06/10/2026
🇩🇪 🤝 🇺🇸 (2/2) Here are our main take-aways from our event on occasion of German-American Day and the 80th anniversary of the Speech of Hope on September 29:
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👉 “Everyone has a story about an American” (and vice versa): What made the evening special - from the speeches to the panel and finally the networking - were the many anecdotes shared throughout. Whether it was what it’s like to be a vegetarian at an American BBQ to experiencing German solidarity in Berlin after 9/11, memorable conversations during exchange programs or connections that influenced career paths. Interpersonal encounters breathe life into transatlantic relations.
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👉 We can learn from our intercultural differences. Only two examples: Germans could embrace American openess, risk taking, and entrepreneurial spirit, while the American tendency of problem solving and asking question could sometimes benefit from more listening.
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👉 We need spaces that foster dialog, create opportunities for getting together, and allow room for disagreement. Disagreement helps you to form your own understanding as it confronts you with different points of view. Dialogue is essential for diplomacy, scientific progress, business, and all other areas of life. It is a skill that can be learned and needs practice. And there is a certain responsibility to keep dialog going, especially in times when the way we communicate changes.
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💐 Thank you to Minister-President Özdemir, CG Heath, our keynote speaker, moderator, and panel, and American opera singer Cole Bellamy for his performance of the national anthems! A special thanks goes to our wonderful guests who care about and contribute to the German-American friendship continuously 🫶
