In recent decades, the production of semiconductors has shifted to Asia, away from the United States and Europe. The coronavirus pandemic served as a catalyst for the amplification of an ongoing trend when global supply chain disruptions led to significant chip shortages. The war in Ukraine brought another geopolitical disruption to supply chains. Recognizing that semiconductors are part of critical infrastructure, the United States and Germany are now currently heavily investing in semiconductor projects. The influx of so much new investment in communities will have a huge social and economic impact on a range of issues and will challenge city governments and their community stakeholders to develop long-term strategies that allow both the investing companies and local communities to thrive.
To support so-called semiconductor cities and communities on both sides of the Atlantic, the American Council on Germany, with support from the City of Magdeburg, has launched a new initiative called the German-American Semiconductor Cities Network. The three-year project will help key stakeholders from German and American cities where semiconductor companies have made or will make significant investments connect with each other to share ideas and experiences and, most importantly, identify specific strategies, measures, and best practices that can be implemented in their respective communities.
The goal of this project is to establish a network of stakeholders in the participating cities who, through personal and professional relationships, can regularly exchange information to address the social, economic, and structural impacts of semiconductor investments in their communities.
The project will focus on five issues affecting the cities:
- Sustainable project development
- Welcoming culture
- Urban development
- Education, training, and human resources development
- Semiconductor ecosystem
In the first year, the German cities of Magdeburg (Saxony-Anhalt) and Dresden (Saxony) and the U.S. cities Chandler (Arizona) and New Albany (Ohio) will take part, with two to four cities added in each of the subsequent two project years. Six decision-makers from each city will be selected to participate in one delegation trip to the United States and one to Germany. In addition, the participants will engage in monthly virtual roundtables throughout the year on the above-mentioned topics.
For more information, please contact Rob Fenstermacher, Chief Content Officer, at rfenster@acgusa.org.
The German-American Semiconductors Cities Network is organized and administered by the American Council on Germany and supported by the Transatlantic Program of the Federal Republic of Germany, funded by the European Recovery Program (ERP) of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK).