’ s appointment, i ’ ll be staying until the end of december, until the end of my term. the ecb ’ s chief economist, my colleague philip lane – who was previously governor of the central bank of ireland – is an excellent macroeconomist and he will be able to steer things extremely well. isn ’ t the biggest challenge the question of the team, the future team surrounding christine lagarde? it ’ s a challenge that everyone faces when they take on a new role, of course. but she will make good decisions. as you said yourself, you ’ re going to be leaving the ecb. are you a candidate to become managing director of the imf? no, i ’ m not a candidate for the imf. there are plenty of good candidates. don ’ t ask me who my preferred candidate would be, because the decision is not up to me. my speciality is europe, and 1 / 5 bis central bankers'speeches so i ’ d rather stay in europe and continue to serve europe. the way in which i do so remains to be seen ; there are various ways. but i ’ m not a candidate for the imf. listening to the statements made by mario draghi, one has the impression that he is inclined to continue the ecb ’ s current interest rate policy, meaning a policy of very low interest rates. that policy is giving rise to considerable side effects, which we will discuss. do you think this policy will be in place for a long time? it ’ s a policy that has side effects, and this is something that we are monitoring. we are aware of the side effects, but our policy is necessary. why is that? it ’ s because our objective is to ensure that inflation comes back to our objective which is close to, but below 2 %, and we ’ re not there yet. so, monetary policy needs to be accommodative until that objective is met. but what if there is deflation with this interest rate policy? it ’ s a policy which has created tens of millions of jobs in the euro area, which is supporting activity and thus a return of inflation towards 2 %, and which is all the more necessary right now, when we are facing a slowdown in the global economy and significant global risks – which are not related to europe, but rather to trade tensions caused by various countries, and which are affecting confidence. in this environment, an accommodative

lisa d cook : commencement address - 2023 spring convocation commencement address by ms lisa d cook, member of the board of governors of the federal reserve system, at the 2023 spring convocation, michigan state university, michigan, 5 may 2023. * * * go, green! hello, michigan state university class of 2023! and congratulations to you and your friends and families! it is wonderful to be back on campus. the sparty statue. brody hall. the botanical gardens that dot the campus. the international center. the red cedar river. the im west basketball courts. the dairy store. the well - manicured lawns that are spartan green. it is also great to be back in michigan. the people, the scenery, the cider donuts... the way we can get all four seasons in a single day... my connection to michigan actually started long before i arrived at msu. i had family who moved up from georgia during the great migration, when african americans from across the south headed north in search of a better life. in total, 6 million people made that move from about 1910 to 1970. my relatives'story echoes the great american promise. they arrived in detroit with almost nothing, worked hard, studied intently, and were successful by any measure. they won scholarships to parochial schools, became principals, and rose to the executive level at chrysler. they even lived next to royalty... motown royalty, that is. both diana ross and mary wilson of the supremes were neighbors who also lived in the brewster - douglass housing project. i thought about them a lot as i considered what i wanted to say to msu's class of 2023. this is a very important moment, and i wanted to get it right, to do our spartans and my michigan roots justice. it is an honor to be invited to speak at commencement. an incredible, terrifying honor. i would be completely comfortable teaching an economics class. i don't know that anyone else would be thrilled, but i would be in my comfort zone. but this occasion calls for more - words of wisdom, hard - earned life advice, moments of gravity and levity. i will let you in on an industry secret : no one has ever, in the pursuit of great oratory, said, " this is a job for an economist! " in the end, i realized that the most important lessons i have learned were exemplified by my family's story -