Transatlantic relations

With fresh language and contagious good cheer, US presidential candidate Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party are generating new enthusiasm for their policies. Could that also catch on here in Germany? One thing is clear: without a positive atmosphere, democratic politics in the country will face an uphill battle.

Governments around the world are trying to tackle “Big Tech”, and in Canada, the government has rolled out a package of digital legislation: Bill C-11 and C-18. But it isn’t without controversy. This Böll.Spotlight podcast episode takes a closer look at these bills, how they’ll affect the average Canadian, the criticisms and what this means for European legislation.

A Trump presidency would probably force the UK and EU to intensify their cooperation on security and defence. Fortunately, says Gesine Weber, this relationship was relatively less affected by Brexit. It would also push Europeans to have some difficult conversations about building on their own nuclear deterrent.

The 2024 US presidential election will be closely watched. After all, the potential return of Donald Trump to the White House would have a significant effect on Europe’s security dynamics with profound implications for the European Union. This is raising some uncomfortable questions. Webinar with Max Bergmann (Center for Strategic & International studies), Jana Puglierin (European Council on Foreign Relations, Berlin), Steven Everts (EU Institute for Security Studies), moderated by Teresa Eder, Program Director Foreign & Security Policy, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung Washington, DC.

With US support waning, European nations could be much more in a bind to step up and provide streamlined military aid for Ukraine in 2024. While the war in Ukraine lead to replenished national defense budgets, different interests and agendas so far have prevented substantial European collaboration.

It’s been one year since the US passed the most significant climate bill in American history. The achievement, after years of failures, offers lessons for progressive movements on building coalitions, creating hopeful narratives, rebuilding trust in government-led solutions, and expanding grassroots support.

When governments adopt new legislation, they need to check if their plan is in line with international agreements they signed up to. Consumer and digital rights organisations from the EU and the US are concerned that rules in trade agreements could deter domestic regulation that is in the public interest. To address this, the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung and Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue organised a discussion between NGOs, public officials, parliamentarians, and academics. The NGOs aimed to raise awareness and find solutions to prevent trade rules from discouraging government action and ensure improved protection for citizens writes Léa Auffret.

We’re at a climate tipping point, yet international trade rules remain a persistent barrier to climate action. Momentum is also quickly building toward a digital tipping point: one where Big Tech surveillance is too far out of control to reign in, and where human rights and democracy only exist at the whim of tech corporations. Recurrent trade pressures could impact the willingness of the EU and the US to take action to better protect consumers in the digital market, or even to act to fight against climate change. So how did we get here, and what role do the new US–EU cooperation venues have to play?

On 8 November 2022, a new US Congress will be elected. What are the main points of debate? What will the results mean for the transatlantic relationship, for the climate, and for the world? How do elections function in the US? The Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung's Washington, DC office tries to answer these questions and more.

A Bill of Rights for the AI-enabled world, regulatory challenges, and socio-technical risks: Jessica Newman, who leads the AI Security Initiative at UC Berkeley’s Center for Long-Term Cybersecurity, discusses recent AI developments in the United States and Europe with our Transatlantic Media Fellow Ekaterina Venkina in an interview for BigData-Insider.