AMERICAN COUNCIL ON GERMANY

The ACG works across generations to provide a deeper, more nuanced understanding about Germany, Europe, and the importance of the transatlantic partnership. Through a range of programs and activities, the ACG addresses the most pressing economic, political, and social challenges of the day to ensure better mutual understanding. These programs and activities are aimed at reaching a broad range of individuals to strengthen German-American relations and deepen the U.S-European partnership.

The ACG addresses global challenges by engaging in dialogue, exploring policy solutions, and exchanging best practices through discussion programs, policy conferences, and exchange programs; builds mutual understanding by engaging decision-makers and thought leaders in Europe and the United States through discussion programs, high-level policy conferences, and other outreach activities; develops and cultivates the next generation of transatlanticists through intensive Young Leaders Conferences, fellowships, and leadership missions; and creates and strengthens transatlantic networks, cutting across professional fields, disciplines, and backgrounds, so that Germans and Americans can work together to address today's problems and anticipate upcoming challenges.

The ACG has experience: The Council began its work to strengthen transatlantic relations on the heels of World War II and has maintained that focus ever since. We can draw on 70 years of experience and our enduring close connections with influential leaders on both sides of the Atlantic.

The ACG has a wide geographic reach: The Council has Eric M. Warburg Chapters across the United States so its members and the general public can have access to speakers who can address the most pressing economic, political, and social issues on the transatlantic agenda. We recognize the importance of presenting global issues on a local level, because developments around the world reverberate far beyond policymakers and business leaders in Washington and New York.

The ACG engages the key influencers of today: As Germany takes an increasingly important role on the world stage, the ACG equips opinion leaders and decision-makers in a variety of fields with ideas and perspectives on important political, economic, and social developments on both sides of the Atlantic and around the world. The Council provides a deep and nuanced understanding of Germany's role within Europe and globally -- while anticipating future priorities on the transatlantic agenda.

The ACG engages the key influencers of tomorrow: The Council invests in the future of the transatlantic relationship by helping the next generation of leaders in Germany and the United States learn about this indispensable partnership, exchange best practices, and build networks across the Atlantic. Our programs bring together young professionals from diverse fields to deepen their understanding about transatlantic issues while forging lasting bonds with one another.

More than 1,000 Americans and Germans are alumni of the American-German Young Leaders Conference, and more than 1,000 people have gone overseas through the Council's fellowship programs and leadership missions, and these participants have all gained new perspectives from their experience. Many have called these exchange programs eye-opening or life-changing. Hundreds of people attend the Council's policy discussions in New York and at the Warburg Chapters in 21 cities across the country each year and learn more about the nuances of the transatlantic relationship and policy solutions to global challenges. Under the leadership of President Dr. Steven E. Sokol, the ACG has launched a news digest, wide-ranging virtual discussions, and a new fellowship for young professionals focusing on global trends. In addition, the Warburg Chapter program expanded to include 21 cities from coast to coast, and the McCloy leadership missions in agriculture and urban affairs were inaugurated, along with the DZ BANK Fellowships on Transatlantic Business and Finance to enable finance professionals, journalists, and substantive experts to conduct research on key issues influencing the transatlantic economy, including business, finance, economics, banking, fintech, and innovation and entrepreneurship. Each of these programs endeavor to reach new audiences who were not yet familiar with the importance of transatlantic ties in order to make a bigger impact. In 2020, the ACG pivoted much of its programming online because of the COVID-19 pandemic and introduced ZoomAtlantic Dialogues featuring program alumni who were on the frontlines of the fight against the coronavirus and Transatlantic Town Halls featuring Mayors and Bundestag members dealing with the crisis, along with other events designed to give up-to-the-minute updates during that unprecedented time. In 2021, the ACG launched the German-American Working Group on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility to bring together young German and American professionals from government, media, nonprofits, and the private sector twice a month to identify and address the issues that stymie DEIA and to make policy recommendations. Under the auspices of Wunderbar Together 2021, the ACG also launched the German-American Sister Cities Youth Forum to bring together German and American civic leaders between the ages of 14 and 21 to discuss the issues facing their local communities – with each other and with local government officials. The ACG's ongoing virtual discussions have addressed a wider swath of topics and reached audiences in more than 60 countries.