Dow Chemical CEO, President and Chairman, Andrew Liveris, talks exclusively to Greek Reporter about “The Hellenic Initiative,” a global non-profit, non-governmental initiative which aims to provide critical funding to sustain organizations that can help inspire entrepreneurship, business development and investment that will ensure the Nation’s long-term prosperity.
Liveris revealed that he was flirting with the idea of the initiative for the past five years and that former Greek Prime Minister Papandreou had previously tried to tap into the Greek diaspora but the attempt had not succeeded.
“The moment was never good enough to bring together the right groups of people; this moment has arrived because the crisis was acute,” says Liveris.
Watch highlights of Andrew Liveris’ interview below:
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The Dow Chemical CEO and Chairman remains hopeful about Greece and emphasizes that this time has to be be the nadir for the country.
“We need to make sure it is the bottom. We need to stop the decline. We need to provide mechanisms to reverse it. We need to find ways to get investment going here again and we need to help people who are in need.”
According to the successful Greek-Australian executive, these multiple thoughts are what also convinced Bill Clinton, the 42nd president of the United States to come to Greece and help launch “The Hellenic Initiative” during its first roundtable discussions that took place in Athens on Sunday July 22nd.
“When I called President Clinton he was very enthusiastic about the idea and he said I am in. He grew up with many Greeks in Arkansas and he truly cares about Greece.”
Liveris also stressed the important role the Greek Diaspora can play in the restructure of Greece.
“Greece needs to recognize what other countries do which is use the diaspora, Israelis do it, the Irish do it, the Chinese do it. We are the same, we just happen to be living somewhere else. This is not just a vacation spot, this is the motherland. We care.”
Talking about the practical aspect of “The Hellenic Initiative” Andrew Liveris stressed the idea that this is not just about numbers and it goes beyond financial help.
“If it’s just a financial fix then I am not doing this, this has to be an attitude, a culture and a psychology. We have to change the way Greeks think about themselves in a state that it has been mostly public service and public sector.”
Liveris also added that if Greece does it well now, then the investors will come, and he used as an example the fact that Dow Chemical is now investing one billion dollars in Turkey, a country that ten years ago was undergoing its own financial crisis.
Watch the full version of Andrew Liveris’ interview below:
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About The Hellenic Initiative:
Founded in 2012, The Hellenic Initiative (THI) is a global, non-profit, non-governmental secular institution whose vision, through the generosity of the Greek Diaspora and Philhellene community, is to provide critical pragmatic encouragement and financial support to sustain organizations and programs that can help put an end to the current humanitarian crisis and inspire the entrepreneurship and business development that will empower the Greek people to strengthen their Nation’s long term prosperity. Oli Mazi – All Together.
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