The spread of COVID-19 and the ensuing global lock-down as governments try to slow the spread of the corona virus has tested individuals and institutions around the world. Since March of 2020, the ACG has stepped up its digital programming by hosting webinars and video discussions which bring together policy makers and thought leaders from both sides of the Atlantic to discuss some of the key issues shaping transatlantic relations in an unprecedented time. In addition to organizing events on its own, the ACG has also partnered with other organizations such as 1014 and Atlantik-Brücke to launch new series designed to reach beyond the ACG community.
On December 5, the ACG held its weekly Kaffeepause with Melissa Eddy, New York Times Correspondent based in Berlin.
On November 30, the American Council on Germany and the Aspen Institute Germany held a discussion on state-level agricultural policy, food security, trade, labor, and issues related to climate change with German and American state legislators, including Representative Sydney Carlin (D), Kansas House of Representatives; Senator Russ Goodman (R), Georgia State Senate; Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo (D), New York State Assembly; and Elrid Pasbrig (SPD), Member of the State Parliament of Saxony-Anhalt.
The ACG regularly hosts a discussion with a journalist based in Germany on the topics making the headlines and shaping political discourse. On November 28, the ACG hosted a Kaffeepause with Anja Wehler-Schoeck, International Editor, Tagesspiegel.
On November 21, the ACG hosted a Kaffeepause with Malte Lehming, Opinion Writer for Der Tagesspiegel
On November 16 the ACG and 1014, as part of their virtual series Democracies under Pressure: Challenges for the Global Liberal Order, held a discussion with Ambassador Ertharin Cousin, CEO and Managing Director of Food Systems for the Future, and Alexander Müller, Founder and Managing Director of TMG – Think Tank for Sustainability in Berlin, about global food insecurity, its causes including the war in Ukraine, and some of the challenges and opportunities that exist to alleviate the crisis.