I finally found time and patience for the last New Year’s holidays and I took a plane for an approximately 36 hours long trip (with connection flights and waiting for transfers) to Australia - one of furthest destinations to visit from Europe. After spending almost three weeks in the Aussie land ili down under (as Australia is often called), I can say the trip fully lived up to initial expectations and represented one of most interesting trips, having in mind loads of overwhelming impressions from this journey. So if you are wondering whether it pays off to spend about seventy hours travelling in both directions (plus a few additional local flights within Australia as everything is fairly distant there), the answer is a definite yes, but with a remark that you should certainly book at least three weeks of your time for such trip.

Australia is, generally speaking, a fairly large country (or a continent, depending on perspective). By its area size it is almost identical to the European continent, but merely about 23 million people live in this whole area (which is, for example, comparable to the population of Romania or former Yugoslavia). Out of these, 80% of inhabitants live by the sea or two to three hours’ drive from it. This illustrates best the scope of uninhabited and desert area of the country. Australia is also known as the most flat and driest country in the world.

Even though Australia is known as very dry land, I happened to be there exactly at the time of major flooding in Queensland, when the total flooded area corresponded to the areas of Germany and France – combined. This was at the same time the largest flooding in Australia since 1974. It is incredible that (even though I stayed in the very Queensland – enjoying myself and diving at the Great Barrier Reef in Port Douglas), apart from constant news reports, I could not at any given time sense this is the same land where a large natural disaster was taking place (in which 35 people died).

This is probably because natural disasters are, unfortunately, something people are used to in Australia. Every few years they appear in some form. For example, in February 2009, (culminating on 7th of February), there was a large fire in Victoria which at its peak spread at the speed of 25 kilometers every four minutes. Over 4,500 square kilometers² of forrest area went up in flames then, killing almost 200 people, while but two years later, at practically the same time of the year (January), Melbourne had quite rainy weather so major flooding was happening in Queensland. This illustrates best just how wild and tamelessness is the nature in Australia, which would probably also not be so beautiful and special if it would not be so. Wildness is also present if we look at the animal life in Australia. For instance, seven out of ten most poisonous snakes are present in Australia. This is no way something that should revert one from visiting this exceptional country, but should just instead make him or her aware this is not Europe - where natural disasters and dangerous animals are more rare and exotic (even though with the climate change of today, there are no longer clear cut rules one could rely on). Unpredictable character of the nature probably makes people more used to and more relaxed on the possible unexpected events. Famous local saying No worries mate perfectly portrays the relaxed and informal attitude of Australians, usually atypical for the significantly more formal and tense Protestant culture – the typical representatives of which are related nations to Australians, such as Britons or Americans.

The very name Australia is a synonym for a large, southern country. The Australian coat of arms features the cangaroo and the emu looking at each other. None of these animals is capable of going backward so some interpret this means Australia should go only forward. Australian political system was created by takin some parts of the English system (such as the institution of the Prime Minister) and from American one (the Senate). The post of the PM of Australia is now, for the first time in history, occupied by a woman (Julia Gillard). It is interesting that, for example, voting in Australia is mandatory, and whoever does not vote pays the fine of about 60 AUD (the Australian dollar roughly corresponds to the US dollar). In this manner, they hope to support social responsibility and active participation of all citizens of Australia.

The settlement of Australia began at the close of the 18th century. Captain James Cook, reaching the Botany Bay in 1770, proclaimed Australia an English colony. Until then, the English had sent own prisoners to America, while the American Revolution, they started shipping them to Australia (for in England they had no further room in prisons). In 1787, about one thousand people left England in eleven ships and reached the Botany Bay, described by James Cook during his earlier voyage. Since the bay was considered inappropriate, they continued on and on 26th of January they stopped in the Bay of Sidney. The expedition leader was Admiral Jackson (after which Port Jackson in Sidney is called upon), who, on behalf of England, proclaimed himself English Governor. In 1788, the Great Britain founded Australia. After gold has been found and gold rush took place in the second half of the 19th century in the vicinity of Sidney, the English stopped sending their convicts to Australia. Australia became an independent country in 1901, but even today the Queen of England is still also the Queen of Australia (as Australia is part of the Commonwealth).

I started my trip by coming to Sidney, for which I would say confinently - is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Sidney has 4.6 million people and the city spreads over the area that is for example, equal to the area of far greater London. Sidney is the largest city in Australia - a bit larger than Melbourne. I found Sidney to be the city with the most beautiful landscape in the world (with perhaps only Cape Town being at the same level). It also features the most distinstive Opera building in the world, beautiful bridges and a breathtaking view over the harbor. This is especially so if you sail the Bay of Sidney before sunset or if you climb one of the mountains that have most beautiful sights over the bay (and where real estate prices reach stratosphere).

In the Sidney Bay one can see plenty of sailboats and various other boats around. It is also very interesting to see fascinating blend of nature and buildings on the shore, especially in case of larger and more modern buildings which managed to, in an exceptionally interesting and appropriate manner, blend into nature. There are lots of brick buildings in (with predominantly pastel colors, red colour being represented plentifully too), which gives additional grace and color to this lovely metropolis. Sidney is definitely a city that has branded itself successfully so the combination of exquisite nature and cutting edge design has been fully utilized in Sidney in order for it to be rightfully perceived as one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

The trademark of Sidney is the Opera building, of unique and recognizable design. Its construction was completed exactly in the year of my birth – 1974 and it is designed by a Danish architect. Its initial budget was 18 million AUD, while the final one exceeded 100 million. This proves two points. Firstly Croatians are not the only ones where public budgets are significantly overspent vs. initial projections. And secondly regardless of the fact the project’s budget was so heavily exceeded, this was done on something that fully transformed the image of the city in a positive sense (on this matter unfortunately, no parallel to Croatia can be drawn). If one would perform an all encompassing cost/benefit analysis of the investment into the Sidney Opera, I am convinced it would be quite positive, for Sidney is world known for this gorgeous Opera building which attracts, together with other things, millions of visitor around the world. It is a shame our huge public budget spending (if they can not be reduced after all) are not connected with creation of such great, original and inspiring landmark buildings.

New Year’s celebration in Sidney counts as one of the most known in the world. The New Year’s fireworks in Sidney are world famous and fascinating and one can then see a major arsenal of pyrotechnical effects in the sky over the Bay of Sidney. The well known Sidney bridge (in the immediate vicinity of the Opera), simply glows on account of the New Year’s Eve fireworks. If one adds the glorious view over the harbor to this, it is clear why Sidney New Year celebrations leave people with such magical impressions. This is simultaneously the first more significant celebration of New Year’s in the world (due to time zones setting), images of which cross the entire world, additionally branding Sidney and Australia.

Another trademark of Sidney is the Bondi beach. We have to thank to this beach for one of most important innovations that people pariciate very much even today. On this beach was for the first time introduced bikini during the 50s of the 20th century and this represents Australia’s gift to humanity, coming from this beach exactly. Bondi is definitely the most well known beach in Australia that even has it’s own TV show.

Sidney is additionally characterized by exceptionally high real estate prices – according to certain statistics that I found, the highest one in the world, right behind Vancouver (Canada). This represents a certain absurdity given that both cities are located in countries with the sparsest density of inhabitants in the world. What apparently inflated the real estate prices so much is the presence of enormous amount of Chinese capital and investment in those 2 cities. It is also interesting to mention that supermarket groceries and the prices in local stores in Sidney and the whole of Australia cost probably most than in any other country I have ever visited so far (more expensive even than London, Tokyo, New York or Oslo). In order to purchase, for example, enough groceries for an average breakfast (e.g., ham, cheese, bread and milk), one needs to spend approximately five times more money than required in Croatia (therefore, the amounts in Croatian kuna and Australian dollars are about the same). One of the reasons for this is the fact the Australian dollar gained in value during the past few years, but also the fact one can earn well in Australia, provided you work hard.

A greatest competitor to Sidney is definitely Melbourne. These two cities seem to be rivals for life – like, for instance, Barcelona and Madrid in Spain or Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paolo in Brazil. Melbourne is characterized by exceptionally unpredictable weather – the temperature in a day can change in the scope of twenty degrees Centigrade. There is why some people here say: If you don’t like the weather, wait for five minutes and it will change.

Because of the rivalry between Sidney and Melbourne and their inability to agree on which city will claim the title of the Australian most influential metropolis, Australians declared a new, “neutral” capital in 1911 – Canberra (similairly to what Brazilians did with Brasilia) – the name of which really means a meeting placewhich can also be associated with the ancient Aboriginal custom of gathering and the inspiration found in Aboriginal art, but also with the compromise made by naming the neutral capital in stead of Sidney or Melbourne. The Griffins (man and wife) from Chicago won the contest oin 1911 to design Canberra and so in 1913 began constructions, in which aparently significant number of Australian Croatians participated too (who, even today, make a significant part of the population there). In 1927, Canberra was ready for politicians to move their Parliament there (these building is not any more active today as the new version was constructed in 1988). Until then, by 1927 Melbourne functioned as the political capital of Australia.

Melbourne was founded in 1835 by John Batman and John Pascoe Fawkner. Around 3.9 million people live in it today and many buildings within the city are made of the so calledblue stone– especially those older ones. Melbourne was never a “convict city” (Sidney and Tasmania originally were), but convicts, having served their terms, inhabited different places including Melbourne. Melbourne is a city with the longest tram lines tracks in the world (as many as 600 kilometers) and the city with largest numbers of elm trees in the world. The second largest world’s bay is also located in Melbourne (right after the Bengal one): Port Phillips Bay which is 250 kilometers long (but is quite shallow). Alos interesting to mention is that in 19th century Victoria, more gold was struck here than in California, so consequently in the 1860s Melbourne was one of the wealthiest cities in the world.

Melbourne is exceptionally multicultural environment. This is proven by the fact that it incorporates such neighborhoods as the Little Italy – a street with lots of Italian restaurants, the China Town and also lot of European immigrants from various countries live there as well. For example the second largest Greek community in any city outside of Athens is located in Melbourne - they arrived to Australia during the 50s in the 20th century. Melbourne is a city that strongly follows various sports. Just recently, an independent international study proclaimed it the sports capital of the worldSporting Capital of the WorldThe tennis Australian Open Grand Slam takes place there, as well as Formula 1 Grand Prix and as well lots of other sports events. The most popular sports in Australia are cricket, football, rugby and Australian football. The largest sport complex in Melbourne encompasses five large stadiums (out of which, three have the modern moving roof constructions) and 28 tennis courts – where the fomous Australian Open takes place every January. The Aquatic Centar includes four large Olympic pools, and other, numerous sport facilities. Other than sport, Melbourneu also supports development of art. City sponsors many young artists and the most talented also get their spots to display their works within the city.

Melbourne managed to develop education industry to a very high extent so this became for the city an industry of total value of 4.5 billion US dollars annually (or almost 10 per cent of Croatian GDP, or close to 20 per cent of the Croatian yearly national budget). The universities of Melbourne are thus attended by numerous students from the whole of Asia (India, China etc.), while the largest university (EUNI – University of Melbourne) that has over 45,000 students. When we speak of Melbourne, I cannot avoid to mention my late friend Michael Morrison, a professor at the Melbourne Monash University who I had the honor and pleasure to meet and to witness his passion in combining lectures, traveling and knowledge transfer in the area of emotional brandingHe was truly an exceptional man and a professional, for whom I can say that I will always remember dearly and for this Melbourne will as well have the special place in my heart.

There is also a Memorial for fallen soldiers in Melbourne, constructed for casualties of World War I and it was later dedicated to all Australians who died in wars throughout the world. The fact that Australia and New Zealand lost most soldiers out of all participating countries in WWI as per relative number of inhabitants is incredible and absurd since they fought in places so distant from home. In First World War, 330,000 Australian soldiers participated, with 60,000 of them dying (about twenty per cent). Australia then had some five million inhabitants which means that over 1% of Australian population died in that so much distant war. Just for the sake of comparison, during the Croatian War in the 90s, about 14,000 Croatians died at the start of the 90s (or, some 0.3% of the population, civilian casualties included). According to some estimates, the Australian nation was really born precisely in blood spilt at Gallipoli – where one third of Australian forces died, just fourteen years after Australia was formed.

In the Memorial Center, visitors are greeted by retired war veterans who with visible pride in their eyes, talk of heroism of Australians in wars and conflicts in which they participated. I cannot fail to notice this is probably far better recognition and thanks to all soldiers who fought for their country than the case is in Croatia: granting far more privileged retirements than there were in total soldiers fighting in the Homeland War officially.

Yara River (South Dworf Area), passing through Melbourne, used to cause in the past great number of floods for the city. This lasted until the 1870s, when a British engineer helped construct a river canal which ended the issue of constant flooding pestering Melbourne until that time. It was only during the 90s of the preceding century that a true planned urbanization of the area next to the Yara started. Earlier, old container docks were mostly located there – in the heart of Melbourne, which obviously made no sense in terms of future development for the 21st century. Some twenty years ago, a plan for urbanization was brought, which clearly defined the stages for future planned urbanization. Until 2020 further 36,000 inhabitants are planned to inhabit new buildings constantly rising up by the river. Along the river, one can also see skyscrapers but also luxury villas with yachts (costing probably cost some 5 – 7 million AUD/USD) placed in front of them. In the beginning, it was the government who invested into the project of populating and urbanizing tis area, but afterwards the project took off and investors started showing great interest for investing on their own. Today these are exceptionally attractive locations for living in Melbourne.

It was interesting to hear how Australians see the differences between the inhabitants of Sidney and Melbourne. Those from Sidney are proud of the beauty of their city and do not bother too much on their Melbourne countrymen. In contrast, those from Melbourne think the people from Sidney are probably a bit more conceited than them because they live in such a beautiful city. So citizens of Melburne believe that people from Melbourne are warmer, more hospitable and relaxed and that their restaurants are better. Thay say that perhaps Sidney Opera is more beautiful, but Melbourne one has better acoustics. I personally did not feel these differences in character of the people in those two cities. Only thins I can confirm is that restaurants and wineries in Melbourne and its surroundings left a better impression on me then the ones from Sidney.

When we talk about Australian wines, then first thing that comes to our mind is of course – shiraz (syrah). Yes there are fairly fine cabernets from the area around the Margaret Rivera (especially those from selected smaller, private cellars), but what is special and truly a world class standard are incredible rich and fruity shiraz wines – full of taste and superb balance. Almost all Australian wines, even the finest ones (except for the fomous Grange and a few other sorts from the category of luxury wine recommended to keep seven to eight years prior to tasting), have plastic caps and not a cork. This is very interesting since it is unthinkable and would perhaps represent blasphemy for prestigeous wineries in France and Italy. All research conducted so far has demonstrated, at least so far, that when closing a bottle with a plastic cap, wine demonstrates better quality than when cork is used. This means the difference is only in perception, tradition and habit. So Australian wine makers and consumers proved to be far more pragmatic and braver than others and accepted the change that for sure makes lots of sense.

Australians are generally speaking not very formal people but are instead more natural and relaxed. The perception of Australians’ characteristics I gained during this brief stay and interaction with them are as follows: modesty, carefree attitude, heartiness, diligence and honesty. They are perhaps not among the most intellectual nations in the world (such as for instance the Chinese or French), but are definitely among those least conceited and most immediate. If we compare this to Croatians – and we generally hold we are very bright, the best in lots of things and each of us knows everything (regardless of the fact we have no any firm reference tu support such atitude), we can notice a significant difference in character. Contrary to what many might think of Australians based on their relaxed attitude in communication (for example, that they do nothing but enjoy themselves and surf on the beach), in fact Australians represent probably one of the most dilligent nations in the world. Numerous stores are open 24/7, many people work several jobs at the same time and 12 hour working hours are not uncommon.

lthough Austrailans and fairly relaxed and informal, I was surprised by fairly rigid rules I noticed while being on their airports. For example in a pub at Cairns airport (Cairns is a town close to the Great Barrier Reef), I spotted a large sign with a text No more is the low clearly stating that if personnel ask a customer to leave the premises due to drinking too much or inappropriate behavior and if the guest refuses this – the fine can be sentenced to as much as 2,500 AUD! Further, when boarding the plane, one can see the sign Restricted area, only for personnel, unrestricted entry – 5000 AUD fine which is something I saw nowhere else (restricted areas are usually signposted, but without explicit notices on fines in case of not respecting it). Obvious Australians defined clearly and publicly, fines for any behaviour out of order. It is hard to say whether they had to do this because of public order issues or this is just to act preventivly (at least I had no opportunity to find this out). I didn’t felt at all informality or relaxed attitude of Australians each time when they insisted on strictly obeying the luggage weight rules at airports, even when this made little sense (when I had to transfer two to three kilos of luggage from one bag to another in order to meet formal requirements).

Salaries are fairly high in Australia. For example, the minimum worker wage is significantly higher than in the US or England. I found this out since I had the opportunity to participate in this discussion conducted between our guide and a group of English and American tourists. However, as mentioned, the prices of groceries there are fairly high as well, so the question is where bigger disposable income is. It probably comes down to something similar – differences are in different design of the system and partly it also depends on the economic conditions in which the state is currently at. It was interesting to see that bus drivers on tourist rounds and tours in which I participated did two jobs at once – they were simultaneously both drivers and guides (2 in 1). Therefore, they are perhaps paid more than their colleagues in America, England and definitely in Croatia, but are very professional and provide quality service for the two jobs at once (I can strongly testify this). They are also full of interesting stories travelers have the opportunity to hear for almost the whole duration of the trip (in line with general Australian culture and tradition of telling tales).

We all know that there is a quite sizable Crotian population present in Australia, coming from people who emigrated there at a certain point in time mostly due to necessity of economic or political resons. Australian Croatians that I had the chance to meet represent, generally, quite an interesting bunch and there are truly brilliant people among them. They took on the relaxed attitude, honesty, immediacy, dilligence and carefree qualities from Australians, but our roots provide them with resourcefulness and intellectual curiosity that is probably above the level of average Australians. It is interesting one can, talking to them, sense the sadness and nostalgia for Croatia. On the one hand, they are aware they can hardly achieve in Croatia standard of living they have in Australia, which is the reason why the vast majority of Croatians nevertheless stick to Australia. On the other hand, the quality of life and living style in Croatia is more apealing to them and this still draws them to Croatia, where most would prefer to live – if they could achieve same por at least similar salaries and the standard of life of Australia. One can thus sense this duality talking to them, but also the bitterness of “how things are” (or, put better, how they are not) in Croatia. In any case, my personal impression is these are people with great hearts who genuinely feel patriotism towards Croatia, even more so than the average Croatian who lives in Croatia. This must be on account of distance, which enables them to clearly see all the advantages our beautiful country affords, that we unfortunately often fail to leverage as a nation.

Coming to Australia, I had the opportunity to read in several places that Australia is one of the best branded countries in the world (during the past few years, it was always among the top three). I have to admit this was one of the main goals of this trip – to try to understand why this is so and what Australians did in this respect to earn such perception from the entire world (expert) audience. I shall therefore try to elaborate my views on the topic, based on learnings on this trip.

One of the reasons for such pronounced recognition and uniqueness of Australia might be found exactly in the fact Australia is an isolated continent (which is why it is called the down under ), and there are lots of different, authentic and recognizable elements that make it significantly stand out from other countries. The cangaroos, koala, boomerang, red rock, Great Barrier Reef, the Sidney Opera, shiraz, even the crocodile partly (especially the one named Dundey ) – all these are authentic symbols, and, as soon as one mentions them, the first association that comes to mind is Australia. Think about how many other world countries possess so much unique and distinctive elements that you can automatically link to the country and its national identity. Not a lot. Switzerland is known by its clocks, cheese and banking, Italy for pizza, pasta, coffee, lasagna, the Colosseum or the Pisa tower. If you think further, we must conclude there are not a whole lot of explicit examples of countries with such strong recognition of symbols representing them. What makes it even more fascinating is the fact that Australia is quite young as a country and a nation and is nevertheless so recognizable.

Apart from this, one must confess the natural beauty of Australia is truly unbelievable and impressive. The phenomenal natural beauty – from the world famous red rock to blue mountains and the Jameson valley (that is, for example, fifteen times older than the famous Grand Canyon in USA), to the Great Ocean Road with its breathtaking views, the Great Barrier Reef visible even from the Moon, one of favourite world destinations for diving fans, and finally, to gorgeous beaches that represent the dream of all surfers in the world. So definitely this is a country with superb material for the great branding.

What Australians additionally do quite well in representing their country is the focusin well and having great ability to tell interesting stories. What do I mean under focusing well? For example next to Uluru (the famous red rock), there is an equally imposing (even significantly larger) complex of limestone mountain range that is called Katja Tuta. But Uluru is the destination being promoted and the reason people from around the world come to visit this part of Australia. If they had not done this so, for sure, the perception of uniqueness would not have been so clear and attractive. Therefore Uluru was chosen for the promotion as the principal attraction, while the people who come naturally also often visit the Katja Tuta complex, thus getting the opportunity to see its beauty and specifics as well.

It is interesting that the three mountain tops within the Blue Mountains are called “Three Sisters” (I have ony two ) and there is a whole story on how there were seven sisters at first, but eventualy there were only three left. The seven imposing rocks sticking out of the ocean next to the Great Ocean Road are called Twelve Apostles. Again the story goes that there were 12 of them at first, but then later this number was reduced to seven. Branding and naming natural beauties with names that can sparcle imagination provide an additionally intriguing dimension to these beautiful wonders of nature. Tendency of Australians to tell stories connected with nature and history is probably partly connected to heritage from the Aboriginal culture too. Aborigin art is also unique and recognizable and it additionally helps to construct the difference between Australia and the rest of the world. There are mostly very live colors around, no lines are used but only circles instead that are symbolizing gathering. Artefacts are handicraft mostly by smaller groups of Aboriginal artists.

Staying in Australia, I had a chance to see as well perhaps the best promotional campaign for a tourist destination I have ever seen. It was unique and different and for its purpose one of the greatest TV stars was hired as a promotor – Ms. Oprah Winfrey. The Oprah Ultimate Australian Adventure is a project that the Australian Tourist Board initiated together with Oprah, aiming to promotd Australia primarily in USA, but worldwide as well. At the close of 2010, Oprah brought with her from the US over 300 die hard fans (by plane that was to be piloted by John Travolta himself, but he had to cancel due to his son being born), and for almost two weeks she was together with the whole grop going around the top destination of Australia in a spectacular manner. All of this was recorded by cameras, and made into a show, that finally closed with all the fans in front of the Sideny Opera, joined by leading Australian stars such as Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman and Russel Crowe. All of this therefore was framed as a special experience of Australia and its uniqueness, far from classical promotional campaigns we are mostly used watching. The information that, while I was on a Quantas plane, passengers were greeted on screen by famous John Travolta (known to be passionate pilot who likes to fly very much) is interesting. He talked of his long years of piloting and why he thought QUantas is an excellent carrier. What can be better for your country and the air carrier being recommended by Oprah and John Travolta (especially if you are an American tourist that Australians count on them a great deal)?

Australia is a beautiful land, but Croatia is too. Australia is a country of immense space, but Croatia is a country of great diversity. Australia has Sidney with the surreally beautiful Sidney Opera building and world known natural beauty sites such as the Great Barrier Reef, Uluru, the Great Ocean Road and the Blue Mountains. Croatia on the other hand has Dubrovnik and the richness of the gorgeous Adriatic sea coast and its precious islands, as well as additional attractive destinations such as the Plitvice Lakes, the waterfalls of the Krka, the Arena in Pula or the Diocletian’s Palace in Split. We can also add here the rich historical and cultural heritage that the area undoubtedly possesses – and Australia not that much.

Nevertheless, Croatia does not utilize so well its strenghts like Australia – telling its unique and authentic story the whole world might recognize it for. True, the Croatian state exists for only about twenty years and one can say it had no time to fully affirm and position itself in the world in a recognizable manner. But this should not prevent us from adopting the positive experience from one young nation as well (from which we are far younger as a state, but far older as a recognizable and distinctive nation). Whether this means that we have to engage leading world stars as promoters and/or that world known Croatians should be leaders of our promotion – this is a question that skilled professionals must answer. What is sure is that we have to be focused, clear and consistent in messages we send. This is not about whether the campaign for the promotion of Croatian tourism will air part of female bottoms or not for two seconds – this is about telling own, interesting, recognizable and authentic story that will sparkle the curiosity and imagination of people aroung the world. And Croatia does have own, interesting and authentic story to tell, full of rich history and cultural heritage, especially having in mind we have one of the most beautiful coastlines in the world – the potential of which we do not utilize not even close to the possibilities. The fact that some of the best known and richest people in the world see Croatia as one of their favourite summer destinations and they often frequent our coast proves mentioned points. By promoting Croatia in an authentic manner, not merely as a tourist destination but as a comprehensive and strong national brand in a wider sense, we can achieve our recognition throught the world and by doing so also positively impact development of our economy. Australia manage to do it, so I see no reason we should not make the same step forward in our own way while at the same time learning from their fascinating examples…

Josip Muller
17. 2011.