ABOUT THE GUESTS
Helga
Barth
Minister for Political Affairs and Head of the Political Department, German Embassy in Washington D.C.
Helga Barth is Minister and Head of Political Affairs at the German Embassy in Washington DC. Prior to coming to Washington DC in August 2015, she served as Head of the Middle Eastern and Asian Affairs Division, on Chancellor Merkel’s foreign policy team (2010-2015). Previously, Helga has served as the Ministry’s Research Coordinator on the Policy Planning Staff, Political Counsellor in Turkey, and Deputy Consul General in China as well. She holds a Master’s Degree in Chinese Studies, Modern History, and German Literature from Tubingen University, Germany.
Dr. Constanze
Stelzenmueller
Senior Fellow, Center on the United States and Europe, The Brookings Institution
Constanze Stelzenmüller, an expert on German, European, and transatlantic foreign and security policy and strategy, is the inaugural Robert Bosch senior fellow in the Center on the United States and Europe at The Brookings Institution. She is a governor of the Ditchley Foundation and a fellow of the Royal Swedish Society for War Sciences. Previously, she was a senior transatlantic fellow with the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) and editor for the political section of the German weekly DIE ZEIT. Stelzenmüller has worked in both Germany and the United States, and received a doctorate in law and law degree from the University of Bonn, and a master’s degree from Harvard University.
Dr. Stephen
Szabo
Senior Fellow, American Institute for Contemporary German Studies
Dr. Stephen F. Szabo is a Senior Fellow at AICGS, where he focuses on German foreign and security policies and the new German role in Europe and beyond. Previously, he has served as the Executive Director of the Transatlantic Academy and Interim and Associate Dean and faculty at The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University. He has published widely on European and German politics and foreign policies, including Parting Ways: The Crisis in the German-American Relationship. Dr. Szabo received his PhD in Political Science from Georgetown University and has been a fellow with the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and the American Academy in Berlin among other distinguished institutions.
Dr. Steven
Sokol
President, American Council on Germany
Dr. Steven E. Sokol became President of the American Council on Germany in 2015, and previously was President and CEO of the World Affairs Council of Pittsburgh. Prior to that, he has served as the Vice President and Director of Programs at the American Council on Germany, Deputy Director of the Aspen Institute Berlin, and as a Program Officer in the Berlin office of the German Marshall Fund of the United States. Dr. Sokol has more than 20 years of experience working with nonprofit organizations in Europe and the United States. In 2003, he launched the Political Salon, a forum for young professionals in NYC to discuss pressing foreign policy issues and global concerns. He holds a Doctorate in Law and Policy from Northeastern University and an M.A. in International Relations and International Economics from Johns Hopkins University.