Message from the IPRA President: 10, 9, 8, 7...The silver lining of a challenging year
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3 years, 3 months ago
As we count down to Christmas and New Year, I want to thank you again. Last December, when I was writing my end of year message to you, I wished for a very special 2020. You would agree with me that 2020 turned out to be uniquely special and uniquely challenging, not just for us in IPRA, but for the whole world.
A year like no other
The trade-mark story of 2020, the covid-19 pandemic, taught us important lessons. While sometimes increasing our physical distancing, it actually brought us closer together. It showed us how people's habits and behaviours can shift, and it helped us discover digital skills that we did not know we had. It also showed IPRA's capability to keep serving the PR industry and our members in new ways with agility, flexibility and grace.
In the last 12 months, via a wide range of digital platforms, IPRA has touched in one way or another thousands of PR practitioners across the world. From being an integral part of the global task force for covid-19 communications, through online judging for IPRA's Global World Awards, or supporting programmes related to the UN goals for sustainable development, IPRA remained a trusted source for learning, for networking and for professional development.
An opportunity
The covid-19 pandemic showed with extraordinary clarity how the world is globally connected. It also showed, however, that global connectivity did not mean that the world is ready to collaborate. And collaboration is the only way to a better future. This lack of collaboration is an opportunity for the PR industry. PR practitioners are uniquely positioned to lead a change for better collaboration. We have the right skills, expertise and mindset to turn any connection, be it physical or digital, into a real collaboration. One with communications based on purpose, trust and ethics. For the better future that we all need!
A farewell
As the outgoing IPRA President, the last two years have made me feel both proud and inspired to have collaborated with all of you. I am looking forward to continuing this journey with you and with our upcoming IPRA President Philippe Borremans.
Happy Holidays and my best wishes for a very healthy, happy and prosperous 2021!
Svetlana Stavreva
President 2019 – 2020
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