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Month: May 2023

Monaco International Dog Show: four paws at the ready

by: Stephanie Horsman
03/05/2023
monaco international dog show

Fluffed and flawless pooches of all breeds will be taking over the Chapiteau de Fontvieille for the Monaco International Dog Show this weekend. 

The Monaco International Dog Show has been a staple of the spring show circuit in the Principality since 1927, when it was founded by Monaco’s Princess Charlotte.

DIAMONDS IN THE RUFF

Organised by the Société Canine de Monaco – the Monaco Kennel Club – the two-day event will see 1,180 dogs of 210 breeds from 26 countries competing in front of an international jury made up of experts from Spain, Finland, France, Britain, Ireland, Italy, Norway, the Netherlands and Serbia.

In addition to the regular competition events, the show will include several special trials for puppies, young dogs and veterans canines, as well as a category for junior handlers.

The judges will hand out prizes to each group at the end of each day, with the grand prize for Best in Show being announced at 6pm on Sunday 7th May.

TRADITIONS HANDED DOWN

The event will be chaired by Mélanie-Antoinette de Massy, the daughter of the late Baroness Elizabeth-Ann de Massy and a cousin of Prince Albert II. The Baroness held the post from 2011 until her death in 2020, and now Mélanie-Antoinette is taking up the mantle.

The Monaco International Dog Show will be held on 6th and 7th May. Entry is €12 for adults and free for children under 12. There will be food and drink on site. For more information, click here.

 

Do you have an event in Monaco or the French Riviera that you would like us to include in our What’s On section and events calendar? Please email editor@monacolife.net.

 

Photo source: L Russ on Pixabay 

 

 

Monaco resident architect Emilio Ambasz wins top sustainability award

by: Elsa Carpenter
03/05/2023
emilio ambasz monaco

Argentinian architect Emilio Ambasz, a part-time resident of the Principality of Monaco, has won the President’s Award at the New York-based Consortium for Sustainable Urbanization. 

Described as “one of the greatest international masters of design and architecture” as well as being an established inventor with more than 220 industrial and mechanical patents to his name, 79-year-old Emilio Ambasz has dedicated his working life to green architecture.

He was handed the prestigious President’s Award by the Consortium for Sustainable Urbanization’s president and founder, Lance Jay Brown, during a gala evening event at the Century Association in New York City on 23rd March. In essence, the award is an international recognition of Ambasz’s “commitment to the fields of sustainable, responsible and resilient urbanisation, planning and design”.

In a speech, Brown highlighted some of Ambasz’s most remarkable and stand-out creations over the years, such as the Casa de Retiro Espiritual in Seville, the Arcos Centre in Fukuoka and the Lucile Halsell Conservatory in Texas.

He also spoke of Ambasz’s enduring philosophy of “green over grey” and his unique interpretation of the relationship between architecture and nature.

A man of “great influence”

“Emilio Ambasz continues to be of great influence,” said Brown. “For over 50 years, he has exemplified the capacity of design to work across disciplines and industries and to positively influence the environment we inhabit. This has been done intellectually, philosophically, and kinetically by his many and varied activities. He was so early to integrating sustainable architecture, urban design, and landscape architecture that most were not yet ready to appreciate the profundity of his work. The Consortium for Sustainable Urbanization is both privileged and pleased to honor him with this recognition.”

Left to right (click to enlarge): Casa de Retiro Espiritual in Seville, the Arcos Centre in Fukuoka and the Lucile Halsell Conservatory in Texas

The pioneering architect also shared some inspirational words with those gathered: “Every building is an intrusion into the plant kingdom and is a challenge to nature: we must devise architecture that stands as the embodiment of a reconciliatory pact between nature and construction, designing buildings so intrinsically connected to their surroundings that they are unable to disentangle themselves from each other.”

Ambasz spends part of his year living in Monaco. In the late 1990s, he came close to producing a vast land extension project in the Port of Monaco – a mainly residential and hospitality concept featuring lake, parks and the construction of a dam to add five hectares of land to the Principality – but it wasn’t to be.

 

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Photo by Wade Zimmerman

More low-impact shipping lanes and new MPAs in Canada thanks to FPA2 funding boost

by: Cassandra Tanti
03/05/2023

Canada’s largest shipbuilder and home to the National Icebreaker Centre, Chantier Davie Canada Inc. (Davie), has announced funding of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation – Canada for the expansion of the Arctic Corridors and Northern Voices program.

The Arctic Corridors and Northern Voices program, a recipient of the Governor General’s Innovation Award, trains Inuit communities in advanced technologies to map culturally sensitive areas in order to inform policy and planning for Arctic marine use and oceans governance.

“Combining western technologies and training with Inuit knowledge has proven to be a highly successful formula in supporting national and international ocean policy,” said Dr. Jackie Dawson, lead researcher and associate professor and Canada Research Chair in Environment, Society and Policy at the University of Ottawa. “Davie and the National Icebreaker Centre’s role in building a new fleet of icebreakers for the Canadian Coast Guard is of paramount importance to conservation programs and Indigenous communities in the Arctic.”

Davie’s initial funding of $150,000 (€135,000) will allow the program to be extended to other Indigenous communities whose regions have not yet been included in the program and who have requested to take part.

“It is by listening to the voices of Indigenous peoples, as well as those of scientists, that we will be able to better know and understand these vulnerable environments in order to better protect them. In this regard, the collective approach of the Arctic Corridors project, alongside Canadian Arctic communities, academics and ship operators, is to be applauded, as they work to identify low-impact shipping lanes and the creation of new marine protected areas,” said Prince Albert II of Monaco.

“No-one knows better than the Indigenous communities”

As the marine and other industries seek to benefit from the opening of Arctic sea routes, the Arctic Corridors and Northern Voices program is training Indigenous communities and providing technology to map areas which are then used to identify and develop management strategies for low-impact shipping corridors.

“Dr. Dawson’s and her team’s work is both impressive and effective. No one knows the Arctic better than the Indigenous communities who have lived there for thousands of years. It’s about training and equipping those Indigenous communities with the tools they need to provide policymakers and the industry with information to ensure that responsible shipping can continue while mitigating the potential for devastating consequences to the local population, the environment and marine life,” said Alex Vicefield, Chairman and CEO of Inocea, Davie’s parent group. “In what is one of the world’s most ecologically and culturally sensitive oceanic basins and with a sharply increasing level of Arctic shipping, creating these Arctic corridors is absolutely critical.”

Mr. Vicefield added, “We are proud to work with the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation – Canada, which is leading the way in Arctic conservation. This initiative is strongly linked to our work in building the Canadian government’s future icebreaker fleet which, amongst other things, will be critical for the protection of the Arctic and its Indigenous communities.”

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Monaco Life with press release. Photo provided. 

 

What’s on in Monaco this May?

by: Stephanie Horsman
02/05/2023
what's on monaco

Monaco is ramping up for the summer season and May will be jam-packed with fun events. Here’s some of this month’s highlights.

The Monaco e-Prix is getting the Principality’s month of exciting motorsport events going on 6th May. Organised by the Automobile Club of Monaco, this is the sixth year Monaco will be hosting the 100% electric race and the drivers will take to task 51 gruelling laps of the iconic Monaco track. For more information, click here. 

 

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Another not-to-be-missed event is the Monaco International Dog Show, which is returning to the Principality on 6th and 7th May and will feature outstanding pups of all breeds. The show welcomes nine international judges who will have the difficult job of choosing Best in Show. To find out more about Monaco’s top dogs, click here. 

For the Principality’s younger residents, Ninja Box will be hosting a day of ninja warrior activities made just for kids. Two obstacle courses will be set up at the Ninja Box: one made for children aged three to eight, and the other for those nine to 14. The event will also feature an appearance by Maurane Jélic, the winner of the most recent Ninja Warrior: Le Parcours des Héros. For more information, click here. 

Switching gears from sport to style, the Monte-Carlo Fashion Week is happening from 17th to 21st May. This edition will be showcasing talented local designers alongside some international brands who all follow an eco-friendly ethos. Inclusiveness reigns, so expect to see some fantastic pieces from emerging and established stylists as well as side experiences such as conferences, cocktail parties, pop-up events and a fashion hub. To top it all off, an awards show will also take place on 20th May to underscore the week’s style highlights. To find out more, click here. 

The Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra will host a cinema-concert on 21st May at 6pm that presents 1968’s Stanley Kubrick classic 2001: A Space Odyssey in collaboration with Warner Bros Classics, the Southbank Centre London and the British Film Institute. To be part of the experience, click here.

The legendary Monaco Grand Prix is celebrating its 80th edition from 25th to 28th May. Since 1929, this unique motorsport event has been known as one of the most difficult – and glamourous – races in the world. The finals will be held on the Sunday, with top drivers racing 78 laps and covering over 260 kilometres at top speeds. 

The 31st May will mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of Prince Rainier III, Monaco’s “Builder Prince”. Celebrations will be held throughout the year, but his birthday will feature a special day of events up on the Rock from 2.30pm.  

 

Do you have an event in Monaco or the French Riviera that you would like us to include in our What’s On section and events calendar? Please email editor@monacolife.net.  

 

Photo source: Scuderia Ferrari Press Office

Future designers called upon to take part in new Top Marques Monaco competition

by: Cassandra Tanti
02/05/2023
Close up view of a young hand drawing on a white sheet. Kid hold a black wooden pencil and draw something on a warm orange light at home. Children writing on a paper.

A competition to design the transport of tomorrow was launched Tuesday, inviting children in Monaco to draw the supercars, yachts and jets they think will be in circulation in the year 2050. 

Would-be engineers are being asked to illustrate their vision of the vehicles that will be on the roads, the seas and in the sky when they are adults. There will be no petrol or diesel, so how will people get around?

The art competition is being organised by Top Marques in partnership with the Yacht Club de Monaco, Airbus Corporate Jets and Dassault Aviation ahead of the 18th edition of the supercar show, taking place from 7th to 11th June in the Principality.

“We wanted to implicate children in our show this year, to ask them to share with us their vision for the cars, yachts, and airplanes of tomorrow,” said Salim Zeghdar, CEO of Top Marques Monaco.

“There is so much debate today about how we can create vehicles that will run on new technology so that we can protect our environment. We are asking the children of Monaco to come up with their own designs as we are certain they have some incredible and innovative ideas.”

Entrants between seven and 17 are invited to choose one mode of transport – supercar, yacht, or airplane – and draw by hand or digitally their model which will be in circulation in 2050.

Pictures on display at Top Marques 

All drawings will be displayed at Top Marques throughout the four-day event, with a jury meeting to deliberate the winning entrants on Friday 9th June.

The jury will be presided by Bernard d’Alessandri, Secretary General of the Yacht Club de Monaco, who will be joined by Sylvain Mariat, Head of Designs at Airbus Corporate Jets, Frederic le Basser, Falcon Business Jet International Sales Director at Dassault Aviation and Nunzio La Vecchia, the inventor of the nanoFlowcell system behind the Quantino twentyfive, an electric roadster which is the first in the world to run without a battery.

The winners and runners up from the three age categories will be invited to Top Marques with an adult on Saturday 10th June to meet members of the jury.

They will also be awarded prizes including a box of Lego and a holiday workshop offered by Bricks 4 Kidz, a week’s sailing course and motorboat licence training donated by the Yacht Club de Monaco and ACJ and Dassault Aviation model aircrafts.

Drawings must be deposited at the Reception of the Yacht Club de Monaco or emailed to concours@topmarquesmonaco.com by 1st June. All vehicles must have a name clearly marked along with the name and age of the child and a contact number of a parent.

For more information, please go to www.topmarquesmonaco.com

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Photo provided

The Monegasque Supplementary Pension Fund: what’s it all about?

by: Stephanie Horsman
02/05/2023
monaco pension fund

A decade in the making, the Monegasque Supplementary Pension Fund is set to offer better terms to the Principality’s pensioners from 2024. Here’s how it will work. 

As France very publicly struggles with pension reforms, Monaco has quietly gone about restructuring its own system. 

Christophe Robino, Monaco’s Minister of Social Affairs and Health, was able to make the formal announcement of the new plan – the Monegasque Supplementary Pension Fund (CMRC) – after the National Council’s 13th April unanimous vote turned the bill into law. After a decade of efforts to reach this point, the CMRC will come into effect from 1st January 2024. 

The dual-purpose action has done two major things: notably to improve the supplementary retirement pension currently on offer from France’s Agirc-Arrco scheme, and to lower contributions paid by employees. 

MONACO’S OWN PENSION FUND

The big news is that Monaco has left the French Agirc-Arrco retirement plan set-up to create its own sovereign fund, one that will be under the control of the Monegasque government and therefore offering more flexibility and lessening the disparity between the French fund’s rules and Monaco’s retirement system. 

“We wanted to ensure our sovereignty and improve our attractiveness,” Robino told Monaco Matin recently. “By managing this fund ourselves, we will ultimately provide better pensions to retirees while having less weight for employers and employees. This therefore means, in the long term, better incomes for the latter.” 

Given the changes over the border in France, the Monegasque government recognised that sooner or later, there would be problems arising from the differences in the two systems. By repatriating the system, it heads off any issues at the pass.  

200,000 PEOPLE WILL BENEFIT 

The scheme will affect 200,000 current and past employees who work, or have worked, in Monaco for a minimum of 10 years. Those already retired will continue to receive their pensions as before from Agirc-Arrco, but will also get a bonus benefit from the CMRC in the interest of fairness.  

The supplementary scheme for civil servants is on the state budget and will represent a long term, substantial saving for the state, perhaps to the tune of several tens of millions of euros, according to Robino. Financial impact studies will have to be undertaken, though, before firm decisions are made.  

The terms of the takeover from Agirc-Arrco establish that Monaco will reimburse pensions already liquidated to the tune of €2.8 billion. The state will have 13 years to reimburse France on a hybrid plan that allows for the Monaco fund to build up reserves as well as pay back what is owed. Then it will be free and clear to operate as the government sees fit.  

“At the end of 40 years, this Monegasque Supplementary Pension Fund will be in balance, if not profitable,” said Robino, adding that this is rare for a pension plan. He also said that the gains are expected to be significant, citing “an increase of 5 to 6% in the long term”.   

 

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