China, Sub-Saharan Africa, Brazil and now Europe
14th and 15th of November
Visionary ideals, realpolitik and regulatory overkill, common culture and identity, and finally “Brexit” – it is in these terms that we commonly perceive and discuss Europe. Our debates are all about what is ideally and ideologically desirable, about what is politically and administratively feasible, and about who we are in cultural and historical terms. Important though all of this may be, these debates tend to disregard Europe’s inner mechanism: the economic workings that make Europe actually move. Economic activity – including the “common market” and the Euro – not only secures Europe’s relative wealth as well as its political and societal stability, it also constitutes the core that holds Europe together. While visions and cultural memories may sometimes fade, while political cohesion and institutions may crumble, it is economic activity – and the structures and processes that have grown out of the cooperation of economic players – that facilitated the ideas and politics of European unity in the first place.
What will the trajectory of Europe be in the 21st century? Will the European Union increase or lose its economic, political, and cultural significance? How will European unity chime with national and regional diversity? Do ‘Transatlantic’ and ‘Eurasian’ mark two mutually exclusive political and economic options? Will there be European or merely global supply-chain networks? Which role will European corporations and the German ‘Mittelstand’ – the sector of, often family-owned and -run, small and medium-sized enterprises – play in all of this? Can Europe translate its economic strength into geo-strategic weight through cooperation – whatever shape that cooperation may take? Or will it drift apart, with its constituent elements being increasingly dominated by China or the USA? How can political, economic and civil-societal leadership give Europe direction? As Goethe’s Faust didn’t quite say (but might have said): “So that I may perceive whatever holds Europe together in its inmost folds.”
At the Transcultural Leadership Summit | TLS, which takes place annually at Zeppelin University in Friedrichshafen, Lake Constance, we might not be able to tackle all prevailing questions on Europe – but we will discuss whether transcultural leadership in politics and business could contribute to a solution to European challenges. For this purpose, on November 14th and 15th, 2019, renowned experts from business, politics and academia will engage in debate with senior managers, young professionals and students from all over the world.
What is the Transcultural Leadership Summit?
Providing a platform for current issues of transcultural leadership, the TLS aims to provide new perspectives on globalization. We believe that, in times of increasing worldwide connectedness, global value creation and urbanization, sustainable success is highly dependent on whether an organization with a global reach is able to master cultural diversity and to build on transcultural commonalities in order to cooperate efficiently. In this context, the TLS confronts and tackles questions and challenges, not only in business but also in politics and other sectors of society.
The TLS is organized by a group of highly motivated students and headed by Prof. Josef Wieland, director and founder of the Leadership Excellence Institute Zeppelin | LEIZ. This year’s Transcultural Leadership Summit will be the fourth of its kind and will build upon the accomplishments of the previous three summits to create another fascinating event.
Be part of the Transcultural Leadership Summit!
We are looking forward to welcoming you at Lake Constance
on November 14th and 15th, 2019!
