New Challenges to German Politics and Policy

In the German Studies Association conference in Houston, Texas, Barbara Donovan, Eric Langenbacher and Sven T. Siefken convened a three-day seminar on the “New Challenges to German Politics and Policy”. Scholars from the United States, Canada and Germany presented their research and discussed the findings.

Sven T. Siefken presented a paper on Changes or Constitency in German Government 2022

Call for papers: A new chapter in German history begins with the country’s first three-party coalition government since the 1950s, the ‘Ampel’ coalition, emerging from the 2021 elections. This government faces fundamental challenges on many levels. The ongoing struggle over adequate policies for dealing with the pandemic has had major reverberations for the political process and trust in institutions. The new coalition proposes electoral reform and innovation at the federal and local levels to increase transparency and using new tools of political engagement. Difficult choices must be made to bring about a successful ‘green energy’ transition and serious challenges loom in foreign policy, including with respect to European integration, and in relationships with the United States, Russia, and China. The seminar will focus on these challenges, using the new coalition as departure point for considering current developments as well as the long-term evolution of German political institutions and political culture.
Bringing together contributions from various disciplines – political science, sociology, history – the seminar will be held over three days. Participants will give short presentations based on a written paper (minimum 15 pages). The seminar will foster a deeper understanding and enriching discussion to facilitate academic exchange and help establish interdisciplinary personal networks. We invite contributions from scholars at all career stages with diverse backgrounds and methodological approaches.