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From the Director
Welcome to one of the nation's top centers for innovative interdisciplinary teaching and research on Germany and Europe. In 2007, the Center for German & European Studies (CGES) celebrated its tenth anniversary—a very happy occasion that allowed us to look back on many accomplishments and also provided the perfect opportunity for looking toward the future. Where do we want to be five years from now?
Germany and Europe remain places of great economic and political significance to our country. They are also magnets for many Americans as travel destinations and as cultural lodestars.
The Europe that many Americans know is undergoing profound change. The fall of the Berlin Wall and German reunification marked the end of the sharp East-West divide. Almost every European country now is home to large numbers of immigrants from the southern hemisphere. The global economy provides great opportunities but also serious challenges for European companies. And like Americans, Europeans face new security issues.
The Center for German & European Studies is committed to the cultivation of strong trans-Atlantic relations. We support an array of programs that develop new ways of thinking about Germany, Europe, and the United States. Most importantly, we know that our time calls on us to learn how to speak and think across national and disciplinary boundaries. Hence this center's emphasis on interdisciplinary work and on bringing together approaches, issues, and people.
The information on this website demonstrates the wide range of programming and support we have developed at CGES over the past ten years. I trust this website conveys the vitality of our people and ideas, the breadth of our endeavors at CGES, and the relevance and excitement of our work to promote German and European languages, cultures, and understanding.
The next five years, I know, will add many accomplishments. And since everything begins and ends with people, our ideas, and our imaginations, I want to close by inviting you also to become an active part of CGES.
Sincerely,
Dr. Sabine Engel, director