Civic Education
Out of the comfort zone, into the political arena After numerous meetings, we celebrated the end of our trip. We spent the last evening all together: 24 young participants and four supervisors. Needless to say, a few tears were shed! The next morning, we said goodbye, which we hoped would be a “see you later”. These had been four incredibly informative and inspiring weeks. We got on really well as a group and made many new friends. My personal resume: I learnt a lot from the program and gained a different perspective of the US and also Ger - many. It also reinforced my view that it’s worth taking an interest in social developments, getting involved in things, and stepping out of your comfort zone. I’ll fin - ish my bachelor’s degree in summer 2022. Afterwards,
This is time-consuming work, but people in Ann Arbor are passionate about it. We talked to four climate activ- ists and realized their work has an impact – not just in the immediate neighborhood and on the UoM campus, but also at a local and national level. During the last week of the program, we travelled by coach to Chicago. Walking through the city, we saw countless fast-food chains and realized that their pop- ularity comes at a price: food containers are usually disposable, and plastic bags are free everywhere. Some young US-Americans have never heard of Fridays for Future . Chicago itself is a really cool city though, and it’s beautifully located on Lake Michigan. Representatives of the Juvenile Justice Initiative explained to us how they work with judges, lawyers, and politicians to improve youth justice in the US. Young people often receive disproportionately harsh sentences, and condi- tions in prisons – especially compared to Germany – are very poor. I’m fascinated by US-American activism, which often depends on the dedication of individual people.
I want to work in political consultancy for interna- tional security strategies – maybe even in Washing- ton, D.C. …
The next morning, we said goodbye, which we hoped would be a “see you later”.
Ambassadors in Sneakers was designed and is led by the German-American Institute Tuebingen (GAI or d.a.i.). It is supported by the Transatlantic Program of the Federal Republic of Germany with funds from the European Recovery Program (ERP) of the Federal Ministry for Economics and Energy (BMWi). Anna Steinbrich (20) participated in the Ambassadors in Sneakers program as the representative of Vaihingen/Enz Youth Council (Baden-Württemberg) because she is passionate about cultural exchange and political discussions. She is currently pursuing a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics at the University of Oxford. Felix Weinmann is deputy director of the German-American Institute Tuebingen (GAI or d.a.i.) and responsible for the Ambassadors in Sneakers project.
Web: dai-tuebingen.de/en/intercultural-projects/ambassadors- in-sneakers
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