Happy Birthday Euro?

On October 30, 2012 the American Chamber of Commerce in Germany together with BridgehouseLaw hosted the Fourth Annual AmCham Business Day at Emory University – Goizueta Business School. The current Euro crisis and its impact on transatlantic relations as well as the U.S. and world economy were the center and focus of the event. Keynote speaker, Dr. Werner Hoyer, President of the European Investment Bank and former state secretary of the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin gave a speech with the topic “Never waste a crisis – the future of Europe and the Euro“. A presentation was held by Michael Bryan, Vice President and Senior Economist of the Federal Reserve Bank in Atlanta and Henryk M. Broder, an Author and Journalist followed by an interesting panel discussion including Dr. Norman Firchau, President & CEO of Porsche Consulting, Inc., Atlanta, Raymond Hill, Senior Lecturer in Finance, Goizueta Business School, Emory University, Sibylle Mair, Vice President of Finance & Controlling, Hansgrohe Inc., Atlanta, Heinrich-Peter Rothmann, Ambassador (ret.) and Attorney at BridgehouseLaw Berlin, Martina Stegmeier, President & CEO, German American Chamber of Commerce of the Southern US Inc, Atlanta as well as Dr. Cedric Suzman, Executive Vice President & Director of Programming, World Affairs Council of Atlanta moderated by Rüdiger Lentz, Executive Director, German-American Heritage Foundation, Washington DC. The event attracted 180 participants. 

Christoph Sander, Consul General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Atlanta opened the evening with a dinner speech and underscored the importance of the transatlantic relationship between the U.S. and Germany. The evening was dedicated to the students of the US-German Internship Program, were they shared their experience while in Germany during the summer of 2012 and how their internships will impact their future.

AmCham Business Day supports the “US-German Internship Program” founded by American Chamber of Commerce in Germany and BridgehouseLaw. The internship program is a great opportunity for American students to experience work, life, culture and language in Germany. This year 25 students from 10 universities in Georgia and North Carolina (Columbus State University, Emory University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia State University, Kennesaw State University, Morehouse College, North Georgia College & State University, Piedmont College, UNC Charlotte, University of Georgia) were again successfully placed at internships with some of the most renowned companies in Germany. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Washington and Lee University will join the US–German Internship Program for the next round and we hope to expand this program throughout the Southeast. As evidence of the success of the program, several students were offered fulltime employment in Germany as a result of the internships.

Autor: Kathleen Darmstadt - BridgehouseLaw Atlanta