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.
The COVID-19 pandemic has upended nearly everything we considered to be normal—and that includes how architects and planners think about interior and outdoor spaces. We have changed how we live, work, and travel, how we navigate space, and what we expect regarding safety and sanitation. In the field of design and architecture, the pandemic has upended workflows and standards. Although there is still some uncertainty about the future, as we emerge from the pandemic the time is ripe for rethinking how we will use space moving forward. On June 15, the ACG and 1014 hosted a discussion with architects Jürgen Mayer H. and Gideon Shapiro.
Each week, the ACG hosts a discussion with a journalist based in Germany on the topics making the headlines and shaping political discourse in Berlin. However, with President Biden in Europe this week, the ACG shifted focus from Germany to the European Union as a whole and the state of transatlantic relations. On Monday, June 14, the ACG hosted a discussion with Handelsblatt’s Brussels Bureau Chief, Moritz Koch, who reflected on the NATO and G7 meetings in Europe.
If anything, the Covid-19 pandemic has underscored the common global challenges facing Europe and the United States that know no national or geographic boundaries. Global health concerns, climate change, arms control, an increasingly aggressive Russia, and domestic and international concerns regarding China are among the common challenges that require a joint approach. There is more urgency than ever to prevent a fracturing of the multilateral system. On June 9, the American Council on Germany and the New York office of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung hosted a discussion between Ambassador John B. Emerson, Chairman of the ACG and former U.S. Ambassador to Germany, and Ambassador Christoph Heusgen, German Ambassador to the United Nations about the pressures on the multilateral system.
The last state election in the run-up to September 26 took place in the eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt on June 6. On June 7, the American Council on Germany spoke with political scientist Prof. Dr. Christian Stecker about Sunday’s election results – and what they might mean for German election campaigning in the coming months.
Each week, the ACG hosts a discussion with a journalist based in Germany on the topics making the headlines and shaping political discourse in Berlin. On June 7, the American Council on Germany spoke with Sumi Somaskanda, Senior News Anchor at DW News (Deutsche Welle), about the German state election in Saxony-Anhalt and other current events.