26/07/2026
What if our banknotes recognised the people who keep Europe afloat?
Money represents what a society chooses to value.
Every day, Europe relies on thousands of kilometres of subsea cables, pipelines, ports, offshore structures, bridges and energy infrastructure. Hidden beneath the surface, commercial divers inspect, build, repair and protect the critical assets that keep our societies connected, supplied and secure.
Ours is one of the world’s most invisible and dangerous professions. When everything works, nobody notices we were ever there. Yet Europe continues to stand above water because thousands of commercial divers work beneath it, often in demanding and hazardous conditions.
As the next generation of euro banknotes is being designed, perhaps it is time to recognise not only Europe’s culture and nature, but also the people whose unseen work helps sustain them.
To European Central Bank, and European Commission:
Please consider dedicating one future euro banknote to commercial divers, not as a tribute to a single industry, but as recognition of all those whose essential work takes place where almost nobody ever looks.
