Speeches, Remarks & Statements in 2009

Speech of the USA Ambassador Philip T. Reeker, At Permaculture and Peacebuilding Center 10th Anniversary Celebration

Gostivar, 1 July, 2009

Director Saiti and Distinguished Guests.

It is an honor for me to be here today and to accept this award today on behalf of the United States of America.  We are very pleased with our successful collaboration with the Permaculture Peacebuilding Center.  Our cooperation spans many of the 10 years you are celebrating with your anniversary today and I hope that it will continue for many years to come.

The United States recognizes how important civil society is in any democracy and that is why we work to strengthen nongovernmental organizations throughout Macedonia.  For the recent elections, we worked with Permaculture and other organizations to make sure voters knew their rights and the procedures they would need to follow on Election Day.  We believe this effort contributed to the successful elections we witnessed this spring and want to thank all of our partners for their work in this field.

Another area where we have focused our efforts with Permaculture and other like-minded organizations is on preserving the environment in this beautiful country.  I know that the Peace Corps placed a volunteer here in Gostivar to focus on that task and that Permaculture went to schools to teach children the importance of taking care of the world entrusted to us.

I want to use this example of our collaboration to make a wider point.  Each of us, as a citizen of this world, has a responsibility to do our part to make this world a better place.  Perhaps this may be by working for an organization like Permaculture, which focuses on building people’s capacity, but perhaps it is as simple as taking care of the town where we live by keeping it clean or looking out for our neighbors.  Each of these things contributes to improving the world we live in and also provides a great example for future generations.  I am afraid that often we fall into the trap of waiting for others to do something rather than taking action ourselves.  In particular in Macedonia, I hear over and over again that people wait for the government to take care of their problems – to clean up their neighborhood, to give them employment, to help children in trouble.  By choosing this course of action, to sit back and wait for the government  or others to solve your problems, the one thing that is certain is that we will remain at the mercy of someone else’s decision and likely not be pleased with the results.

I am speaking to you today just a few days before my country will celebrate the 233^rd anniversary of our Declaration of Independence.  On July 4, in 1776, 56 individuals chose to commit themselves and those they represented to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.  They chose to dedicate a new nation and its people to those ideals that are now known throughout the world.  If they had accepted the status quo or waited for someone else to act, the British Ambassador might have been here today accepting this award.  The British are very special friends of the United States but I am glad that in 1776 those individuals had the courage to act instead of waiting.  I know I will work to follow their example to improve the world I live in and hope you will join me in that endeavor.

Thank you.