The Politics of Transatlantic Relations

How are German-American relations changing in the age of globalisation? And how can different views be productively negotiated at the political level? Federal Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier outlines the German position and Germany's expectations of the USA. Jeremy Rifkin, author and director of the Foundation on Economic Trends in Washington, published the essay "The European Dream" in 2004, in which he describes Europe as the last bastion against market fundamentalism, the destruction of the natural basis of life, and the influence of multinational media corporations.

Jeremy Rifkin is the founder and president of The Foundation on Economic Trends in Washington, DC. He is the author of seventeen books on the impact of scientific and technological changes on the economy, the workforce, society, and the environment. His books have been translated into more than thirty languages. In his newest international bestseller, The European Dream (2004), Mr. Rifkin argues that while the great American Dream is fading, a powerful new European Dream is beginning to capture the attention and imagination of the world. Rifkin draws on more than twenty years of personal experience working in Europe, where he has advised heads of state and political parties, consulted with Europe's leading companies, and helped spur grass-roots, environmental and social justice campaigns. Mr. Rifkin holds a degree in economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and a degree in international affairs from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University. He has lectured at more than 200 universities in some 25 countries in the past 30 years. Mr. Rifkin's monthly column on global issues appears in many of the world's leading newspapers and magazines, including Die Süddeutsche Zeitung, The Guardian, Le Soir, L'Espresso, and El País.

Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Deputy Chairman of the SPD (Social Democratic Party of Germany), was nominated as Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs in 2005. From 1999 to 2005 Mr. Steinmeier was Head of the Federal Chancellery; from 1998 to 1999, State Secretary in the Federal Chancellery and Commissioner for the Federal Intelligence Services. After September 11, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, together with Chancellor Schroeder and German Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Internal Affairs, and Defense, became part of a special crisis management group.

The Transatlantic Dialogues are jointly organized by the House of World Cultures, the Federal Agency for Civic Education, and the American Academy in Berlin.