one value that strikes me as having been at least as important as any other has been the federal reserve ’ s willingness, during its finest hours, to stand up to political pressure and make tough but necessary decisions. the fight against inflation during paul and alan's times in office was critical for the nation ’ s longer - term prosperity, and it required perseverance in the face of heavy criticism. i keep in my office one of the 2 - by - 4s mailed to the fed during paul ’ s tenure, which communicates some distinctly unfavorable views of high interest rates and their effects. more recently, of course, the federal reserve took controversial but necessary measures to arrest what was arguably the worst financial crisis in american history, helping to avert what likely would have been a much more severe economic downturn than the great recession we did experience. we have been able to respond nimbly to economic emergencies and make difficult choices in part because of our institutional structure – including long terms for members of the board of governors and diverse regional representation in our policymaking committee – and because of the willingness of policymakers, past and present, to do whatever was needed in the longer - run interest of the economy. as an institution, the federal reserve must continue to be willing to make tough decisions, based on objective, empirical analysis and without regard to political pressure. bis central bankers ’ speeches but, finally, we must also recognize that the fed ’ s ability to make and implement such decisions ultimately depends on the public ’ s understanding and acceptance of our actions. for this reason, we must continue to emphasize two other essential values – transparency and accountability. we must do all that we can to explain our actions and to show how they serve the public interest. that ’ s why we must welcome communication, broadly defined. of course, we will continue to talk to economists and market participants, but that is not enough. ultimately, the legitimacy of our policies rests on the understanding and support of the broader american public, whose interests we are working to serve. the ability of this institution to support a healthy economy – an economy with high levels of employment, low inflation, and a stable financial system – will require our continued efforts to engage in twoway communication – explaining our actions and, importantly, listening to what our fellow citizens have to say. let me end by thanking the organizers of this event and, in particular, all of the past and present policymakers in attendance for helping us mark this

to be flexible when it comes to the demands of those who have the ambition to combine a career with the care of a family. this conference is one way to create this visibility, for which i thank you. giving interviews on the subject is another and i promise that in the course of this year i will actively look for possibilities to get press coverage of my views on the subject. · my second point of action is to invite high potential women working at the nederlandsche bank for a discussion about the problems they encounter in their job fulfilment and career planning. if i want to promote opportunities for women in my organisation, i must have a clear picture of how they perceive the glass ceiling. i intend to discuss the outcome of these conversations with our management. i expect that from this exchange of information we will be able to draw lessons that may be translated in specific measures for improvement of the career possibilities for women. · for my third point of action i would like to draw upon that information. i intend to establish a ( moving ) target figure for the participation of women candidates in our management trainee programme. not all high potential women may be interested in a career to the top, for the reasons i mentioned earlier. but, depending on the number of women that are, i will establish a target rate of participation of women in our management development programme. moreover, when it comes to promotions i want every shortlist to contain as a rule at least one woman. sticking to these three personal points of action, or policy targets, is a question of commitment. being a central banker, i am well aware of the importance for my reputation of holding on to this commitment. but not only my reputation is at stake. promoting opportunities for women in the financial sector is very important, as we are responsible for bringing out the best in our human capital, male and female. i hope that this conference, and the other activities being organised for international women ’ s day, will contribute to more equal and fair representation in management in general and in the financial sector in particular.