Toespraak bij in ontvangstname ‘the Battery Medal for Cultural Heritage’
Thank you very very much for this prize. My biggest prize however this year was to get to know so many amazing people. People with such great vision for their city, the city of New York. And who have been working on this vision consistently. Working on this feat consistently for 30 years or more. I didn’t know them until this year and so it is my great privilege to know people like Bill Rudin and Commissioner Benepe. But the most amazing person of course is someone you should perhaps offer on loan to the Egyptians, because with her visions she could bring the Pharaos back to life: Warrie Price.
Of course we are also celebrating 400 years of friendship. 400 years which are all about the shared passion for liberty and opportunity and the shared zeal for morality. Which in my opinion are the essential elements that bind us together, Americans and Dutch, New Yorkers and Dutch.
I would like to tell you how important the work of the Battery Conservancy is. Because what is happening here by the Battery Conservancy, is to re-create a relationship between every individual and her or his environment. That is a crucial aspect in a world that has changed so drastically. A world in which we are redefining our relationship to one another and our relationship to the environment. We will have to change our relationship to our city, to our country, to this world. And part of this is to re-create nature closer to the people. And a wonderful development here in New York is that the city is no longer standing with its back towards the water, but with its face towards the water.
Another great development is the increased possibility to cycle around the great island of Manhattan. We the Dutch share your vision and we are so privileged to be part of this transformation of New York. New York has everything to thank to you, to your vision and to your consistency. And to the great American poet - with Dutch heritage - whom I had the privilege to meet 10 days ago two miles from my home at Pinkpop Music Festival, when he performed for a brilliant 2,5 hours , Bruce Springsteen! I know he said we are all working on a dream, and he is right.
I think that we need to rekindle the feeling of all the people in the netherlands and all the people in new york, that what we need to do, individually, collectively, is working on a dream. And it is succesfull, we can all see that here.
Thank you.