Editor's Letter

Dear Readers,

The Lambert is rooted in the long and strong tradition of Polish Societies across universities in the United Kingdom, known to many of you, now even outside of the UK, simply as PolSocs. The (old) Lambert was born seven years ago as a quarterly journal for the Federation of Polish Student Societies in the UK. This year, I had both the honour and the pleasure to lead the Federation during a special year marking our 10th Anniversary as an officially recognised charity in the UK. Among other milestones, we are now publishing The (new) Lambert.

Some have questioned our choice to publish in English. But Poland has earned its place internationally, in the headlines, university corridors, and networking events, yet remains under-represented where it counts the most. Reports consistently identify a deficit in soft power necessary to turn a remarkable success story into a whole book. Almost 20th in the world by GDP, only 35th on the Soft Power Index. The gap is striking, and frankly, it feels wrong.

Brexit, the rise of AI, Trump 2.0, Poland’s economy surpassing $1,000,000,000,000– this new reality calls for The Lambert, which, with this edition, sets out to become a definitive voice of young Polish thinkers and leaders with a global reach.

We are putting our foot down, turning the headlines into a whole publication. Poland’s story is too compelling to remain a domestic conversation. This is merely the beginning, and we hope The Lambert will grow together with you until it becomes the definitive lens for the world to see Poland at its finest.

Despite a legacy defined by war, poverty, and oppression, the young Poles of today are born into abundance and opportunity never experienced by our predecessors. Both sides of the fence remain incomplete, needing perspective, energy, and values. What is needed is a meeting of the two. The Lambert stands at that crossing.

Before we go further, I would like to thank everyone engaged, especially Wiktor Łoboda, without whom this publication wouldn’t have seen the light of day, for his almost scary technocratic precision; Nikodem Rajpold, whose positive energy turned the daunting task of restoring the Federation to its full glory into something genuinely enjoyable; and Ewa Borys, for setting a bar that future editions of our Polish Business Forum deserve but will struggle to meet. So many more people deserve a standing ovation, but even gratitude must respect the page count. So please refer to the masthead to see all the beautiful people who made The Lambert possible.

Now more than ever, we must cultivate and amplify a new generation of Polish voices engaging the world through rigorous journalism, thoughtful analysis, and responsible debate. By documenting history as it unfolds, we interpret the present with an awareness of its future consequences, writing for those who will soon be in charge.

–Szymon Kwidziński