leadership and skill in not being marginalised in these difficult times for Europe.”

Speaking the day before the UK general election, the subject of a British referendum on its future in the EU was unavoidable. Macleod says it is too early to speculate about the impact of an unprecedented exit from the EU. However, she says that the chamber, as part of the Council of British Chambers of Commerce in Continental Europe, would fight its corner very hard to provide the British public with the business implications of what an exit could mean. “Clearly, a Brexit is not what the business community wants.” She also reveals that the chamber contributed to the gathering of evidence for the UK government’s Balance of

Competence exercise. “Which has been buried because it failed to expose significant areas where anyone believed it appropriate to transfer powers back from the EU to national governments.”

Asked about the significance of being the first female chairman of the chamber, Macleod says she is never totally convinced by the replies of many women who are asked the question. “They are normally based around the phrase ‘the right person for the position’.” She is immensely proud of her appointment and says she is fortunate to have built a career in the professional services industry which has a reputation for enabling women to reach their true potential--she cites the examples of recent managing partners at PWC and KPMG, Marie-Jeanne Chèvremont and Karin Riehl. “My appointment is, I think, a small step that shows gender diversity is happening.

Slower than women might wish, but all progress is good.”

ExcEllEncE

SciEncE

SociEtal impact

lEadErShip

ViSionS progrESS

communication

afr Economic impact

SciEncE in SociEty

Fnr

innoVation

The Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR) is the main funder of research activities in Luxembourg. Our vision is to establish Luxembourg as a leading knowledge-based society through science, research and innovation, thereby contributing to the country’s economic diversification and future prosperity. We aim to set up a sustainable world-class research system in Luxembourg that will generate societal and economic impact in key strategic areas. To this end, the FNR invests public funds into research projects in various branches of science and humanities, with an emphasis on core strategic areas. Furthermore, the FNR supports and coordinates activities to strengthen the link between science and society and to raise public awareness for research. www.fnr.lu

RESEARCH WITH IMPACT

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BUSINESS

June 2015

RESEARCH

Text by AARON GRUNWALD

Photography by MIKE ZENARI and CHRISTOPHE OLINGER

LINKS UNDER THE MICROSCOPE The Grand Duchy’s research institutions strike accords with foreign partners on a regular basis and big academic conferences take place here all the time. Yet it still seems to generate some excitement about the chance to “help build Luxembourg’s brand.”

So why is it important to bolster Luxembourg’s international scientific reputation abroad and how, on day-to-day basis, is it really being done?

G

abriel Crean took over as CEO of the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology, one of the Grand Duchy’s major publically funded research institutions, on 1 May, but he wasted no time touting his new home. “I am very impressed by the potential of LIST, which, with its team of 700 staff, displays incredible strength,” he said, on 30 April in Dommeldange.

Crean, an Irish national who received a PhD in physics in France, was speaking at the first combined annual conferences of the European Association of Research and Technology Organisations and of the European Industrial Research Management Association, two umbrella groups that promote technology transfer.

As conference host, LIST naturally had a chance to show off a bit to the roughly 250 representatives from 20 countries who attended, hopefully enticing them to think of the Grand Duchy when looking for international project partners (or maybe even a new job).

“Beyond research players, the size of the country, the means deployed, its ambitions, but also the proximity with policymakers and government are undeniable assets to make Luxembourg a vast laboratory of experimentation and testing,” Crean said during an interview on the sidelines of the conference. “Here, contrary to what happens elsewhere, we can go fast and act pragmatically.”

That pragmatism is partially born of necessity as a small country in a big world.

And so is its focus on forging global links.

Or is it that those links just come naturally?

“International cooperation is nothing you need to foster in Luxembourg, it’s the air that we breathe,” Carlo Duprel,

head of international relations at the National Research Fund (FNR), a public funding body, tells Delano.

He reckons 87% of scientific researchers working in the Grand Duchy are foreign nationals, “and when they come to Luxembourg they bring their links with them.” More than 70% of scientific publications by Luxembourg-based researchers are co-authored by a foreign scientist, compared to around 50% in Belgium and 40% in Germany, says Duprel, who holds a PhD in physics. The figure is even lower in larger countries.

PRAGMATIC COOPERATION The FNR has worked hard to encourage this multilateralism, he explains. It has struck joint grant-making agreements with 12 public funding bodies in eight European nations from Austria to Switzerland and America’s $7.3bn National Science Foundation (which states that “NSF-funded researchers have won some 214 Nobel Prizes”).

That means, for example, scientists in Luxembourg and Germany looking to run a study together into, say, Alzheimer’s disease can make a single grant application. If approved the FNR will underwrite the research done in Luxembourg while the German agency will sponsor the part carried out in Germany. Between 2006 and 2014, it has backed 103 such projects to the tune of €33.5m, €6m of

that granted last year alone, according to its 2014 annual report.

The FNR has begun to suss out a potential partner in Singapore (a relatively small nation in Asia) but it is still early days, says Duprel. It also supports a scientific exchange programme (with Stanford University and University College London, among others) and participation in international conferences.

Do such efforts work? When the Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine launched in 2009, “there was no expertise on the topic in Luxembourg,” says its director, Rudi Balling.

The centre, part of the University of Luxembourg and an FNR grant recipient, conducts medical research by marrying biology with other scientific fields, such as engineering, mathematics and physics.

So it set out to “learn from the best” and sent six new hires to work at the Institute for Systems Biology in Seattle for two years each (with a guaranteed contract of at least three more years back in Luxembourg), explains Balling. Then they swapped staff with the Systems Biology Institute in Tokyo. It is run by Hiroaki Kitano, who is also chief of Sony Computer Science Laboratories and one of the organisers of the Robo Cup annual artificial intelligence games. Kitano had created a data visualisation system for researchers. That helped the Belval-

CARLO DUPREL The National Research Fund encourages forays afield

" NEITHER OF US WOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO THAT, BUT IF YOU TEAM WITH RIGHT PARTNERS YOU ARE MUCH STRONGER THAN ALONE." RUDI BALLING June 2015

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BUSINESS

RESEARCH

CONTINUED

GABRIEL CREAN Researchers need to “go fast and act pragmatically”

INTERNATIONAL SCIENCE

based LCSB build an interac­tive “map” of Parkinson’s patient brains.

Around a year and a half ago, “after we built up a strong computational biology basis in Luxembourg then suddenly we had something… attractive” to offer international partners like the prestigious Gladstone Institutes in San Francisco (see www.gladstoneinstitutes.org/ awards). That was Luxembourg’s superior IT infrastructure and its “spider web” of European research connections, says Balling, a German national who earned a PhD in biology. For a massive international study the two outfits secured a joint $2m grant from the Michael J. Fox Foundation, which was started by the Back to the Future star who has Parkinson’s disease. Separately “neither of us would have been able to do that, June 2015

but if you team with right partners you are much strong than alone.”

Such complementary alliances mean “you’re faster and usually the science is better,” argues Balling. But it is “not just a bigger team” that makes it better, as scientific research has increasingly become interdisciplinary and “very few people” or institutions can be the master of all trades. “So you look abroad for the best partners. In the olden days you looked for the best partner in your university or even on your floor. That has changed because of the internet.” Skype and data transfer technology have simply made international cooperation “so much easier.”

And foreign dalliances pragmatically let researchers use equipment and techniques they would never be able to access at their home facility. Right

now two LCSB researchers are working at a University of California San Diego lab that has a pair of “huge electronmicroscopes that cost millions to build.

We could never afford it… but we can send people there.”

KNOWLEDGE SHARING Nevertheless Balling says, “our goal is to position the University of Luxembourg very strongly as an international centre and a European centre for Parkinson’s disease. Then people will read about it and then they will want to come work in Luxembourg with us…

We are looking forward to the day we have the role the ISB had for us, where we can give away knowledge instead of import knowledge.”

With reporting by Fabrice Barbian

RESEARCH ORGANISATIONS Integrated BioBank of Luxembourg www.ibbl.lu Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine www.uni.lu/lcsb Luxembourg Institute of Health www.lih.lu Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology www.list.lu Luxinnovation www.luxinnovation.lu National Research Fund www.fnr.lu

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BUSINESS

38

SNAPSHOTS

Text by AARON GRUNWALD

Photography by STEVE EASTWOOD

1-1-1 STILL PENDING

I

t is up to parliament to pass the propo­ sed bill to simplify company registra­­­ tion, Luxembourg’s justice minister told Amcham, which has long lobbied in favour of the so-called “1-1-1” law, intro­duced two years ago. But being able to “cre­ate a company in one day should be a rea­lity in the near future,” said Félix Braz.

Potential entrepreneurs may be discouraged by today’s €12,500 capital

A

reserve requirement, noted Carlo Thelen of the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce. The bill would loosen that rule.

The capital requirement is not the biggest problem, argued Linda Bos of Lëtz Go Local. Rather it is “finding the right person to find the right information,” as people are often given incomplete details by officials. www.amcham.lu

B

MORE ON THE “1-1-1” LAW: WWW.DELANO.LU/ AMCHAMBRAZ15

F

G

H

C

D

E

June 2015

I

COMPANY BILL A. Félix Braz speaking during Amcham’s conference on the draft “simplified sàrl” law, held at the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce in Kirchberg B. Tim Doll and Hélène Massard C. Daniel Godinho, Lëtz Go Local speakers Karolina Szatna and Linda Bos, and Philippe Hoffmann D. Uzoma P. Nnganyadi, Ana Barreiro, Lino Varela, Katarzyna Kolodziejczyk, Fatima Mendonça, Feyrouz Ashoura and Amcham chief Paul Schonenberg E. Florian Feltes, Natalia Durus and Kai Lucius F. Carlo Thelen G. Didrik Eiriksson, Morgan Hopper, Aileen EdenholmHopper and Keith Hopper H. Dot Bekker posing a question I. Stephanie Apicella and Pedro Castilho

40

BUSINESS

TECHNOLOGY

Text by NEEL CHRILLESEN

Photography by MIKE ZENARI

IT AND SCHOOLS: GETTING THE EQUATION RIGHT Luxembourg lacks qualified people with the e-skills to match the needs of the busi­ ness community. One of the solutions may be found in how IT is taught in schools.

T

he much-publicised “Digital Lët-

zebuerg” project, initiated last autumn to promote the Grand Duchy as a destination for digital business, was welcomed with general enthusiasm.

But it didn’t prevent some from wondering if Luxembourg wasn’t putting the cart before the horse. After all, 60% of employers here say they have difficulties finding the ICT people they need, and schools are frequently accused of not preparing students for the jobs that await them. Not that this is specific for Luxembourg: according to a study by the European Commission, there will be 900,000 unfilled vacancies for ICT professionals in the EU by 2020.

“The demand is growing worldwide,” Xavier Buck, chairman of the Luxembourg ICT Cluster, stated at a recent conference organised by the British Chamber of Commerce called “Generation ICT: Building skills today for Luxembourg’s jobs of tomorrow”. “So we must not only put more effort into building the next generation, we also have to find a way to keep them here once we do. As it is now though, our students often don’t match the real needs and that’s a problem. Human resources are essential for all businesses seeking to prosper and today, e-skills are needed in practically every department.”

BETTER INTERACTION While admitting he personally never got his inspiration or passion from school, the well-known internet entrepreneur and founder of EuroDNS said that to improve the situation, better interaction between schools, teachers and the busi­ ness community was needed, as well June 2015

A

Clearstream Smart IT solutions to reduce your connection costs

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As a fully accredited “Professional of the Financial Sector – PSF” we can help you reduce your IT costs. www.clearstream.com/technology

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BUSINESS

TECHNOLOGY

CONTINUED

as more and longer internships. “We have to change the image of IT in schools, encourage creativity and allow students to see the bigger picture and understand how everything is linked.”

The good news is that there are governmental plans to venture down this path. A “Bee Creative” pilot project will be launched in the coming school year to implement a creative use of new technologies inside and outside the Luxembourgish school environment.

The hope is that it will be as successful as the “Bee Secure” initiative. It will be coordinated by the Service National de la Jeunesse (national youth service) and SCRIPT (the education ministry’s “innovation” unit) and is based on a concept developed by Marc Teusch, head of the computer science department at the Ettelbruck Lycée Technique.

He is the man behind the country’s first Makerspace, which the “Bee Creative” project will duplicate in three different places in September.

“We’ve been following a new educational approach, where practical education comes before the theoretical,” explains Teusch. “Through workshops children learn by doing. We start from scratch and build something. We’ve used electronics, coding, physics and so on, to create solar-powered boats, weather stations and even a windmill. Of course, the goal would be to integrate these activities into the curriculum and have children who can’t wait to go to school every day to continue their projects.”

There’s a long way to go before getting there, but in the meantime Teusch has great hopes for the spaces’ impact on how technology is taught in schools. “The idea behind Makerspaces is for schools to share infrastructure, knowledge and equipment. It’s like an open platform where ideas, thoughts, projects and experience can be exchanged. A teacher guides the activities and workshops but there is no real hierarchy. Students are free to June 2015

MORE INFO:

WWW.BEE-CREATIVE.LU

B

TOMORROW’S WORKFORCE A. Xavier Buck says students’ e-skills don’t always match e-needs B. Marc Teusch wants to spur creative problem solving

grow a passion and learn problem solving and intersocial skills, all of which is important for industry. I really think the Bee Creative project will be ground­­breaking.”

DEVICES FOR STUDENTS Teusch is however not in favour of giving each student a laptop or an iPad to improve e-skills, an idea that has been discussed several times in the ministry of education. “It won’t solve our ICT problem in schools. If you introduce computers like this at an early age, students will never be able to write, spell or even translate by themselves any more. They won’t be used to seeing their own errors and failings and in that case, how can they learn? In my opinion, this shouldn’t be done until students are 16 or 17 years old, when they’ve acquired the basic skills.”

The private schools here that are currently implementing a one-to-one programme from age 11 won’t agree, but Teusch might not be completely off the chart. In Finland--which places

at the top of international education rankings--the frequency of ICT use by teachers is below EU mean until the two last years of high school.

This doesn’t mean that he thinks ICT is present enough in the Luxembourg educational system. “There’s especially a problem in primary schools. There are places where no initiatives are taken at all, while in others the youngsters are making websites. It all depends if the teacher is ICT minded or not.

Setting up more code clubs would be great, but unfortunately, there are not enough volunteers. As for secondary school, you get close to zero ICT if you’re in a lycée classique whereas if you’re in a lycée technique, ICT will be present in nearly every topic. The way ICT is viewed in schools depends a lot about how teachers and the leadership feel about it. In my lycée, we’re lucky to have a director who can’t get innovative enough, but in other schools, change is viewed with scepticism. To bring the system up to date, you have to get everyone on board.”

CERTIFICATE

SMART ICT FOR BUSINESS INNOVATION PROGRAMME STRUCTURE The certificate Smart ICT for business innovation will include 6 different modules and an internship and will award ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) credits: SMART ICT CONCEPTS: foundations of Smart ICT BUSINESS INNOVATION: fundamental knowledge and tools concerning business innovation TECHNICAL STANDARDISATION: overview of ICT standardisation and its economic benefits DIGITAL INTELLIGENCE: inputs on technology trends, opportunities and challenges for Smart ICT SMART PLATFORMS: introduces a broad range of technological platforms that enable the creation of products and processes supporting current and future developments in the digital world (Cloud computing, Smart cities, Internet of Things, Green ICT) SMART INTERACTIONS: focuses on interactions which enable smart interfaces taking into account environmental factors (Sensor networks, Big data and analytics, Digital trust) INTERNSHIP AND CERTIFICATE REPORT

LEARNING OUTCOMES PLANNING & CALENDAR For the academic year 2015/2016, the sessions will be held every 2 weeks from September 2015 to May 2016 and will be scheduled on Thursday and Friday evenings and on Saturdays.

CONTACT ILNAS: tel.: (+352) 24 77 43 70 email: formation@ilnas.etat.lu

Students who successfully complete the university certificate Smart ICT for business innovation will be able to: > Identify and decode the high potential of Smart ICT concepts for business and innovation; > Cater for the current and future issues and standardisation needs in ICT areas such as: 路 Digital Intelligence (Development of ICT standardisation, ICT Governance), 路 Smart Platforms (Cloud computing, Smart cities, Internet of Things, Green ICT), 路 Smart Interactions (Sensor networks, Big data and analytics, Digital trust); > Analyse the challenges of Digital trust and information security; > Identify and use published and draft standards relevant to the ICT sector; > Implement ICT technical standardisation in the business strategy.

CONTACT UL: tel.: (+352) 46 66 44 6617 email: fstc-smartict@uni.lu http://smartict.uni.lu

SUPPORTING ORGANISATIONS:

DIAMOND PARTNER Class of 2015 Official Sponsor:

GOLD PARTNERS:

SILVER PARTNERS:

BUSINESS

AGENDA

TEN EVENTS

Delano presents a selection of upcoming business and networking events for Luxembourg’s international community. Advance registration or fees may be required, so consult the website indicated for full details. All events are held in English unless otherwise noted.

BLANK SLATE Tue 2 June

AUDIT THIS TALK

Girls in Tech

luxembourg.girlsintech.org

Need to write a business plan?

This workshop introduces the “business model canvas” method “to break down any organisation’s business model and show how it delivers and captures value.”

Microsoft, Luxembourg-Clausen, 18:30-20:00

CREATIVE STARTUPS

43,5 X 23 MM

43,5 X 23 MM

Geek Girls Carrots

www.facebook.com/ GeekGirlsCarrotsLuxemburg

Laetitia Charaux and Krisztina Bugeja-Bernath of Mumpreneurs Luxembourg and DeeDee of Popup Studio speak to the women’s tech club “as part of Geek Week Luxembourg”.

Level2, Luxembourg-Bonnevoie, 19:00-21:00

Thu 11 - Fri 12 June

Luxembourg School of Business www.exed.luxsb.lu

A two-day workshop on “Developing and managing a social engagement strategy” presented by Marcus Collins, a New York ad agency executive and lecturer at Stern School of Business.

Location to be announced

GLOBAL FUND TALK

www.startupgrind.com

Karl Horsburgh--a Big Four veteran, founder of his own consultancy and today an angel investor-speaks to the Google-backed entrepreneurship group.

Location to be announced, 18:45-20:45

Fri 5 June - Sun 7 June

Tue 16 - Wed 17 June IIR & IBC Financial Events www.iiribcfinance.com

Speakers at “UCITS & AIFMD Luxembourg conference 2015: meeting regulation and opening distribution channels” include Camille Thommes of ALFI (photo) and Ian Barnes of JP Morgan.

Meliá Hotels, LuxembourgKirchberg, all day event

43,5 X 23 MM

Startup Weekend www.up.co

43,5 X 23 MM

The “internet of things” is the theme of this Startup Weekend, a 54 hour confab held twice a year where entrepreneurs can develop demos and presentations, culminating with Sunday night awards.

Technoport, Esch-Belval, Friday 18:30-Sunday 21:00

GREATER REGION BUSINESS DAYS

Wed 17 - Thu 18 June

Chamber of Commerce www.gr-businessdays.com

The 4th annual B2B trade fair features matchmaking, workshops, exhibits and networking. Participants hail from across the Greater Region and more than 20 other countries.

LuxExpo, Luxembourg-Kirchberg, Wed. 10:00-22:00, Thu. 10:00-19:30

www.paperjam.club

Deniz Kural of IBM presents a workshop for CFOs on strategic risk management and maintaining companies’ financial health.

Neimënster, Luxembourg-Grund, 09:00-12:15

GET CONNECTED

Thu 18 June Amcham

www.amcham.lu

Xavier Bettel, Luxembourg’s prime minister and communications minister, talks to the American Chamber of Commerce about the Grand Duchy’s digital economy.

Likely to sell out fast.

Légère Hotels, Munsbach, 18:00

FESTIVE SOIRÉE Fri 26 June

British Chamber of Commerce www.bcc.lu

The chamber’s annual summer dinner features professional and personal networking plus a performance by Opera à la Carte.

Orangerie, Mondorf Parc Hôtel, Mondorf, 18:00

43,5 X 23 MM

HAVE A SUGGESTION? If your organisation is holding a business or networking event of interest to the international community, send details to: news@delano.lu

sales · rentals · commercial · residential www.FARE.LU · t. 26 897 897

June 2015

Thu 18 June

Startup Grind

your FARE real estate partner

FA_AD_Delano_136x27,5_A2.indd 1

FIRM FINANCES

43,5 X 23 MM

Thu 4 June

PITCH OF THINGS Tue 2 June

SOCIAL MEDIA SKILLS

3/3/15 3:42 PM

Pablo Fausto (CC BY 2.0)

44

Alice Walpole photographiée à son domicile par Julien Becker.

Alice Walpole lit Delano depuis 2011. Merci

Maison Moderne célèbre 20 ans d’édition indépendante et 200.000 lecteurs. Découvrez 20 ans d’archives sur www.maisonmoderne.lu/20

46

BUSINESS

Text by TONYA STONEMAN

Photography by MIKE ZENARI

4,000 RACKETS: A GENUINE LOVE STORY Tax consultant Michel Guilluy serves his passion for tennis.

B

ecause Michel Guilluy likes tennis, he plays the game three times a week. He has organised a local group that plays with wooden rackets like the ones used back in the day, no oversized or aluminium allowed, and travels to places like Majorca to compete--he has a B4/6 ranking. But the real tell tale sign that he’s a genuine tennis lover is his collection of rackets--all 4,000 of them.

Michel’s wife allows a few special ones in their upstairs living room--an 1890 J.J. Perry with original catgut strings, a German racket from 1934 with Nazi insignia on the back and a fishtail handled affair that looks more like a snowshoe than a tennis racket. The remainder consume four other rooms of their spacious house.

His collection is extensive and he can tell you a story about every one of them.

Those from the “Fantasy” series created in the 1960s, 70s and 80s, feature tiny portraits of players painted on their throats (contemporary models are hollow here). There’s a Spalding with Pancho Gonzales, a Wilson with Bruce Barnes, a Dunlop with Evonne Goolagong, another Wilson with Billie Jean King.

There’s a Regent with Ellen Renwal on it--a name Michel hadn’t heard of. “I did the research on it and found out she didn’t even play tennis,” he says. “She was just the daughter of a key stakeholder of the racket manufacturer.”

Michel’s obsession with knowing the origin of each racket has given him an impressive command of the tool’s history. Rackets from 1913 have a smaller shape and a convex head. After 1920, you see the concave models.

“Tennis is always innovating,” he says, pointing out the slits cut into the wood handles to reduce weight and absorb shocks. He can tell you how a maker of violin strings was commissioned to produce rackets, how Prince killed the June 2015

wood models with a lightweight graphite invention and anything you want to know about the Belgian maker Donnay.

His favourite racket is the one his mother bought in 1945 at the end of the war. A small town farm girl, she spent all of her savings to buy it because she was optimistic about the future and it represented an entrée into a higher social class.

“She never learned to play,” Michel says. “Her origins were too modest.

Tennis was a sport played by kings.

She gave me the racket 15 years ago and I won a doubles match in a tournament with it.”

Whether by osmosis or intentional conditioning, Michel inherited his mother’s awestruck fascination with the sport. “When I was young, I played with a very cheap racket,” he recalls.

“My friend played with a Borg Pro. The first time I saw its psychedelic colours I was stunned by its beauty. Mine came from a supermarket. I thought, maybe someday I will have one of those.

Today, I have a few.”

MY OTHER LIFE

TENNIS TALES Michel Guilluy (along with Louis Maraite) co-authored “Donnay, la légende”, a book about the tennis brand, in 2013.

Lydie Polfer photographiée à l’Hôtel de Ville de Luxembourg par Julien Becker.

Lydie Polfer lit Flydoscope depuis 1975. Merci

Maison Moderne célèbre 20 ans d’édition indépendante et 200.000 lecteurs. Découvrez 20 ans d’archives sur www.maisonmoderne.lu/20

UPFRONT

LIFESTYLE

48

49

Introducing

VILLEROY & BOCH The ceramics maker teamed up with Luxinnovation to launch new products by local designers. The results, “Magical Mullerthal Jewellery Box” by Trixi Weis, “Luxembourg City Casket” by Anne Kieffer and “Old Luxembourg Coffeepot in Motion” by Christophe de la Fontaine, are stunning pieces of work.

Where: 2 rue du Fossé, Luxembourg-Centre Info: www.villeroy-boch.com

PAULE KA French fashion brand Paule Ka, founded

by Serge Cajfinger in the Marais in Paris in 1987, has opened a Luxembourg boutique. The store carries the latest collection as well as classics from the fashion designer including a range of little black dresses.

Where: 87 Grand-Rue, Luxembourg-Centre Info: www.pauleka.com

NEW SAUNAS The Domain Thermal in Mondorf has opened its brand new sauna space featuring five saunas ranging from 65°C to 95°C, a Hammam, a relaxation pool, a lounge with a wood fire, an outdoor area and even a sauna that can be hired for private use.

Where: Avenue des Bains, Mondorf-les-Bains Info: www.mondorf.lu

LA PIPISTRELLE An upmarket designer B&B, La Pipistrelle has just four rooms named after Luxembourg royalty (and the Gëlle Fra).

But each is individually designed with a mix of antique and modern furnishings that complement its architectural setting in the old town.

Where: 26 montée du Grund, Luxembourg-Centre Info: www.pipistrelle.lu

June 2015

GRAND DUCHY FILES

THE GREATEST PARTY ational Day is a celebration of Luxembourg’s identity as a small independent and wonderfully multicultural country. The eve of National Day, on the other hand, is an excuse to get hammered and dance your socks off at one of the many street parties and bars until 6 in the morning.

“Duke’s night”, as it is known among certain cliques of the international community, has not always been such a wild celebration. It was rather more formal and subdued, or at least discreet, affair up until the mid 1990s. But then, in 1995, Lucien Elsen, owner of the Mesa Verde restaurant and Subterranea bar (in the location that is now De Gudde Wëllen) decided that the party needed spicing up. So he launched The Holy Ghost Street Party in a small corner of the rue du St.-Esprit on which his establishments stood.

From that small corner, the party mushroomed and within a couple of years had taken over the entire St.-Esprit plateau--where the ugly law courts now stand. Lucien was joined in his venture by like-minded bar owners, like Ture Hedberg, Tim Probyn and Henrik Jensen from the legendary The Elevator and the party, featuring a mixed bill of home-grown DJs and international live music acts, attracted a healthy crowd of nightlife regulars.

Nowadays The Holy Ghost Street Party has shrunk back to its small corner stage, although a stage on the Corniche is still named after The Elevator even though the bar itself has long since disappeared (it is now The International).

Other areas of town--most notably on the corner near Urban--also join in the spirit of the party and celebrating into the wee hours is now a given.

But as you dance into dawn on the 23rd of June, just remember those early pioneers who turned the eve of National Day into the biggest party of the year.

N

Holy Ghost Street Party will be on Facebook

Domain Thermal > Villeroy & Boch La Pipistrelle Paule Ka Luc Deflorenne

B and revamped sign, a new upmarket B& Villeroy & Boch goes de d ladies can find fresh French fashion in saunas look stunning an the cit y centre.

Perfect weekenadgefofrans industrial herit

r house, train shed wcase a former slaughte Three events in June sho now being used as cultural venues of the and steel works that are highest calibre.

FRIDAY 12.06 – 8 P.M.

WATCH BODY COUNT… …at the Kulturfabrik, the former slaughterhouse in Esch, which has become renowned for hosting hardcore and metal acts. Kufa also houses a bistro, workshop spaces and a cinema. The show is produced by den Atelier.

Where: Kulturfabrik, rue de Luxembourg, Esch-Alzette Info: www.kulturfabrik.lu

David Laurant Mike Zenari Völkingen Steve Eastwood

Diary

CAR BOOT SALE Long before the monthly vide grenier sales that the city hosts in summer, the British Ladies Club launched an annual Car Boot Sale.

The 23rd edition takes place, as always, on the Glacis car park. A great place to pick up bargains and socialize.

When: 6 June Info: www.blc.lu

CELEBRATING MUSIC The annual Fête de la Musique originated in France but is now also celebrated all over the Grand Duchy in June. The biggest events happen in Dudelange (where the first Luxembourg event was held in 1994) on 20 June and Luxembourg City the following day.

When: 12 to 21 June Info: www.fetedelamusique.lu

CHURCH FAIR The annual Anglican Church Fair is a great day out for the entire family.

Featuring games and activities, secondhand sales, entertainment and plenty to eat and drink--all in a perfect garden setting in Useldange--it is a highlight of the early summer.

When: 7 June Info: www.anglican.lu

POLISH FESTIVAL The fourth biannual Festival of Polish Culture features a range of concerts, performances and exhibitions as well as workshops. The theme Plus pour la Culture underlines the aim of involving audiences and visitors in the creative process. Watch out for details in our Ten Things newsletter.

When: 12 June to 5 July Info: www.festival-polonais.lu

SATURDAY 13.06 – 5 P.M.

CELEBRATE CARRÉROTONDES… …back in its original 2007 location, the former engine sheds behind the city’s main railway station, after seven years in Hollerich. The arts venue hosts a weekend long open house.

Where: CarréRotondes, rocade de Bonnevoie, Luxembourg-Bonnevoie Info: www.rotondes.lu

SUNDAY 14.06 – 1 P.M.

SEE 21ST CENTURY ART… …at The UrbanArt Biennale. The exhibition features 80 urban artists, works from six continents and extends to new areas of the former steelworks, which is a recognised World Cultural Heritage Site.

Where: Völklinger Hütte, Saarland, Germany Info: www.voelklinger-huette.org

June 2015

LIFESTYLE

50

SNAPSHOTS

Text by WENDY WINN

Photography by LALA LA PHOTO

Secondhand umbrella, anyone?

MORE BARGAIN HUNTERS: WWW.DELANO.LU/ VIDEGRENIER15

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ould you call it beginner’s luck, when it was pouring down rain the first time she took part in a “vide grenier” sale? You can, when this first-timer at the city’s monthly “clear your attic” sale ended up clearing most of hers! “We sold so many things, even from 7.30 a.m., when it wasn’t even officially open,” said Caroline. “I can’t understand why so many people came out in the rain.”

A passerby supplied the answer: “We’re used to doing it!” Up the road Gyorgy Foldes and Katalin Halasz stood in the drizzle for hours to raise money for a worthy cause, but they also enjoy hunting bargains. “We’re still using the Villeroy & Boch cups we got at the British Ladies’ Club car boot sale 20 years ago,” she said.

“It’s fun to look around,” said Sarah Rosenstein. Brigitte Huppert added: “It’s fun to meet new people. It would be boring to just stay home.” www.vdl.lu

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June 2015

BARGAIN HUNTING A. Caroline B. Aurélien and Amandine C. Gyorgy Foldes and Katalin Halasz D. Katie, Angela and Ice E. Nobuko Yamaguchi and Tom Weber F. Nora and David G. H. and I. May’s “vide grenier” took place along the avenue de la Gare, blocked to traffic for the event, because the usual spot on place Guillaume II was taken by the Octave market

A

B

D

G

E

H

F

I

Dalston Anatomy

LORENZO VITTURI 25.04 - 21.06.2015 Multicolor de la série « Dalston Anatomy », 2013. © Lorenzo Vitturi

Pomhouse / Centre national de l’audiovisuel 1b, rue du Centenaire, L-3475 Dudelange, Luxembourg / www.cna.lu Du mercredi au dimanche de 10h à 18h.

Nocturnes les jeudis de 18h à 22h, entrée gratuite.

Visites guidées et programme VISION LAB sur réservation.

Exposition organisée dans le cadre du Mois Européen de la Photographie 2015.

Personne ne croit que je suis vivant

ALEXANDRA CATIERE Display01 / Centre national de l’audiovisuel 1b, rue du Centenaire, L-3475 Dudelange, Luxembourg / www.cna.lu Du mercredi au dimanche de 10h à 18h. Entrée gratuite.

Visites guidées et programme VISION LAB sur réservation.

Exposition présentée en partenariat avec le Centre d’Art GwinZegal, dans le cadre du Mois Européen de la Photographie 2015.

Crow de la série « Personne ne croit que je suis vivant », 2004. © Alexandra Catiere

25.04 - 06.09.2015

52

LIFESTYLE

GETTING INVOLVED

Text by ALIX RASSEL

Photography by MIKE ZENARI

Colour for kids T

he European Management Assistants (EUMA) in Luxembourg, a professional networking organisation, are taking a group of disadvantaged children to a popular summer outing and are hoping that additional sponsors will ensure it is truly a day to remember.

EUMA is working with Caritas Jeunes et Familles and Institut Saint-Joseph, two charities, to host youth home residents for the “Color Run” held at Lake Echternach on 18 July.

Thirteen children and nine carers from Kannerhaus Yakary in Rumelange, in the south of Luxembourg, will take part in the 5km fun run where the emphasis is placed on collaboration, happiness and enjoyment rather than exceptional performance. At each kilometre mark, participants enter a “Color Zone” where they are sprayed randomly with cornflour-based coloured paint. It culminates in the finishing festival, where participants can eat, dance and socialise at the most “colourful after-party on the planet.”

“It’s a great opportunity for the children to be part of something they wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity to experience,” explains Jane Barton of EUMA (photo, left). “We hope that it will be something they can be proud of taking part in.”

The Color Run is a global initiative founded in 2011 to promote healthiness, happiness and individuality. In 2014, there were more than

300 events in over 50 countries worldwide.

This will be the third successive year that the run has taken place in the Grand Duchy.

The Kannerhaus Yakary is one of two children’s residential homes in Luxembourg supported

by Caritas Jeunes et Familles. It provides children aged 3 to 13 with a secure and nurturing environment.

In a country as wealthy as Luxembourg, the gap between the rich and poor is continually increasing and many of the children do not have the opportunity to take part in activities that their peers often take for granted, says the group. “Many of the children may not have even been to Echternach [40km northeast of the capital] before,” Jane adds, “so this is a really fantastic day-out for them.”

EUMA started supporting Caritas last year when it raised funds for the “Rail 4 Kids Snow” project, which sent 40 children to the Swiss Alps over the new year holiday.

At the beginning of April, they delivered Easter eggs to the Kannerhaus and had the opportunity to spend time with the children and carers there. It was during this visit that EUMA proposed the idea of the Color Run to the home’s staff.

“A colleague at work participated with their daughter in 2014 and said it was great fun,” explains Marie Ingvarsdottir of EUMA (photo, right). “It just seemed to be such a great event happening locally in Luxembourg and one that all the children would enjoy, so we were delighted when Kannerhaus Yakary wanted to take part.”

Whilst EUMA will ultimately fund the outing via contributions from their members, they would be grateful for any additional type of sponsorship. This could be in the form of monetary donations, transport to and from the event or even underwriting “lunch boxes” for the children.

Marie says: “The more donations we receive, the more possibilities we can offer the children.”

EUMA:

WWW.EUMA.ORG

For more information or to support EUMA, please email jane.barton@mindforest.com or mhjingvarsdottir@gmail.com. The Caritas Jeunes & Familles website (in French) is www.cjf.lu. For details on the Color Run, visit www.thecolorrun.com.

k

Community noteboo

PHOTO MOMENTO

TRIPLE C

SCI-FI NETWORKING

INDEPENDENCE DAY

CLUBFOTO LUXEMBOURG “Meet other local digital photographers to talk about the latest digital gear and techniques, share your photos and do photo excursions!” 2 June.

Info: www.meetup.com/clubfotolu

RED CROSS INT’L SECTION Corporate teams (including those from Deloitte, HSBC and Nordea) compete to raise money for local foodbanks.

7 June at the INS in Cents.

Info: www.croix-rouge.lu/en

SFFS Shuttle over to the Science Fiction & Fantasy Society on 14 June to meet “with like minded fans, geeks, nerds or whatever term you prefer.”

Info: www.facebook.com/SFFSLux

ICELANDIC ASSOCIATION 17 June is Icelandic National Day (marking its independence from Denmark in 1944) celebrated locally by the 41 year old club.

Info: www.luxarar.com

June 2015

Kyle May (CC BY 2.0) Luxembourg Red Cross JD Hancock (CC BY 2.0) Biologyfishman (CC BY 2.0)

This group of management assistants wants to take 13 kids on a super fun run.

SUMMERSCHOOL 20.07>31.07.2015

03.08>14.08.2015

17.08>28.08.2015

31.08>11.09.2015

Why enrol your children for the summer academy?

To allow them to make astonishing progress in French or English: they will improve their listening and reading comprehension they will improve their oral and written expression they will develop their vocabulary they will gain ease and fluidity.

To allow them to meet other young people of the same age: they will participate in creative workshops they will interact with each other, even during the breaks they will study in a friendly, international environment.

f

unt o

co A dis

â‚Ź 55

kosmo.lu

prolingua Language Centre Villa Lotti - 45a, avenue Monterey L-2163 Luxembourg-Centre Tel: +352 40 39 91-0 www.prolingua.lu

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n ratio egist r h c a e for e befor made 2015 1st july

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55

LIFESTYLE

SPORT & FITNESS

Text by NEEL CHRILLESEN

Photography by LALA LA PHOTO

Join the club

There are a lot of sports and fitness clubs out there waiting to make you one of their members. How do you choose the one you should hook up with, and what should you go after? Here are a few pointers.

P

eople join sports clubs and fitness centres with various purposes and with different expectations. One place does not fit all and one person will not thrive everywhere. That’s why it’s a good idea to shop around before choosing which activities and which place suits your needs best--or at least enough for you to keep coming back.

Otherwise you’ll end up doing as countless others before you: committing to an expensive yearlong subscription or investing in new equipment that will never be used.

And worst of all, not getting any fitter.

“I go to the gym for a number of reasons. Initially the aim was to lose weight and keep fit, but I’ve found that it’s also a good place to make new friends and socialise,” says Dave, a 35 year old financial planner.

“I chose a club next to my home and do a mixture of cardio workouts and weights. It can get boring sometimes, and I have to pull myself together to go regularly, but the positives of getting more energy and feeling better about yourself outweigh this.”

Location is probably the first thing to concentrate on. If you’re planning on doing physical activities during lunchtime or after work, finding a place near your office makes most sense.

If you’re more of a morning person or save most of your exercise routine for the weekends, opting for a club near your home seems a better idea. In other words, favour practicality. It also helps to know when the peak hours are, so you can avoid the worst crowds.

“I joined my club because there was a discount through work,” says Jane, a British HR manager. “To be honest, I still think it’s a bit overpriced and also June 2015

pretentious, but it opens at 6:30, which is good. It means you can get the machine you want quite easily. If I had a comment to make in general though, it would be that most gyms in Luxembourg don’t have a swimming pool attached to them. In the UK, they do, and it’s nice to have a swim after a workout.” For a combined pool and fitness experience, target venues like d’Coque in Kirchberg (see page 66), Badanstalt in the city centre, Les Thermes in Strassen, Aquasud in Oberkorn or Krounebierg in Mersch.

Establishing what type of activity you want to engage in is another important part of the screening process.

If you’d simply like to take up one particular sport, like badminton or judo, contact the corresponding federation (you’ll find a complete list on www.sport. public.lu) and ask for the club nearest you. If however you want to take zumba class one day, spinning class the next, and then do your own thing on the treadmill, your best option is a fitness club with all of these facilities. The majority offer a free test session--make good use of it! It will help you get a feel of the atmosphere, and see what type of people go there and how the installations and classes are.

Obviously if you need top-notch changing rooms, a health bar, a spa area and perfumed relaxation rooms to feel at home, you will have to pay the cost.

The average price for a membership in a fitness club in Luxembourg is around €70 per month. Places with luxury frills generally cost more. Many of the newer places though, like Jims Fitness or Basic Fit, cost much less, all while offering good installations and classes.

No need to say that signing a 12 month subscription is risky, especially when

choosing expensive places. Therefore, if your chosen club offers 3 or 6 month subscriptions (or even better, monthly ones), don’t hesitate! Be sure of what is included in your membership and don’t get duped into paying a heftier fee for services you’ll never use.

A very reasonable (€150 per year) and popular club in Luxembourg is Friskis&Svettis, also known for the free outdoor lessons it offers in summer.

It’s a non-profit association (teachers aren’t paid) and has a take on exercise many adhere to. “We make exercise enjoyable and offer a relaxed community feeling,” says Kathy, one of the instructors. “We have music that makes you want to move and steps that are easy to follow, so you get a sense of achievement. We cater for different levels of fitness and offer two to three classes every evening. Most importantly, we get fit while having fun together!”

There’s no doubt that it’s crucial to feel good in the place you count on working out. If you suffer from “gymtimidation” when you walk in, there’s a big chance you won’t go there often. So when you’re visiting, really take a good look around, talk to a few members or to the trainers. Try picturing yourself in one of the classes or using the equipment. While some gym-goers don’t mind bulky men lifting weights in front of the mirror, women donning size-2 outfits that would look better on a runway than on a running machine, or coaches who favour the “tough love” method, others prefer to get into shape in a less competitive world. There is something for everyone and if you’re serious about getting fit, take time to find what’s the best for you.

But beware: once you find it, you’ll have no more excuses!

FRISKIS&SVETTIS BARBELL CLASS

CLUBS AND CENTRES TO CHECK OUT Aquasud

www.vert-marine.com Badanstalt

www.vdl.lu Basic Fit

www.basic-fit.lu D’Coque

www.coque.lu Ellipse

www.ellipse.lu Existence Health

www.existence.lu Factory 4 Fitness Club

www.factory4.lu Flirty Fitness

www.flirtyfitnessclub.com Fitness Zone

www.fitnesszone.lu Friskis&Svettis

www.friskis.lu Jims Fitness

www.jimsfitness.lu Krounebierg

www.krounebierg.lu Lady Fitness

www.ladyfitness.lu

Reebok Crossfit Valens

www.rcv.lu

Les Thermes

www.lesthermes.net Top Squash

Lala La Photo

www.painworld.lu

www.topsquash.lu

Kristina D.C. Hoeppner (CC BY-SA 2.0)

www.painworld.lu

www.basic-fit.lu

Pain World

June 2015

56

LIFESTYLE

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Text by NEEL CHRILLESEN

Photography by LALA LA PHOTO

So you want to get fit…

the couch, most of us t in shape by staying on . So here are a few tips ge uld co we if it, e fac ble Let’s all know that’s not possi probably would. But weon how to get up and moving. from the professionals

FIND A FITNESS COACH

PERSONAL TRAINERS Winston Brillhart offers tailormade fitness programmes and gives nutritional advice and motivational support. His facilities are very private with never more than two people working out at any one given time.

Info: www.winstonfit.com

© Prenom Nom

Jesper Enemark offers tailormade fitness programmes, personalised nutrition plans and motivational support. Workouts take place outside and in a studio. Swimming, running and taekwondo are also options.

Info: www.enemarkfitness.lu Working with Christophe and Mireille Rousseau makes you “part of the family”. Your training will be based on your posture and is guaranteed to lessen whatever aches you have while you get fitter and leaner.

Info: www.inceptionfitness.lu

W

e’ve read it a hundred times, we’ve heard friends boast about it, we’ve seen brawny pictures of the results. It’s not like we don’t know: physical exercise is good for you. It tones your body, gives you energy and makes you healthier and happier. That’s probably why most of us notfitness-inclined are sometimes compelled to give it a try anyway.

But how do we get beyond buying a new pair of running shoes?

“The best thing to do is to find an activity you think is fun. If you choose something you like, you’re more likely to keep with it,” says personal trainer Winston Brillhart (photo). “Any type of regular physical activity can improve your fitness and health.

June 2015

The most important thing is to keep moving and make exercise a regular part of your day, like brushing your teeth. It can be a class at a gym, working with a personal trainer or simply working out on your own.”

Buying Jillian Michael’s “30 day shred” DVD or something equally aggressive isn’t the answer though (phew!). “Fast and furious is not the way to start and will only lead to injury,” says Brillhart. “Take one step at the time. As you get stronger, gradually increase the level of difficulty. Working with a qualified personal trainer can be a very helpful way to start exercising.” Not surprisingly, personal trainer Jesper Enemark agrees: “It is my experience that

80% of people who sign up with a personal trainer will keep to it and experience significantly better health and a fitter body with a structured and predefined regular training. Every person is different and needs a sports profile to be made in order to create a tailormade fitness programme.

A minimum of two to three trainings per week will increase the physical condition of anyone.”

Bottom line? There is no amazing secret to getting fit. You just have to start.

“If you workout regularly it will only take a few weeks to notice a difference,” promises Brillhart.

“Of course, the more unconditioned you are, the faster you will see results.”

Thomas Nielsen and his team of specialised coaches (in tennis, golf, self-defence, stretching, pilates and yoga, among others) offer personalised fitness programmes and nutritional advice in various locations, including your home.

Info: www.coachathome.lu Philippe Grégoire and Irina Derbina-Karotom offer fitness programmes based on 30 or 60-minute sessions in a studio.

There is also a “fit lunch” option, where you work out and eat in one hour.

Info: www.neatfitness.lu

58

LIFESTYLE

INTERVIEW

Text by DUNCAN ROBERTS

Photography by MIKE ZENARI

Mir ror verses

al ited to read at the annu tish Julia Copus was inv tish ambassador Alice Walpole.

Bri et po ing inn -w ard Bri Aw tival at the behest of essible.

Printemps des Poètes fese specular poetr y and making work that is acc iqu un She discusses her

L

ooking delightful in a summer dress, Julia Copus is far from the clichéd image of a poet that many of her male counterparts seem to so carefully cultivate--stick thin, wild of hair and clothed in the manner of a shabby university lecturer. Copus’s poetry has fittingly been described as “elegiac and buoyant” by Kate Kellaway in The Guardian. This emerges most forcibly in what Copus calls her specular poems--her invention of dividing a poem into two parts, the second a mirror of the first so that the opening and ending lines are exactly the same. There is remarkable craft in this achievement.

Copus came to poetry via Sylvia Plath while in her early twenties. She had read The Bell Jar and a biography, but when she later read Plath’s poetry it seemed, she says, “so much more powerful and moved me a lot more.

It was very vigorous and alive.”

She readily admits that Plath was a strong influence on her early work and that is noticeable in her first collection The Shuttered Eye. “But I think every writer needs somebody like that. You need to imitate before you find your own voice, to work out how people that you admire in your field are doing it.” But the more she read, the more diluted the influences became. By the time of her second collection, In Defence Of Adultery, she was much more her own woman--the choice of title, provocative even if half ironic, is proof of that.

Here Copus began exploring the idea of an alternative life made possible by rewinding to a particular moment and making a different choice. “What builds a very solid life is actually a series of very tenuous and specific decisions,” she has since concluded. A move to dream publisher Faber for her third collection, 2012’s The World’s Two Smallest People, catapulted Copus into the sort of world in which she receives rave reviews JULIA COPUS: from the likes of The Guardian and ELEGIAC AND The Spectator. The collection is her BUOYANT most personal to date, but is also packed with sharp observation and humour. “I hope that they are not selfabsorbed. It is really important to me that I am not just writing for myself. I think poetry should be as widely accessible as possible.”

June 2015

CSI*** Luxembourg Réiser Päerdsdeeg 11-14 JUNE 2015

THE LEADING SHOW JUMPING EVENT IN THE GREATER REGION Since 1992, the international show jumping competition «Réiser Päerdsdeeg» has attracted thousands of spectators and the best national and international riders.

This year, there will be 14 official competitions including 3 counting for the Longines FEI world ranking.

Alongside the horses, there are plenty of family friendly attractions and activities for everyone to enjoy, including : Thursday-Sunday: Jean-Marc Imbert Horse Show Thursday: Grill Party Friday: Luxembourg Club Challenge followed by a Show cooking Saturday: Music by the Four (former Diesel on tour) small refreshments by the clubs and associations of the Roeser Commune Activities for children (Saturday & Sunday) Full program and more information on jumping.lu

presented by

OFFICIALS SPONSORS 2015

LIVANGE LIVANGE

www.jumping.lu

/ paerdsdeeg

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61

LIFESTYLE

ON STAGE

Text by DUNCAN ROBERTS

MORE EVENTS:

14 shows you must see

WWW.DELANO.LU

THE SLOW SHOW Tipped to break big in 2015, The Slow Show may sound like a Mancunian version of The National (which is no bad thing, of course), but they do have their own unique sound. Debut album White Water has been praised as an “impressive first statement” by critics who also say the band has a “gentle, intriguing charm, one that takes time to get under your skin.”

Where: Rockhal, Esch-Belval When: 1 June Tickets: www.rockhal.lu

OPL & MATTHIAS GOERNE Acclaimed German baritone Matthias Goerne sings Gustav Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder in a programme that also features Richard Strauss’s Also sprach Zarathustra and Anton Webern’s Passacaglia op. 1. Conductor Emmanuel Krivine conducts the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg in one of his final concerts as musical director.

Where: Philharmonie, Luxembourg-Kirchberg When: 5 June Tickets: www.philharmonie.lu June 2015

SASCHA LEY & LAURENT PAYFERT Matching sublime vocals and cool acoustic double bass, Sascha Ley and Laurent Payfert have been performing live together for several years. They play a mixture of jazz, popular songs, minimalist improvisation and even on-thespot composition. At opderschmelz the duo celebrates the release of a new CD titled The Wee Hours.

Where: opderschmelz, Dudelange When: 9 June Tickets: www.opderschmelz.lu

SIDI LARBI CHERKAOUI A regular at the Grand Théâtre, Flemish choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui returns with Genesis, which it premiered last November in Beijing, set to live music with roots in Africa, India, Japan, China and Poland. The performance features Chinese dance star Yabin Wang, familiar to film audiences from House of Flying Daggers, who now has her own dance troupe in Beijing.

Where: Grand Théâtre, Luxembourg-Limpertsberg When: 4 & 5 June Tickets: www.theatres.lu

FRANK TURNER By now a familiar face in Luxembourg, English singersongwriter Frank Turner brings his folk-punk schtick to den Atelier.

2013 album Tape Deck Heart won over many new fans after Turner was dismissed in some quarters as a posh kid playing at being punk rock. But he has undoubted talent as a songwriter and his live performances are testament to genuine passion.

Where: den Atelier, Luxembourg-Gare When: 4 June Tickets: www.atelier.lu

THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons are back with a bang if the first release off forthcoming album Born In The Echoes, hypnotic floor-filler ‘Sometimes I Feel So Deserted’, is anything to go by.

The duo says they “dream of new sounds and different frames.”

The new album features guest appearances from St. Vincent, Beck, Q-Tip, Ali Love and Cate Le Bon. Where: Rockhal, Esch-Belval When: 10 June Tickets: www.rockhal.lu

JEAN-GUILLAUME WEIS Luxembourg choreographer Jean-Guillaume Weis teams up with local musician Steve Kaspar for his latest work, flock. The flock in question here is a group of dancers whose behaviour explores various narrative situations.

Weis’s works are always accessible and thought-provoking. As usual his sister Trixie provides the décor, costumes and staging.

Where: Grand Théâtre, Luxembourg-Limpertsberg When: 11 & 13 June Tickets: www.theatres.lu

AAP Percy Dean Steve Eastwood Opéra de Lille/Mickaël Libert Julien Becker

ing on e make s a string sh ow t there bu En glish -langua ge the atr s, ek we few xt ne er the Luxemb ourg stages ov sic and dance and opera performances. mu ol co of nty ple o als is

PIRATE PRODUCTIONS Allison Kingsbury and Philip Dutton direct a review type show written by Richard Maltby, Jr. and David Shire. Starting Here Starting Now explores the excitement of young love and the confusion of growing up using songs from the pair’s various early musicals.

First performed in 1977, it incor­ porates subtle mini-plots to drive a sort of narrative.

Where: Château de Bettembourg, Bettembourg When: 11-14 June Tickets: www.pirateproductions.lu

PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING Public Service Broadcasting’s third Luxembourg show--they have played Exit07 and supported Manic Street Preachers--sees the duo promote second album The Race For Space. Again using archive broadcast material, PSB create fascinating and often euphoric soundscapes that perfectly evoke the golden age of space exploration between 1957 and 1972.

Where: Kulturfabrik, Esch/Alzette When: 13 June Tickets: www.kulturfabrik.lu

FIRST AID KIT First Aid Kit, Swedish siblings Johanna and Klara Söderberg, are on the rise. Stay Gold, their third album, was in many top 50 lists at the end of last year and had the likes of Andy Gill in The Independent enthusing about its “engaging, youthful and thoughtful folk-rock.”

The sisters are joined on tour by a drummer and pedal steel guitarist.

Where: den Atelier, Luxembourg-Gare When: 24 June Tickets: www.atelier.lu

THE MERCHANT OF VENICE The American Drama Group Europe stops off at Château de Bourglinster as part of its annual castle tour of a Shakespeare play.

This time Paul Stebbings directs the troupe in The Merchant Of Venice, a play that has been the subject of controversy over its depiction of Jews. If not among the most acclaimed or popular of the Bard’s works, it remains a highly regarded play.

Where: Château de Bourglinster, Bourglinster When: 29 June Tickets: www.adg-europe.lu

HANSEL & GRETEL An ensemble-devised piece marking local director Anne Simon’s first collaboration with The Circle Theater of New York, Hansel & Gretel--Trail of Crumbs takes a fresh look at the fairy tale.

According to The Blurb it “scrutinizes the fundamental fears and desires of human beings.”

The play is the first part of Simon’s The Mirror-Trilogy.

Where: Théâtre National du Luxembourg, Luxembourg-Merl When: 16, 18, 19, 24, 25 & 30 June Tickets: www.tnl.lu

MADAMA BUTTERFLY Puccini’s opera about a Japanese geisha’s doomed romance with an American naval officer is an enduring favourite with audiences.

This production with the Opéra de Lille is directed by Jean-François Sivadier and features rising Italian star Serena Farnocchia in the title role and the OPL conducted

by Puccini specialist Antonino Fogliani.

Where: Grand Théâtre, Luxembourg-Limpertsberg When: 19, 24 & 26 June Tickets: www.theatres.lu

THE ROCK-A-FIELD Luxembourg’s premier music festival is once again a 3-day event featuring a truly eclectic line-up. Many, such as Muse, Alt-J, Kraftklub, Eagles of Death Metal and the electrifying Kate Tempest have played Luxembourg before, while a few like Wu-Tang Clan and Echosmith (photo) are new to the Grand Duchy. The festival has become something of a rite of passage for Luxembourg’s youth.

Where: Herchesfeld festival site, Roeser When: 3-5 July Tickets: www.atelier.lu June 2015

62

LIFESTYLE

FOOD & DRINKS

Text by DUNCAN ROBERTS

Cider makes a comeback A group of apple farmers in the east of the country have revived the art of cider making in Luxembourg.

Fresh on the market

uxembourg’s British and Irish expat communities will be licking their lips at the news that the Grand Duchy now produces its own cider.

Ramborn cider is the brainchild of a trio of friends from the village of Born in the lower Sûre valley.

Carlo Hein and Gérard Bisenius were both from families that owned orchards and had a long but dying tradition of producing cider.

They were joined by cider RAMBORN’S fan Gilles Dimmer for tastings CIDER RANGE: of the beverage from around WWW.RAMBORN.COM the world.

“The idea to make cider came to us on a trip to Scotland. We were sitting on a terrace in Edinburgh’s Haymarket and we wondered why not make a Luxembourg cider with a truly modern and innovative quality based on traditional Luxembourg apples.” Hein went to England to meet

OCTANS Octans is the latest bar to open in what is fast becoming a golden triangle of nightlife in the old part of town. “The spirited bar” specialises in classic and bespoke cocktails using “high-octane spirits” served by a knowledgeable, friendly and quirky staff.

Where: 15 rue du Curé, Luxembourg-Centre Info: www.octansbar.com June 2015

LENELIFE Balanced lifestyle specialist LeneLife has opened what it claims to be the first “healthy gluten and lactose free restaurant to open in Luxembourg.” The menu includes a selection of raw and vegan dishes. Also offers lunchtime delivery and a catering service.

Where: Le Bec Fin, Hotel Parc Belle Vue, 5 avenue Marie-Thérèse, Luxembourg-Centre Info: www.lenelife.com

BISTRO PODENCO A new tapas bar never goes amiss, and this venue on the Clausen-Pfaffenthal border is not only authentic but also conscientious, believing in the farm-to-table philosophy and a respect for fresh ingredients.

The restaurant now has two evening services.

Where: 5 allée Pierre de Mansfeld, Luxembourg-Clausen Info: www.bistro-podenco.lu

cider expert Peter Mitchell, and later the trio’s first effort at making cider saw them ferment and fill the bottles by hand in England.

Now they are in the midst of renovating an ancient cider farm, and have launched the Ramborn brand--named after the Rambo apple variety and their home village of Born, which sits in the future Mëllerdall national park.

Ramborn produces three types of cider--the flagship CM cider, which is crisp and clean, and very modern in that it is quaffable over ice; a Somerset style cider, which has a deeper golden colour and is sweeter and more aromatic thanks to its blend of Luxembourg and English ciders; and a farmhouse cider, which harks back to the more traditional Luxembourg style. Only available online at the moment, the makers hope to expand to selling in selected stores soon.

AMCELLARS The importer of high end American wines from northern California and Oregon has opened a wine store in Munsbach. Run by co-founder Simone LullingenWeber, the store is open for purchases and tastings at times announced in the Amcellars newsletter.

Where: 21 rue Gabriel Lippmann, Munsbach Info: www.amcellars.com

Benjamin Champenois Luc Deflorenne Simone Lullingen-Weber Steve Eastwood Ramborn

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LIFESTYLE

KIDS

Text by WENDY WINN

Photography by SVEN BECKER

Express ! y t i v i t a e r c t a th SING YOUR SONG Kids ages 12 to 18 can compose a song, perform and record it with musicians Misch Guillaume and Bob Leick in this workshop.

23 April to 12 June.

Info: www.khn.lu GET FREAKY Franz Erhard Walther was thought a bit of an “ArtFreak” when he started pushing the boundaries of art in the 1950s; teens can push them too in this 30 May ArtFreak workshop.

Info: www.mudam.lu SLEUTHY SYSTEMS Shine a light on the history of communi­ cations during the “PostMusée in the Dark” guided tour on 20 June (or groups of 10 to 25 by reservation). Free but book ahead.

Info: postmusee@post.lu IS YOUR KID’S FUTURE IN FILM?

It is if he or she participates in a “2030, when I grow up” workshop, where kids ages 4 to 11 are invited to film their own idea of their future lives 15 years from now.

K

ids are invited to use “a camera, Legos, paper, pens, fruit, mom’s make-up, dad’s necktie” and other everyday items to create stop-motion ­animation. The subject of the films is their own futures, says the project’s creative producer, Andra Maria Matresu, aka Andrita Andrushka.

June 2015

She sees the workshops (like the one pictured here) as being more than just creative fun for the kids, but a way to come up with creative solutions to everyday problems and maybe even cast some light on challenges the children might be experiencing but have difficulty talking about.

Children are encouraged to literally picture their futures, their dream jobs, situations, and more, and to bring these pictures to life on the big screen. “Kids are very attracted to cinema, and it’s a medium that they are excited to work with,” Andrushka says.

And by creating films they star in themselves, kids can learn to see themselves as the hero in

their own lives, taking charge, making good choices and believing in themselves.

The workshops are held over a single weekend (10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday) and are limited to small groups of four kids. Several “making of” and final web clips are posted on the outfit’s website.

The weekend workshops involve not only the kids and filmmakers, but also an educator and an early childhood psychologist who produces a confidential report for the parents identifying each child’s strengths. The ultimate goal is to not only record children’s dreams, but to help them come true.

Info: www.2030whenigrowup.org

TASTE HISTORY The city’s history museum has an original recipe for helping kids discover Luxembourg’s rich and spicy past. Download the brochure detailing workshops.

Info: www.mhvl.lu SUMMER ART PLAN Artist Sonja Soyer will keep little artists from age 5 creatively occupied during week-long sessions, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon daily in July. Book now.

Info: www.sonjasoyer.com

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LIFESTYLE

Text by AARON GRUNWALD

Photography by MIKE ZENARI

Different strokes

MY FAVOURITES

in Sabine Rossbach , born rmany, Ge l tra cen in dt sta igs Ludw sional ac tress has worked as a profes past three the in the Grand Duchy forer and writer ch tea r me for e Th . ars ye t swimming got “more serious” abou“af ter the bir th , en a decade earlier wh nted to get in of my second child, I wad to get really rte shape again but sta as a pe rso nal bored in the gy m.” So to wo rk on chall en ge sh e de cid ed d en de d up he r butte rfly stroke an ste r’s team on the Luxe mb ourg Maseveral seasons. (w ww.swimming.lu) for do esn’t let These days her schedule , but to ke ep her swim comp etitivelywater ” two or me fit “I try to catch so re she shares three times a we ek . He ng sp ots . mi three favourite swim

MONDORF THERMAL POOL This is one of the few spots in the Grand Duchy that you can swim outdoors all year long, notes Sabine. With the water heated to a balmy 36°C, it is a place to “really relax” and “not a place to train”. “For people with problems with articulation it’s very good,” she says. “I find it most enjoyable in winter.

Imagine it’s snowing, freezing cold, you can see frost on the grass and the branches of trees, and you’re nicely in the water, swimming gently… steam is coming up from the water and that’s wonderful, luxuriously wonderful.”

Where: Avenue des Bains, Mondorf-les-Bains Info: www.mondorf.lu June 2015

PISCINE MUNICIPALE DE BONNEVOIE One of the City of Luxembourg’s public pools, it is “very nice” and “very modern” after recent renovations. It has a competitive sized 25m pool with five lanes. Even when it’s used for school training sessions, “one or two lanes are always blocked open for the public.” There is also a smaller, 90cm deep pool for school aged kids.

“If I have an hour in the morning, I can pop over there” for a quick dip. Sabine often goes there by bike, but uses the underground garage if she needs her car afterwards.

Where: 20 rue Sigismond, Luxembourg-Bonnevoie Info: search for “Piscines” on www.vdl.lu

D’COQUE Officially the Centre national sportif et culturel, this is where Sabine dived into swimming as an adult. She signed up for a summer clinic to work on her butterfly stroke and when the programme ended, “I thought this is so much fun and I felt so good that I didn’t want to stop.” She still works out there regularly because of the quality of the facilities and because it has the “most flexible and longest opening hours” around. But Sabine stresses that swimmers of all levels can find a slot in the shell shaped building. They even offer classes for babies and toddlers (and aquaphobes) in a “kiddie pool”, which can be booked for children’s birthdays parties, lifeguard included.

Where: 2 rue Léon Hengen, Luxembourg-Kirchberg Info: www.coque.lu

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