Faith, Hope, Solidarity and Prudence

Faith, hope, solidarity and prudence. Four virtues necessary to access this new normality. It is vital that we not only assess our situation, which is the result of a pandemic that has pounded the whole world hard, but that we also show solidarity, take a closer look at everything and everyone around us, put our sights even higher and see far beyond our borders.

We must have faith that the right drugs will appear to combat Covid-19 and its future mutations, but we must be prudent, use the right means to avoid disease spread and infection. Let us keep hope alive so that it will lead us to working for a better future.

Faith like the one shown in the capacity of human beings to recover and work, faith in the physicians that fight in the most hostile and hardest circumstances, at the risk of their own lives, to save others, as the members of the Henry Reeve Brigade do, the international brigade of specialized doctors who, in the course of the last 15 years, have faced disaster situations and serious epidemics in the most diverse points of the planet with great dedication. They are Cubans that support their country and all those who have needed them; doctors and health personnel, researchers who have fought restlessly day after day. Is there any solidary gesture that beats this one?

The global pandemic of the COVID-19 has also hit the designation of Madrid as Ibero-american Capital of Gastronomic Culture 2020. However, the Mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-almeida, and the President of the Ibero-american Academy of Gastronomy, Rafael Ansón, signed a new protocol of action to promote this important condition, also all throughout 2021.

With the merits it has piled up for centuries, the Spanish capital deservedly became the gastronomic capital of all the sister nations of our beloved Americas. We hope you can help us with your example and experience to grow and succeed in placing the gastronomy of Latin America and the Caribbean in the place it deserves, stacking up against traditional cuisine and showcasing it as intangible and unique heritage for all the world to see.

The fact that Madrid has not left its commitment unattended amid this year’s drawbacks is just another example of perseverance and solidarity. Today, without a doubt, we see the future more hopefully. We wish Madrid every success in this project.