July 19–25, 2025 | Berlin, Germany
“Navigating Change: Shaping the Next Chapter in Transatlantic Relations”
From July 19 to 25, 2025, the American Council on Germany hosted the 45th American-German Young Leaders Conference in Berlin. The conference brought together 55 Young Leaders from Germany and the United States, representing a wide range of sectors including government, business, media, finance, think tanks, and civil society.
Under the heading “Navigating Change: Shaping the Next Chapter in Transatlantic Relations,” the discussions explored how both countries could strengthen cooperation in the face of geopolitical uncertainty, technological disruption, and social transformation. Sessions focused on a range of topics including national identity, democratic resilience, free speech, economic security, climate strategy, emerging technologies, collective defense, and the future of work.
Participants engaged in interactive plenary sessions, working groups, and off-the-record policy briefings with senior officials and leaders from both sides of the Atlantic. The program featured a meeting with Chancellor Friedrich Merz as well as a dinner with Alan Meltzer, the Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S Embassy in Berlin, and discussions with Amb. Wolfgang Ischinger, President, Munich Security Council Foundation; Stefan Kornelius, Government Spokesperson for the Federal Chancellery; and Dr. Philipp Wolff, Director General of Intelligence at the Federal Chancellery.
Additional government representatives who addressed the group included State Secretary Hans-Georg Engelke from the Federal Ministry of the Interior; Dr. Levin Holle, Economic and Financial Policy Advisor to the Chancellor; State Secretary Dr. Steffen Meyer from the Ministry of Finance; State Secretary Dr. Markus Richter from the Minister of Digitalization and Government Modernization; Dr. Jörg Semmler, State Secretary at the Federal Chancellery; Nils Schmid, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Ministry of Defense; and, State Secretary Dr. Claudia Stutz from the Ministry of Transport. The group also had a chance to meet with Dr. Matthias Roßbach, State Representative of North Rhine-Westphalia to the Federal Government, to learn more about relations between the federal government and the states.
The closing dinner highlighted the economic ties between the United States and the EU with Dr. Samina Sultan, Senior Economist for European Economic Policy and Trade at the Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft Köln e.V.
Participants also heard from Prof. Dr. Ulrich Reuter, President of the Deutscher Sparkassen- und Giroverband, and Hauke Burkhardt, Global Co-Head of Lending at Deutsche Bank.
Sessions took place at key institutions such as the German Bundestag, the Federal Chancellery, and the Deutscher Sparkassen- und Giroverband. Additional programming was hosted at Deutsche Bank, Mercedes-Benz, NOERR, Pfizer, and the Landesvertretung of North Rhine-Westphalia.
The ACG also launched a new initiative to bridge the years between Young Leader cohorts by having local Berlin Young Leaders alumni host small dinners for the current cohort. With 14 alumni hosting dinners, the evening turned into a highlight of the week.
Since 1973, the American-German Young Leaders Conference has served as a cornerstone of the ACG’s mission to foster lasting transatlantic dialogue and collaboration. The 2025 conference continued this tradition, offering an impactful platform for the next generation of leaders to build connections, exchange ideas, and help shape the future of German-American relations.
Alen Amini (U.S.)
Project Leader
Boston Consulting Group
Alexandria, VA
Zerlina Bartholomew (U.S.)
Deputy Spokesperson
U.S. Mission to the European Union
U.S. Department of State
Brussels, Belgium
Corbinian von Bayern (GER)
Consultant
Berlin Global Advisors
Berlin
Annemarie Bella (GER)
Managing Director
Asienbrücke e.V. – Euro-Asian-Initiative
Berlin
Felix Bergold (GER)
Political Stakeholder Manager
Lidl International
Neckarsulm
Hans Braunfisch (U.S.)
Founder
Pravo Ventures
Washington, DC
Andrea Buheitel (GER)
Chief of Staff and Policy Advisor to Dr. Johann Wadephul (CDU)
German Bundestag
Berlin
Tara Burchmore (U.S.)
Government Affairs
Robinhood Markets
Washington, DC
Alexis Calatayud (U.S.)
State Senator (R)
State of Florida Senate
Miami, FL
Sebastian Camarero (GER)
Principal Economist/Policy Advisor
European Commission
Brussels, Belgium
David Donatti (U.S.)
Senior Staff Attorney
American Civil Liberties Union of Texas
Houston, TX
Majd El-Safadi (GER)
Journalist
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
Berlin
Jens Florian-Jansen (GER)
CEO
Marsh GmbH
Haan
Simon Forster (GER)
Chief of Staff to the State Secretary
Federal Ministry for Digitalization and Government Modernization
Berlin
Robert Greene (U.S.)
Partner and Chief of Staff
Patomak Global Partners
Washington, DC
Theresa Gröninger (GER)
Member of the Bremen State Parliament (CDU)
Head of Marketing & Business Development
cellumation GmbH
Bremen
Alexander Hahn (GER)
Head of Group People & Culture Germany
Allianz SE
Munich
Larissa Hoffmann (GER)
Regulatory Manager
Pfizer Pharma GmbH
Berlin
Hannah Huemme (U.S.)
Director of External Affairs
Office of the Vice President of the U.S. JD Vance
Washington, DC
Brittany Hughes (U.S.)
Counsel to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee
United States Senate
Washington, DC
Markus Iven (GER)
Policy Officer
German Permanent Military Representation to NATO and the EU
The Hague
Katie Jones (U.S.)
State Representative (D)
State of Minnesota
Minneapolis, MN
Craig Kafura (U.S.)
Director, Public Opinion and Foreign Policy
Chicago Council on Global Affairs
Chicago, IL
Milena Kleine (GER)
Head of Press & Policy Officer, German Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine
Federal Foreign Office
Kyiv, Ukraine
Andreas König (GER)
Team Leader for Material Support within the Special Staff Ukraine
Federal Ministry of Defense
Berlin
Ashwin Lalendran (U.S.)
Venture Capital Investor
Moxxie Ventures
San Francisco, CA
Jonathan Lätsch (GER)
Senior Policy Advisor to Thomas Silberhorn
German Bundestag
Berlin
Marc Lipton (GER)
Executive Director, Investment Banking Germany/Austria
Goldman Sachs Bank Europe SE
Frankfurt am Main
Alex Mauthe (U.S.)
Senior Account Executive
DCI Group
Washington, DC
Tassilo Metternich (GER)
Manager
Orphoz Public ǀǀ a McKinsey Company
Berlin
Patrick Moelleken (GER)
Actor and Film Producer
the fable GmbH
Dusseldorf
Grace Muller (U.S.)
Senior Associate, Sustainability Strategy
Warburg Pincus LLC
New York, NY
Caitlin Natusch (U.S.)
Head of Executive Communications
Allianz SE
Munich
Faye Nemer (U.S.)
CEO
MENA American Chamber of Commerce
Dearborn, MI
Emilia Neuber (GER)
Desk Officer, Security and Defense Policy
Federal Ministry of Defense
Berlin
Elia Johannes Panskus (GER)
Chief of Staff to Dr. Franziska Brantner (Greens)
German Bundestag
Berlin
Natalii Pitts (U.S.)
Geospatial Data Scientist
Crimson Phoenix
Burke, VA
Matthew Pritting (U.S.)
Submarine-Warfare Officer
United States Navy
Carlsbad, CA
Lukas Rehling (GER)
Vice President
Robert Bosch GmbH
Stuttgart
Ashley Rhoades (U.S.)
Defense Policy Researcher
RAND Corporation
Arlington, VA
Julia Richter (GER)
Head of the Operations Office and Chief of Staff to the COO
Infineon Technologies
Neubiberg
Jelena Sass (GER)
Principal Project Manager Compliance
Commerzbank AG
Frankfurt
Max Schiel (GER)
Head of Geopolitical Strategy
Deutsche Bank AG
Frankfurt am Main
Lisa Schmid (GER)
Chief of Staff to the State Secretary
Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy
Berlin
Xenia Schröter (GER)
Head of Press for the German Embassy in Warsaw
Federal Foreign Office
Warsaw, Poland
Jantien Shizuru (U.S.)
Director of Project Development
Nuclear Stealth Startup
El Segundo, CA
Paul Shuler (GER/U.S.)
Chief of Staff – Senior Vice President
Citigroup Inc.
Frankfurt am Main
Taylor Spreeman (U.S.)
Policy Analyst
Mercedes-Benz North America Corporation
Washington, DC
Barrett Tenbarge (U.S.)
Partner
Faergre Drinker
Washington, DC
Benedikt Vogt (GER)
Equity Partner
Noerr Partnerschaftsgesellschaft mbB
Düsseldorf
David Waites (U.S.)
Associate
WilmerHale
Washington, DC
Justin Walls (U.S.)
Director of Global Engineering for Batteries
BASF
Heidelberg
Marcel Weil (GER)
Executive Advisor in the President’s Office
Deutsche Bundesbank
Frankfurt am Main
Jason Wilkes (U.S.)
Strategist
U.S. Army
Cambridge, MA
Sven Witzenhause (GER)
Executive Assistant to the Vice President, External Affairs & Manager, Resources Planning and Budget
Mercedes-Benz Group AG
Stuttgart