Tijdens zijn recente bezoek aan Syrië sprak de voorzitter van Schlomo Netherlands over de uitdagingen in de regio en het belang van samenwerking. In haar speech benadrukte hij de inzet van lokale teams en internationale partners om samen te bouwen aan een hoopvolle en duurzame toekomst.

Good evening, everyone.

When people talk about tomorrow, you often hear them say: "The future is bright." But standing here today, looking at the complex challenges facing our world—and especially this country—we must stop and ask ourselves: Is the future really bright? Or is that just a phrase we use to comfort ourselves?

The truth is that the future certainly isn’t bright by accident. Hope is not a passive strategy. It takes collective effort, a shared vision, and a relentless commitment to action.

Here in the region, Syriac Cross works tirelessly alongside our European branches—Syriac Cross Belgium, Syriac Cross Sweden, Syriac Cross Germany, Schlomo Switzerland, and Schlomo Netherlands, where I have the honor of serving as chair. Together, our mission is unified and clear: to support projects that genuinely empower the local community. We work to create real, life-sustaining opportunities so that people are not forced to leave their ancestral, traditional homelands. We teach young people market-relevant skills, strengthen social cohesion, run vital agricultural programs, and restore dignity and confidence through specialized therapy and vocational training. And those are just a few examples of what happens on the ground every single day..

Everyone in this room knows how the humanitarian world operates: to make a lasting, sustainable impact, you need resources. You need funding. That support can come from governments, but more importantly, it comes from loyal, dedicated partners—and we are deeply proud to have some of our most trusted partners with us in this room tonight. You share our core ideals. You share our drive to build an inclusive, thriving community, and you give us the means to do what is necessary when it matters most. You make it possible that we go were no one else goes.

The reason we have so many Syriac Cross and Schlomo branches across Europe is precisely for the purpose to firstly convince our diverse national governments to invest in this region's future. And secondly, to engage national partners—both existing and prospective—in advocating and funding long-term stability.

But let’s be completely honest with ourselves tonight: all those offices in Europe don’t achieve a single thing on the ground by themselves. Paperwork and policy meetings don't rebuild lives. The real, transformational work happens right here.

It happens because of our incredible local teams. Over the past five days, I have had the privilege of meeting many of these remarkable individuals face-to-face. These are people who, despite enduring immense hardship, conflict, and personal adversity, refuse to become bitter or defeated. Time and again, against all odds, they have picked themselves up. Today, they channel that strength to help others stand firm on their own two feet, working day in and day out to rebuild society from the ground up.

The previous speaker quoted two remarkable insights that deeply resonated with me: "No one can face life in isolation" and "No one is saved alone."

These words capture the exact spirit of our organization. None of us can do this by ourselves, and none of us are meant to. That interdependency is our greatest strength. And that is precisely why I do dare to stand before you tonight and say that the future is bright. Because Syriac Cross is built on radical collaboration. That foundation is so solid, so deeply rooted, that it will survive the fiercest storms, the heaviest rains, and the loudest thunder.

Within Syriac Cross internationally, we operate on a foundation of mutual respect and clear boundaries. We in Europe do not sit in distant offices and dictate what is best for the people living here. That is not our role. Our international coordinator works seamlessly to bridge the gaps, carefully aligning the real needs identified by this team here on the ground with the resources available in Europe. We can only demonstrate our true strength to foreign governments and partners because Syriac Cross here in Syria has successfully brought together experienced, educated, hardworking, and deeply rooted professionals who know this land and its people best.

These local team members go through bricks and walls to accomplish their mission. They work around the clock, putting their full hearts, energy, and souls into this work. And I promise you this on behalf of all our European branches: my colleagues and I will go through those exact same bricks and walls to support them in return.

So, to ask the question one last time: is the future bright? Yes, it absolutely is. But it is only bright because of the unwavering dedication represented in this room tonight. You—our teams, our partners, our friends—are the lights that make our shared future shine.

Thank you.