WHY PORTUGUESE IS THE NEW LANGUAGE OF POWER AND TRADE

Throughout the world today Portugal is simply portrayed as a shaky economy, but despite this current reality, there are still some who recognize that credit is also deserved for it best qualities and for its past and present achievements: Remarkably it was the British global affairs magazine Monocle that steps up to redresses this oversight in its issue 57 October 2012 with the article “ it's time for the world to learn Portuguese”. 

The Monocle has devoted 258 pages to the appreciation and exploration of "Lusofonian” qualities (the collective term for Portuguese culture and language) and goes on to discuss why Portuguese is set to become the "new language of power and business" The article highlights the " Lusofonia Generation" and makes an intercontinental trip across the Portuguese speaking nations. 258 pages are devoted almost exclusively to the topic, in what is the "biggest editorial or commercial report ever." An interestingly timed but justifiable exploration considering there are 250 million “Lusofonos” (Portuguese speakers) worldwide.

The report details visits to Brazil, Angola and Mozambique, as well as Urban trips to Lisbon and Porto, extolls the virtues and beautiful landscapes of Azores, Comporta and the estuary of the River Sado. Stopping to spend time in Coruche where the Amorim family continues a 142 year long tradition of work at world's largest cork industry. In one of the numerous interviews Alvaro Siza Vieira speaks about national architecture, one area that has least received some reasonable coverage’s in the past but is but no means exhausted as a topic, with numerous upcoming architects vying for the spotlight against the established masters. In the case of Siza, as grand master and Prittzker Prize winner (1992), he has been able use his influence to highlight some of the best Lusophonian qualities and contribute to the national profile, internationally. 

To assit our understanding of Portugues activities, there is a list compiling the 15 major players in the Portuguese speaking world, several of whom are actually also Portuguese: Espírito Santo Group, Portucel Soporcel Group, Portugal Telecom, Sonae and Conservas Ramirez. As well as a ‘top of 20’ of people or entities that most inspired "Monocle" which includes eight Portuguese nationals: First place is occupied by the collective of artists Zigur from Lamego, then taking fourth place the music group Deolinda. The a Portuguese design duo Lines Lab, based in Macau, comes in at sixth and in seventh place RTP Africa (Radio Television Portugal for Africa) is described as "the Portuguese version of the BBC." In ninth place comes MoMA’s architectural curator Peter Gadanho. The music continues with Joao Barbosa, of Buraka Som Sistema at twelve. Thereafter, and the last two Portuguese references, go to the collective of architects ‘Pythagoras’ and journalist Alexandra Lucas Coelho, of PÚBLICO, occupying fourteenth and fifteenth places respectively. "It's time the rest of the world begin to learn a little Portuguese." So Steve Bloomfield ends his October issue of "Monocle".

As the representative of LUSA he concludes "We feel the Lusophone world is often overlooked and it was time for someone to redress this" The Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLC) whose headquarters are in Lisbon, is a great sourse of information and yet is is often not drawn on - now is the time to spread the word, as Bloomfield says these are the "countries that are growing economically and where amazing things are happening" despite the "serious economic problems that Portugal faces. " 

The full article can be accessed by subscribers to Monocle and Public