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page 188 chapter VII
Sustainability Needs the Interplay
of Politics and the Economy
Rolf-Dieter Krause, Head of ARD Television Studio
Brussels, talking to Jean Asselborn, Deputy Prime
Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Grand
Duchy of Luxembourg and Eric G. Sarasin, Member
of the Executive Committee, Bank Sarasin & Cie AG
“I sometimes felt like I was in church today,” said Rolf-
Dieter Krause, Director and Head of TV at the ARD studio
in Brussels, at the start of the discussion. “There
were numerous appeals to businesses and bankers to
act in a sustainable manner. It’s even said to be profitable.
So why doesn't everyone act in a sustainable manner?”
Eric G. Sarasin was of the opinion that many small and
medium enterprises certainly did practise sustainable
management. “But in large companies, many managers
feel committed to themselves alone. They are monitored
far too little by the boards of directors or the
shareholders, and the focus comes to be on profit maximisation.”
In the view of Jean Asselborn, the link between
social aspects and the economy has becoming
increasingly weak. “In my home town, there was a factory
that had been producing steel since the middle of
the 19th century. But that family-run business also
built a church and a hospital for the town, which
meant progress for the entire population. As a young
man, one thing was perfectly clear to me: business has
something to do with social development.” Today, on