Field Trips – Page 2 – Global Bridges

New Threats to the Freedom of the Seas – how vulnerable are Germany and Europe?

The safety of maritime trade routes is an important issue, especially for countries like Germany, whose economies are largely based on their merchant fleets. For this reason, Global Bridges organised a video symposium on April 21, 2021. The following speakers were invited: Rear Admiral Jürgen zur Mühlen, current Head of Operations in the Naval Command as well as former Force Commander of Operation Atalanta, and Irina Haesler, Head of Maritime Security Policy and the EU Representation of the Association of German Shipowners (VDR).

The symposium was moderated by Dr. Sarah Kirchberger, who, in addition to her activities as Head of the Strategic Development in the Asia-Pacific Department at the Institute for Security Policy at the University of Kiel (ISPK) and Vice President of the German Maritime Institute (DMI), is also a board member at Global Bridges. On behalf of Global Bridges, Dr. Beate Lindemann, executive chairwoman of the association, and more than 30 members took part in the symposium.

Plastic waste pollution in the ocean: What African countries are doing

Dr. Claudia Winterstein welcomed all participants of the video conference. She then delivered her welcoming address and a brief introduction. She stated that “nearly 200 million tonnes of municipal waste are generated on the African continent annually”, with Ghana generating 1 million. Of this, only 2-5% is recycled. In Ghana, 23% also ends up in the sea. The waste collection rate is only 55% all over the African continent.

Dr. Winterstein briefly introduced all the guest speakers before handing over to the moderator; Samuel Boakye Opoku, Founder of Start.Up Lounge Africa, which is building an online platform, Kutana Africa, to provide African startups the opportunity to be visible and connect with other startups and SMEs across Africa.

“A frank and friendly dialogue” –The III German-Chinese Video Symposium

March 25, 2021

The China Institute for International Strategic Studies and Global Bridges continue their respectful exchange based on the trust that was built between the two institution over many years. A panel of high-profile speakers from the diplomatic corps, military leadership and the business community discussed the relationship between the United States, Europe, and China at the beginning of the Presidency of Joe Biden.

Mission: Starfish 2030 – Save the Blue Planet

March 8, 2021

Due to their importance for the continued existence of humankind, saving the oceans was the topic of the video conference on March 8th. Climate change, plastic waste and overfishing have severely affected this ecosystem in recent years. Plastic waste in particular is a problem in this regard, as it breaks down into smaller and smaller particles instead of decomposing, thus spreading itself further and further; it can only be broken down very slowly. The guest speaker Gesine Meißner, chair of the national committee for the UN Decade of Marine Research for Sustainable Development, former EU parliamentarian and member of the EU initiative “Mission Starfish 2030” was invited by Global Bridges to answer questions and discuss possible solutions. Susanne Stampf Gräfin Sedlitzky, an author, journalist and TV producer, moderated the event.

German-Chinese Video Symposium: EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI)

March 5, 2021

The German-Chinese Video Symposium was held to discuss the recently signed EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI), in particular its benefits and shortcomings when it comes to the issue of European market access in China. Since the EU’s relationship with China has become a more controversial topic in the wake of a more cooperative US administration, all in attendance underlined the need for a symposium with experts on the topic.

Taking stock of the German EU Council Presidency – A success?

February 25, 2021

In order to gain insights into the work of the European Union, we had planned to travel to Brussels last year. Unfortunately, due to the Corona pandemic, the trip had to be postponed and we zoomed to Brussels once again. As Germany took over the EU Council Presidency, Global Bridges hosted a videoconference with David McAllister in June 2020, who gave us a presentation on the challenges of the German EU Council Presidency. On February 25, 2021, we had the chance to take stock of the past six months with Dr. Katarina Barley, member of the European Parliament since 2019 and its Vice President. The event was moderated by our member Dr. Daniel W. Bloemers.

Indonesia’s economic and ecological development in 2021

December 14, 2020

Indonesia was one of our destinations for Study Trips in 2020, however, due to the pandemic it had to be postponed and we could not visit the southeast Asian country. Thanks to our newly established format “We zoom there”, we were at least able to travel to Indonesia virtually. It was a pleasure for us to welcome the German Ambassador to Indonesia, Dr. Peter Schoof, and Monica Tanuhandaru, Executive Director at the Environmental Bamboo Foundation and expert on the field of Indonesian development politics, to our video conference on Indonesia. The event was moderated by our member of the advisory board, Dr. Peter Strüven.

Second German-Chinese Video Symposium: China and the EU

November 26, 2020

The Second German-Chinese Video Symposium between Global Bridges and the China Institute for International Strategic Studies (CIISS) was held to address issues related to the Chinese-European relations, such as the pursuit of a “level playing field” in trade and investment, as well as changing Chinese trade patterns. Since the EU and China have been working on a bilateral investment treaty for some time and the topic of China is featured prominently in the plan for the German EU Council Presidency that ends on December 31, 2020, the China-EU relations are a hot-button issue. Guest speakers as well as other participants were glad to be able to discuss the problems and future prospects in this matter with experts from both sides.

“The Third of November and the Consequences for America and the World”

November 11, 2020

In the aftermath of the US elections of 2020, Global Bridges hosted a video conference on the consequences of the elections for America and the world. Close attention was paid to the foreign relations between the US and the EU as well as the US and China, which had both deteriorated significantly during Donald Trump’s four-year presidency. Domestic affairs were also discussed, in particular the direction the Republican Party is going and how the country will change in the next four years.

Video Call between Global Bridges and the China Institute for International and Strategic Studies (CIISS)

Thursday, October 15, 2020

After the First Chinese-German Video Symposium on September 19, the Chinese side wanted to discuss the problems between Germany and China and China and the EU in a separate conference, ahead of the second video symposium in November. On the Chinese side, Maj. Gen. (ret.) XU Nanfeng, Vice Chairman of the CIISS as well as retired Senior Colonels CHEN Wei, BAI Zonglin, and YU Hanmin, all of whom are Senior Research Fellows at the CIISS, were present. On the German side, the guest speakers were Professor Dr. h.c. Wolfgang Ischinger, Chairman of the Munich Security Conference, and Jörg Wuttke, Vice President and Chief Representative of BASF in China as well as President of the European Chamber of Commerce in China. The debate was moderated by Dr. Hans Albrecht, Chairman of Global Bridges and Dr. Beate Lindemann, Executive Chairman of Global Bridges.