*  *  *  Ladies and Gentlemen, I’d like to welcome you all to this launch event here today – in particular the students and teachers who accepted our invitation. I also extend a warm welcome to all the other visitors, notably the ECCO colleagues and media representatives – and to ECB staff members who have worked on this project.
In recent years, central banks have become important communicators and since its founding in 1998 the ECB has engaged on several avenues to broaden its outreach. The ECB was the first major central bank in the world to hold a press conference immediately after the Governing Council meeting to explain its monetary policy decisions. We publish a monthly bulletin for specialised audiences.