Looking out for feasible, effective, and easy ways to stop climate change has become an important goal in our daily lives. As one of the least contemplated measures – believe it or not – surfing on the internet could contribute greatly to a more sustainable environment.
Women representation on corporate boards remains a problem in many countries around the world. Yet the introduction of quotas to address this issue has caused debates among current and future leaders.
Norway was the first country to introduce binding quotas for women on corporate boards back in 2003, and the initiative has been successful. But the recent passage of a law to enforce the women’s quota in Germany, after earlier efforts didn’t seem to lead to the intended consequences, has reignited debate about the pros and cons of quotas for women in the U.S. and Europe alike. “When women are not represented at the leadership table, then it’s hard for women to be represented as consumers of your brands,” says Robin Vogel, 56, vice president of global strategic sourcing at the American candy company Mars, Inc. Having majored in engineering at college, Vogel knows first-hand how underrepresented women are in certain fields. But throughout her career, she just pushed on. “Walking into a meeting room where the majority of the attendees are men may have impacts on a number of women,” she admits. “Frankly, I got used to it.”
A virtual what? asked the perplexed high-school principal on the other end of the line. I was halfway through my one-minute pitch of the BEST Virtual Newsroom, a new cross-cultural media-literacy program for German and American teens. Apparently in a hurry, he huffed and quickly passed me on to a teacher of English at the Hamburg school. To my relief, she was more enthusiastic about the opportunity. She promised to distribute the call for applications.
I made that first cold-call in spring 2021. The Amerikazentrum Hamburg, a binational cultural institute, had approached me a few weeks earlier with the germ of an idea. Why not develop a virtual program to teach teens in Hamburg and its U.S. sister city Chicago the basics of journalism? A firm believer that media literacy is needed now more than ever, I loved the idea. I threw myself into the planning right away.
For Thanksgiving, let’s do without turkeys, these beautiful birds that Benjamin Franklin called “true American originals.” Well, a lot of good that did them! More than 46 million are killed each year at Thanksgiving alone.
Ben Franklin admired their resourcefulness, agility, and beauty. In nature, turkeys can fly 55 miles an hour, run 25 miles an hour, and live up to four years. Yet turkeys raised for food are killed at the age of 5 months and – during their short lives – will be denied even the simplest pleasures, such as running, building nests, and raising their young.
But let’s not only think about turkeys, let’s also think about ourselves.
We are pleased to announce that Darion Akins, the current U.S. Consul General from Hamburg, will open our lecture series with a talk on “Worth the Struggle: Why Democracy Matters” at 6:15 p.m. in the forum of Leuphana University Lüneburg’s central building (C40) on November 18, 2021. The coronavirus 3G rule (vaccinated, recovered, tested) applies to this event.
In addition to the lecture on campus, Julia Nitz (Universität Halle-Wittenberg), Christoph Strobel (University of Massachusetts, Lowell), and Fiona Tolan (Liverpool John Moores University) will also join us this semester via Zoom. As always, each lecture lasts roughly 1 hour and is either interactive or followed by a lively question-and-answer session. Please see the poster for further details.
Hope to see you at one or more of the talks.
Sabrina Völz, Maryann Henck, and Maria Moss
Dear Reader,
What has most significantly affected your view of the U.S. within the last year? Black Lives Matter protests, maybe? Well, they might have changed, but the same fights are fought still. Disastrous ways to deal with Covid-19? Vaccination might have saved many lives, but 50,000 Americans have died from Covid-19 since October, and the rate of new infections is still at 70,000 new cases each day. But hey, one major change can’t be disputed even by the most cynical blogger: There’s a different POTUS (President of the United States)! And although he faces obstacles at home, a recent study suggests that Joe Biden’s presidency made America’s image abroad take off again after a Trump-induced dive. Read more
