Kasi-Blog

The American European Summer Academy brings 26 students from all over the world to the wonderful castle of Schloss Hofen to discuss topics of transatlantic relevance.

The programm and application documents can be found at http://www.cife.fr/en/american_european.htm

Pictures can be found at http://www.vobs.at/schlosshofen/EUROPA/summer_academy.htm

Previous participants and alumni can meet here at OpenBC.

Since me and my friend Lars had such a great time there in 2005, we came back this year to encourage the new participants to create a strong network. We gave a small presentation and then drafted the following network proposal. Now we just wait for CIFE to confirm that we can go ahead!

CIFE – NORTH AMERICAN EUROPEAN SUMMER ACADEMY

AT SCHLOSS HOFEN, AUSTRIA
PROPOSAL FOR ALUMNI ACTIVITIES
Partners:

• CIFE – Centre international de Formation européenne
• Participants, Lectures and Alumni of the Summer School in Schloss Hofen

Objectives:

• Promote the transatlantic idea
• Create a network of Alumni from the Schloss Hofen Summer Academy
• Mobilize financial and academic input to the organization of the Academy
• Capitalize on the potential of CIFE for recruiting outstanding participants.

Authors:
Karsten Wenzlaff
Lars Olofson
1) Online Network of CIFE Academy Alumni

Aim
In the past, alumni have frequently contacted each other and have supported each other through an informal network. For instance, the alumni of Schloss Hofen in 2005 have met twice during the last year: in Wroclaw and in Berlin.

With the online structure of the Network we want to support and enhance this informal structure. We want the participants of the Schloss Hofen Summer Academy to
- share their contact data with other alumni
- spread information about upcoming events and conferences
- disseminate personal information (marriages, career advancements)
- read the CVs of Alumni from previous summer academies
- post links and discuss issues from the field of transatlantic relations

For CIFE, the building of such a network would provide the possibility to
- directly contact the alumni
- ask the alumni to spread information about CIFEs programs
- invite speakers and lecturers for Summer Academies
- ask for funding and manage sponsoring activities

Procedure
Currently, we use OpenBC and Yahoogroups as free public providers of networking services on the internet. They allows us to
- have easy access to updated contact and resource information of registered alumni
- share news and coordinate our activities
- upload small files for an online library

However, OpenBC and Yahoogroups do not allow us to support the network as much as we want to. It would be valuable to create our own online database for these purposes, so we can adjust the database to our needs.

It would be best to hire a webmaster/web-agency to create the website structure. In the next few weeks we will consult various webmasters and agencies to estimate the costs of creating and maintaining a CIFE Alumni website. The website has the following features:
1) Information on the alumni activities of CIFE
2) Online Library for posting documents on the topics of the various academies
3) Database with profiles of CIFE participants (CV, contact info, picture, posting, interests)
4) Contact structure based on each participant’s academy with possibility to establish contacts with other CIFE alumni
5) Information about reunion and events of CIFE
6) Information about partner organizations of CIFE and their recruitment activities
7) Online Calendar with events (conferences, seminars) related to the program of CIFE (and in the case of the Schloss Hofen Alumni network to Trans-Atlantic relations)

Since there are already other initiatives for CIFE alumni (see for instance http://www.iehei.org/Association/Anciens.htm), the website structure would be first used for the Schloss Hofen alumni and could be easily expanded for the other Summer Academies and the Master Courses.

2) A Yearly Reunion

Aim
Besides the online structure, it is also important to create personal relationships between the alumni. With a reunion in the year 2007 we want to start a tradition of yearly reunions of the Schloss Hofen participants. Once the tradition of reunions is started, the Schloss Hofen reunion can then easily be combined with other reunion from other academies.

To make the reunion attractive, we need
- a high-profile key-note speaker
- a convenient and comfortable reunion venue
- a program tailed to increase personal connections between participants
- a date for the reunion fixed early in advance

Procedure
Speaker:
As key-note speaker, CIFE president and prime-minister of Luxembourg Jean-Claude Juncker is particularly attractive. Combined with the venue of the Luxemburg embassy in Belgium, such an event would for sure attract a lot of media attention Juncker has already confirmed that he would like to meet with CIFE alumni again.
A second possibility would be to invite a high-profile speaker from Austria, like Austrian EU-Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner to the Schloss Hofen Academy in Austria. A reunion there would be very attractive because participants could ‘rediscover’ their castle, at the same time we could mobilize support from the Austrian government and the regional government of Bregenz.
A third possibility would be to have a key-note speaker from the field of Trans-Atlantic relations. For instance we would like to invite former Secretary-General Baron George Robertson or Sergio Balanzino.
Together with the CIFE office in Berlin and Nice and with the help of Dr. Hartmut Marhold and Prof. Ferdinand Kinsky, we would like to identify and contact the appropriate speaker for the event.

Conference venue:
Of course, for the participants from the Summer Academy on Trans-Atlantic relations, Schloss Hofen would be particular attractive. Dr. Paul, director of Schloss Hofen, has already confirmed his support for the reunion and would like to help us with booking hotels in the vicinity to accommodate the participants of such a reunion.
Other conference venues (Brussels,…) are also possible but need to be carefully chosen for their location, price, and availability of accommodation.

Program:
The program of such a reunion would be a mixture of informal activities and formal receptions. Informal activities could be presentations by the participants on their current employment, activities and fields of interest. Formal activities could be speeches by key-note speakers and receptions. Organizations and companies sponsoring the event could be invited to present their activities and recruitment details.
A particular interesting feature would be a Schloss Hofen reunion taking place at the end of every academy, which would allow establishing contacts between current and previous participants of the Schloss Hofen Academy.

Date:
The most likely date is end of July 2007, because it allows long-term planning. Until fall of 2006 we would have to fix a venue and identify a key-note speaker. As soon as this is settled, we would together with Artur Kmiecik contact all former alumni of Schloss Hofen and invite them to the Reunion.

3) Summer School Improvement
Aim:
The alumni activities should also help to advance the Summer School in Schloss Hofen. In particular we see three areas of improvement:
- recruitment of participants
- preparation by lecturers
- program of the academy

Procedure:
Recruitment:
Through the alumni network we want to increase the applicant pool for the academy. The advertising in the US this past year has already greatly increased the number of applicants from North America.
We hope to increase the number of applicants from North America and Western Europe by directly approaching the former alumni and asking them to spread the information about the Summer Academy. Lars Olofsson will continue to contact universities within North America. Karsten Wenzlaff will contact universities in Western Europe.

Preparation by the Lecturers:
The online network will allow the preparation of participants by giving them early information about the program of the academy, a required reading list and links to articles on the various issues discussed at the Summer Academy

Program of the Academy
The alumni network can also help to invite speakers from various institutions and make the program of the Academy more controversial and up-to date.

For the Friedrich Ebert-Foundation, me and three other scholars (Caterina Rost, Marina Rimpo, Christian Becker) wanted to organize a seminar on Trans-Atlantic think-tanks – however since only a few seminars can be realized each year, we have to proposal for another year. In any case, here is our proposal (unfortunately in German):

Bushtrommler – Der Einfluss außenpolitisch-orientierter Think Tanks auf die transatlantischen Beziehungen
Seminarziel und Begründung

Ziel des Seminars ist es, die deutsch-amerikanischen Beziehungen in der Praxis zu analysieren und insbesondere den Einfluß von Think Tanks zu untersuchen.
Gemeinsam mit Experten, Politikern und Journalisten soll aus verschiedenen Perspektiven die transatlantische Außenpolitik von Rot-Grün und der Großen Koalition untersucht werden. Durch Kontakte zu Mitarbeitern von amerikanischen Think Tanks in Deutschland und deutschen Think Tanks wird ein Einblick in die Berufspraxis ermöglicht. Ziel des Seminars ist es außerdem, zukünftige Leitlinien transatlantischer Außenpolitik (in Bezug auf Weiterentwicklung von UNO und Völkerrecht) aus deutscher und amerikanischer Perspektive zu suchen.
Seminarinhalte

1. *Deutsch-Amerikanische Beziehungen*
• - Reflexion der deutsch-amerikanischen Beziehungen vor und nach dem 11.9.2001
• - Welche Entscheidungsebenen der praktischen Politik gibt es in den transatlantischen Beziehungen?
• - Welche Machtarenen der deutschen Außenpolitik gibt es?
• - Wie beeinflussen außenpolitische Experten die transatlantischen Beziehungen?
• - Wie haben sich die transatlantischen Beziehungen seit dem Regierungswechsel verändert, welchen Einfluss hatte die Beziehung Bush-Schröder/Bush-Merkel?
2. *Rolle der Think Tanks*
• - Welche Unterschiede gibt es zwischen deutschen und amerikanischen Think Tanks?
• - Wer sind die Akteure in der deutschen Außenpolitik und welche deutschen Think Tanks im Bereich der Außenpolitik gibt es?
• - Haben deutsche Think-Tanks überhaupt Einfluss auf die deutsche Außenpolitik?
• - Wie reagieren deutsche und amerikanische Politiker auf neue Herausforderungen (wie Terrorismusbekämpfung) und wie instrumentalisieren sie Think Tanks (bspw. beim Agenda-Setting)?
• - Welche Akteure nehmen direkten Einfluss auf die amerikanische Außenpolitik und welche Akteure agieren im Hintergrund?
• - Welche amerikanischen Think Tanks beeinflussen die deutsche Außenpolitik?
3. *Arbeitsweise der Think-Tanks*
• - Welche wirtschaftspolitischen Interessen beeinflussen die Think Tanks?
• - Vom wem werden die Think Tanks finanziert?
• - Woher rekrutieren sich die Think Tanks?
• - Wie gehen Think Tanks vor bzw. wie funktionieren sie?

Mögliche Referentinnen und Referenten

• - Hans-Ulrich Klose (MdB, Experte für Außenpolitik und USA)
• - Jeffrey Gedmin (Aspen-Institut, Berlin)
• - Thomas Risse (FU Berlin, Leiter des Center for Transatlantic Foreign and Security Policy )
• - Crister S. Garrett (Uni Leipzig, DAAD-Professor für Amerikanische Außenpolitk und Internationale Beziehungen)
• - Karsten D. Voigt (Auswärtiges Amt, Koordinator für deutsch-amerikanische Zusammenarbeit)
• - Daniel Weygandt (US State Department)
• - Christian Hacke (Autor des Buchs “Zur Weltmacht verdammt”, Professor an der Helmut-Schmidt-Universität Hamburg)
• - William R. Timken jr (US Botschafter in Berlin)
• - Prof. Michael Zöller (Universität Bayreuth, Leiter des deutsch-amerikanischen Think Tanks Council on Public Policy)
• - Wolfgang Ischinger (ehemaliger deutscher Botschafter in Washington, D.C.)
• - Botschafter Dr. Georg Witschel (Beauftragter für die Bekämpfung. des Internationalen Terrorismus, Auswärtiges Amt)
• - Ralf Beste (Spiegel-Journalist mit Schwerpunkt Außen- und Sicherheitspolitik und ehemaliger FES-Stipendiat)

Mögliche Partnerorganisationen

• - Deutsches Institut für Internationale Politik und Sicherheit (SWP)
• - Institut für Friedensforschung und Sicherheitspolitik an der Universität Hamburg (IFSH)
• - Institute for Cultural Diplomacy, Berlin (Mark C. Donfried, director & founder)
• - American Academy, Berlin
• - Americans for Informed Democracy, New Haven Connecticut bzw deutsches Chapter

In June 2006 I finished my Bachelor-Thesis on the G8 Summit in St. Petersburg and thus finished my Bachelor-Studies at the University of Bayreuth.

Read on, my friend »