Graduation Ceremony 16
Tuesday 1 December 2015 at 1630hrs – Jesuits Church Valletta
Graduation Oration
Dr Susanna Thede (Institute for European Studies)
Adapting in Times of Change
Let me start by congratulating the graduates gathered here on your achievement. Some years ago
you took the decision to embark upon this journey and you have finally reached your destination.
You have undoubtedly overcome many challenges on the way, some of which must have been
unforeseen at the start of the journey. You know how to adapt to change - otherwise you wouldn’t
have arrived at the destination. By now you have by far outgrown the freshers’ status that you had
at the beginning. The experiences encountered have been individual while you have travelled
together with others on this course. I hope that this has been a nice journey built on common
support. For those of us that by now have a faint memory of being in your position, it is clear that
very different challenges lie ahead. Working life is demanding in other ways. It requires a stronger
focus as the direction is not clearly laid out from the start. There are also other constraints that
come into play: many of you will find yourself juggling with your time between the workplace and
home to fit a new life into the picture. Some of you will engage more in societal activities to push
back inhibiting constraints. Many will find that the opportunities for change lie not only within
themselves but also in joining people with similar opinions. Maltese society and perceptions are
often based on a divide that you may also find limiting. New generations have always stood at the
forefront in understanding and adapting to new circumstances. In this regard, you may find that it is
better to join others of similar opinion regardless of outside categorization. Not all dreams come
true and when they do, they often come at a price. There is a proverb which says that the only free
cheese can be found in a mouse trap. Often that is not far from the truth.
Life here at University will seemingly go on as before: new students embark on their journeys
undertaking courses similar to yours. Professors, associate professors and lecturers will continue
their work and strive to meet their own goals. Administrative personnel will struggle on to overcome
the hurdles that daily obstruct their way. And many others will continue their work and individual
journeys that they started a long time ago. Yet, many of the staff here at University, if not all, will
face change. For some the adaptation will require a large effort while others will not be confronted
by stark adjustment pressures. In a changing society, the knowledge foundation formed at University
can be essential in providing directions toward achieving objectives. To do this, a firm line needs to
be drawn between knowledge creation and policy objectives. This must be accompanied by a strong
willingness to undertake policy-relevant research. Indeed, many if not most of lecturers may prefer
to stay away from such endeavours and pursue more easily obtained academic merits. Still, we
shouldn’t underestimate the importance that we can have in providing a knowledge foundation in a
context of continuous societal change. Perhaps it is time to see ourselves more as components of a
whole and less as individuals.
In times of change, there is always a choice between striving on towards set goals and taking time
off to revise the roadmap. We are never alone on this journey and the choices of others necessarily
affect our own opportunities. While we may wish to resist change, it will overtake us sooner or later.
Here, again, the new generation can lead the way by adopting a less rigorous mind set and clinging
less to forgone perceptions. Children help their parents to think afresh. Organizational structures
change as younger staff members rise up to higher positions. However, not all things change. Just as
parents have the experience to realise set goals, in the work place, people close to retirement have
acquired expertise that can help new undertakings become successful. Stimulus for change should
be based on fundamentals – there is no need to reinvent the wheel or repeat the mistakes of those
that went before us.
This country faces and will continue to face adjustment pressures which require adaption. In a
globalized world, resisting (structural) change can be detrimental to the economy and a population’s
living standards. We depend on the country’s competitiveness and how well we do depends on how
we compare to other countries as producers of goods and services. To raise our living standards we
need to work together to become better, which involves public as well as private sector adaptation.
The University needs to be part of this change, not only by raising human capital skills, but also by
strengthening the links to private sector development. Some very innovative steps have already
been taken in this respect and we need to continue to build on them. Due to our small size and
(relative) insularity, and not least our capacity constraints, we need to work very hard to place
ourselves on the map in an international context. Yet, these restrictions can also work to our benefit:
A smaller size and a more centralised system can help us streamline policy intervention in a way that
is otherwise very hard to fulfil. Our regional position, which is distant from the core of European
economic activity and policy making, can be a strong disadvantage in head-to-head competition with
other European states. But it can also be advantageous because we are closer to countries that have
now become part of the EU through enlargement.
People will also need to adapt to the pressures of globalization. More rapid technological change
and lower transaction costs for goods and services place us in more direct competition with workers
overseas. This implies that people will be placed under stronger pressure to upgrade and change
their skills over their lifetimes. A University degree as a key to a working life has depreciated in value
today because acquired skills need more adaption than before. Malta is changing into a diversified
services hub. This provides great opportunities, and we can indeed see that there is a strong effort
to facilitate this development, but it also means that we are susceptible to change occurring in other
countries with which we are competing. As it becomes impossible to foresee such events in an
integrated world, we need to rely on our ability to adjust. All parts of society need to contribute to
this change – we will perform better if we overcome the boundaries between private sector
production and public sector provision. To a large extent, such cooperation has been facilitated by
Malta’s experience in the implementation of EU funds. But the more we grow, the less can we
expect this structural influence to help us enforce such cooperation. We are a small society with
close links between people. This can be used to our advantage, to spur economic development and
enhance living standards for all.
Economic success often comes at a price and in this regard Malta is no exception. Urbanisation and
congestion places the environment under pressure in a way that reduces the wellbeing of citizens.
Tougher work commitments to seize new opportunities means less time with family and friends.
Stress leads to a tunnel vision that can give rise to severe health problems. Yet, much evidence can
be found of good examples from near and far on how economic success and life quality
improvements can go hand in hand. In this respect, we can learn from those who have undertaken
similar journeys. In this modern day and age, we do not have to choose between economic growth
and better life quality. Cautious consideration can help us achieve both. Proactivity is a must,
however. By resisting change we will end up in a worse position and face more costly remedies in
the future. We can all be part of this change. Everybody can do something, which no matter how
small, contributes to a better environment for all. Collectively created problems call for collective
action that cannot be achieved without individual adaption. Expecting others to solve our problems
will not lead to accomplishment. Political vision is important but leaders can only set the stage for
what we build together. Policy intervention and joint action is key to offset the negative
repercussions that economic activity has on people’s lives. Yet, economic success gives us better
means to address such problems.
Malta stands out in being one of the Mediterranean countries that have not undergone severe
economic crisis in recent years. The country is doing well and it is easy to presume that it will
continue to do so. Many countries that were previously hit by crisis were making the same
presumption and, as usual, there was little alarm that a crisis was going to reach their shores. Great
caution needs to be taken as the fruits reaped by economic integration can turn against us if we are
not careful. It would be wise not to take anything for granted, to keep out budget well in check and
get a more informed view of the more versatile financial investments that currently help us prosper.
Such investments can rapidly depart at the first signs of trouble and can leave an economy in
shambles. Cyprus provides a recent example of such a scenario. While we have reaped strong gains
from EU membership, we need to ensure that we ‘play it safe’ and keep our economy healthy as the
association would turn against us and leave us with little chance to help ourselves in the event of a
severe economic downturn. Experiences of our neighbours in the Southern Mediterranean can
provide us with examples of this scenario. In good economic times, it is easy to ‘go with the flow’ –
construction booms and attractive property markets often turn out to be bubbles that burst and
leave the economy in a troubled state. To be proactive and use policy intervention and regulation to
cool down a property market that is heating up can be a good idea, not the least for countries that
have no choice but to adapt to monetary policy.
So, we need to think ahead. Some risks need to be taken but there is no reason to risk the economic
foundation that we stand on. Some adjustments on the way can be afforded to help us combine
economic progress and improved life quality. Yet, we do not have the luxury to relax and avoid
facing up to the challenges confronting us. Embracing change is necessary for this gives us the
opportunity to realise our visions, but acquiring knowledge and continuous learning on the way is
needed to reach our set targets. No one is alone on this journey, and everyone makes mistakes, so
cooperation is a must for achievement. The younger generation that is represented here today can
give us hope for the future. In some ways, you will be burdened by the problems that prior
generations were unable to solve. I am hopeful that you will be able to do better. While I only had
the opportunity to meet and interact with some of you, many of those whose roads crossed mine
showed strong intrinsic motivation and capacity to learn. On many occasions, you displayed a
genuine interest in learning and an openness in placing your own views and presumptions under
scrutiny. These are powerful gifts to have in this modern age of change – not only for yourselves but
also for those that you meet in your daily lives. Know that your achievement today can lead to a firm
conviction that you can overcome new challenges and hurdles in the future. Don’t forget your ability
to adapt to altered horizons and remember that just as you have succeeded in the past, you are
most probable to succeed in the future.