Entrevista a Marco Tronchetti Provera, Presidente Mundial Pirelli Group

I hope that the calendar captures this message, which is a message of awareness of how man, on one hand, can destroy, but on the other, is also master of his destiny and can act to use the beauty of nature and the harmony of the world to produce greater wealth for all in a balanced way.

I believe that many companies are already acting to produce in a more correct way, more respectful of nature. They are trying to produce also, unfortunately, at increasingly lower costs because competition is very high, and in a serious crisis like this, companies must continue to invest in the future, unfortunately making sacrifices that are necessary because in large companies, to survive, one must look at the global issues, trying to save the best of the company to be able to produce wealth for all.

I believe that the social situation is difficult because the crisis is very deep, the worst post-war crisis. Companies must fight to survive because to survive, they must also make sacrifices. These sacrifices mean that some people, many people, are in difficult conditions and may lose their jobs. We need to work a lot on social protection so that people have time to find another job with everything needed to maintain, let's say, the guarantee of their quality of life and their family. This is the effort that companies must make in transforming themselves; in having to unfortunately cut costs, they must do it in a way that people can continue to have a normal life. This is the effort that companies, together with the political class and unions, must make while respecting everyone's rights. But unfortunately, if you don't restructure, you are not competitive, then the risk is that the entire company dies.

I believe that Obama arrived at the best time for humanity, in the worst post-war moment, but at a time when America had lost credibility due to what happened in Iraq; it had lost part of its credibility because the financial crisis originated in America. And the fact that a new face, a man of African descent, can become President of the United States gives hope to everyone and brings America back as an actor on the scene without prejudice from anyone, but rather with an example of great openness towards all of society, a global company. In the first period of Obama's mandate, I hope that Obama succeeds in making the United States, together with other major countries, quickly take decisions to remove fear from people, give confidence, but with actions that can be perceived in the short term. People must understand that in the short term something positive can happen, then hope and confidence return because the crisis is an economic crisis, a financial crisis, but also a confidence crisis. How long will it last? It can be very long, but it can be shortened if the action of the entire class, a common action in harmony, working together, knowing that it is a problem of everyone, that only by not closing in on oneself, not protecting one's privileges, but working with others, we can get out. In the end, there will be a greater strength of some international organizations like the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the WTO, and I believe that the connection between different regions of the world will be stronger in monetary policies, economic policies, and in control, and therefore in the set of rules that must govern the future of the world.