Germany’s Precarious Path to Leadership
There were several milestones in October that reminded Germans and non-Germans again how much the past twenty-five years have changed the Federal Republic of Germany. While October 3 is the …
Freedom Cannot Be Taken for Granted
In the fall of 1989, I studied at the Karl-Marx-University in Leipzig. As a student of theology, I was able to participate in the demonstrations on the street as well …
Eine neue Phase der Russland- und Ostpolitik hat begonnen
Langfristiges Ziel sollte nach wie vor eine gesamteuropäische Friedensordnung unter Einschluss Russlands bleiben. Allerdings haben sich mit den autoritären Entwicklungen in der russischen Innenpolitik, der Abwendung der russischen Führung von …
A New Phase of Russia and Ostpolitik Has Begun
This article is a translation of the original version in German. To read the German version of this article, click here. A pan-European peace order including Russia should still remain …
From Kobane to Celle
The serene town of Celle is home to 70,000 people in the state of Lower Saxony, more than 3,000 of which are Kurdish Yazidis. This town is mostly known for …
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Support Our WorkReplicating Germany’s “Dual system”?
Just off the main thoroughfare of Berlin’s Friedrichstrasse is the inconspicuous headquarters of the German Confederation of Skilled Crafts. As the tourists pose for pictures outside Checkpoint Charlie – a …
Germany: The Geopolitical Uncertainties of a Geo-Economic Power
For the first time, “Transatlantic Trends,” a survey of the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) beginning in 2002, showed that a majority of Germans now prefer a …
Relevancy of Apprenticeships
During our apprenticeship tour of Germany, France, and the UK, I was impressed at the respect that the general population held for apprenticeship programs. One of our taxi drivers in …
Who Is an Apprentice?
While our focus in Europe has been on the broad structure of apprenticeship systems, we should not lose sight of the apprentices themselves. Many times we have been told “no …
Post-Unification German Studies: Momentum Gained or Lost?
Carl Bildt, until recently Sweden’s foreign minister, told Thomas Friedman of the New York Times in 2003: “For a generation Americans and Europeans shared the same date: 1945. A whole …
Apprenticeship Loyalty in Hannover
Today we went to the MMBbS, an information technology and media vocational training school two hours south of Berlin by train, and learned about the school that was built on …
Dual System Dilemmas
Germany was derided not too long ago as the “sick man of Europe” after years of economic malaise. It is now lauded as the world’s Exportweltmeister; its current-account surplus even …
