This is Letzcast – a podcast about Luxembourg. The plan is for each season to focus on a different theme relating to the Grand Duchy. For the first season, we will focus on the lives of the 275,000 or so foreign nationals who have made Luxembourg their home. Luxembourg is quite unique in that nearly half (46,7% according to official government data from 2016) of the population is made up of non-nationals. To put this into perspective, foreign nationals only make up 8.9% of the UK population, and the figure for Sweden is 16%.
This naturally leads you to wonder – who are these people, and what brought them here? A somewhat cynical explanation may be that Luxembourg is rich, and wealth attracts people. But is it really that simple? This question is at the core of what Letzcast sets out to investigate in season 1. By interviewing foreign nationals – and it should be noted that I am one myself – I seek to understand the individuals behind the numbers.
By extension, Letzcast will also delve into the broader question of what Luxembourg is. I realise this is a somewhat esoteric question, almost philosophical in nature – but a country is more than a set of borders, systems, and laws. A country is its people, and a culture. All of this will be explored through the stories and experiences of people who decided to make Luxembourg their home, one story at a time.
I look forward to taking you along on this journey, and hope you will enjoy it.
All the best,
Martin