November /2019
  AlabamaGermany Partnership   
1900 International Park Drive, Suite 105     Birmingham   AL 35243

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In This Issue
AGP Fall of the Wall
AGP Stammtisch
German Goose Dinner
Delta Looks to Alabama for Airplanes Without Tariffs
Groundbreaking Ceremony
ID Plastics to Open in Auburn
Meet a German
50 Scholarships to Pave Path into Automotive Industry
Ein bisschen Spaß

Dankeschön to our PATRON Members:





 
 
Mercedes

  
 





 


What to do in Alabama

November 1-10
Dothan

November 1-3
Mobile

November 2-3
Hoover

November 9-10
Birmingham

November 11
Montevallo

November 23
Mobile

November 28-29
Atmore

November 30
Auburn
 
Please note that the dates are shared to the best of our knowledge.
If you plan to attend any of the events - please make sure to check information directly with the host of the event. Thank you!  

Save the Date
AGP's New Members

Dankeschön to our SUSTAINING Members:


 


     


 
   








   
Events & Seminars Offered by AGP Members
AGP
Executive Committee
AGP Resources
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AGP Fall of the Wall
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This year, Berlin celebrates the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.  On 9 November 1989, Berlin was reunited. The Berlin Wall fell - the end of the massive border complex that left Berlin divided into East and West for 28 years, tearing apart families, friends and neighbors .

Today, Berlin is known as a place of freedom, opportunity and individuality. But that was not always the case. On 13 August 1961, work began on constructing the Berlin Wall. It stood as a symbol of a divided city and country, of terror and the Cold War. Overnight, it changed an entire nation.
For many people, the fall of the Wall on 9 November 1989 was the best day of their lives - the day they regained their freedom through a Peaceful Revolution.

AGP will celebrate the fall of the Berlin wall on:

Fall of the Wall
Thursday, November 7, 2019
5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Brät Brot, Birmingham


Join us at Birmingham's Biergarten with  German style food, beverages and networking (included in fee).  P re-registration is required.  Must be 21 of age to attend! 

Thank you to our generous sponsor:



AGP Stammtisch


Join us for our monthly AGP "Stammtisch":

Tuesday, November 5
5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Brät Brot, Birmingham

What does "Stammtisch" mean? A Stammtisch is an informal group meeting held on a regular basis, and also the usually large table around which the group meets. A Stammtisch is not a structured meeting, but rather a friendly and casual get-together.

This is a great opportunity for German expats to meet and for other German speaking/practicing to improve your German. Speaking German is encouraged but not required. We meet every first Tuesday of the month.

Save the Date for German Goose Dinner
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We are excited to partner with the  Grand Bohemian Hotel in Mountain Brook  (Birmingham) again this year to offer the German Holiday Goose Dinner. Join us:

Thursday, November 21, 2019
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m 
Grand Bohemian Hotel 
Mountain Brook/Birmingham


We invite you to relish in a delectable three-course menu perfectly accompanied with beer and wine. Aromatic dishes reminiscent of a warm hearth in the cool of winter will transport your senses to another place and time.   



Delta Looks to Alabama for Airplanes Without Tariffs
 
By Ted Reed for Forbes.com

The Airbus plant in Mobile, Alabama, which now produces five aircraft per    month - headed for six in January, is an apparent beneficiary of this month's World Trade Organization decision to impose tariffs on Airbus.
 
That's because the airplanes Airbus assembles in Mobile will likely be exempt from the World Trade Organization's move to annually impose tariffs of $7.5 billion on European Union goods.
     
"Certainly, Mobile is going to be very important for us going forward," Delta CEO Ed Bastian said Thursday. "That's going to be the focus of our domestic strategy to be getting our 220s, our 321s via Mobile as Airbus continues to ramp up that production capability."

Airbus spokesman Clay McConnell said, "In terms of tariffs, as it stands now, Airbus' Mobile manufacturing facility is not affected in the immediate term. 

The Mobile plant produces A320 family aircraft, with A220 production scheduled to begin soon. Customers include Atlanta-based Delta as well as American, JetBlue, Hawaiian and the three U.S low-cost carriers: Allegiant, Frontier and Spirit. The plant employs about 1,000 people.


Alberta Technology Center Groundbreaking Ceremony
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German company and AGP member, SWJ Technology, are inviting you for their groundbreaking of their new Alberta Technology Center. Please RSVP to: Christina Barroso  via email  or call: (205) 525-5411 if you plan to attend. 


 
ID Plastics to Open in Auburn 
 
Summery by Elaine Witza, AGP Intern

ID Plastics LP, which manufactures a variety of technical plastic products, plans to invest $9.8 million to open its first U.S. operation in Auburn, Governor Kay Ivey announced.

"Our continued efforts and partnerships with local communities have led to another great manufacturer coming to Alabama," Governor Ivey said. "ID Plastics' decision to select Alabama will create 50 jobs for families in East Alabama over the next three years." 

Brothers Martin and Andreas Hartl formed the Alabama-based business operation with the plan to bring various products of their companies, DUROtherm Plastics, a thermoforming specialist, and the Infinex Group, an extrusion specialist, to a production center in the U.S. The two companies are headquartered in the Black Forest in Southwest Germany and have approximately 600 employees. 

"German technology made in the U.S.A. with state-of-the-art, customer-oriented manufacturing- that's the perfect combination, the way we see it," Andreas Hartl said. "This was the foundation for the ID PACK collapsible container system and the big advantages it offers in a wide range of logistics applications."

The Alabama Department of Commerce and the City of Auburn have committed to support this German operation.

Read more about the plans at Made in Alabama and Auburn News.

"Meet a German" Day at Liberty Park Middle School
By Chase Trautwein, German Teacher, Liberty Park Middle School
 


Students at Liberty Park Middle School recently had the opportunity to use their German skills with a native speaker thanks to the Meet-a-German event, which took place on October 3, the Day of German Unity. Initiated by the Fulbright Program, the Meet-a-German initiative matches Germans in the area with host schools where students are able to communicate in German and receive insight on German culture and life.

Pauline Langemann, who works at the STAR Cooperation and serves as Chair of the AGP Young Professionals Group, visited with teacher Chase Trautwein's students and shared information about what school life is like in Germany. Students had a unique chance to learn about sports, school culture, and holidays such as Karneval from Pauline, who also shared postcards from her hometown of Düren with students. Meet-a-German and hearing from an AGP Young Professional is a great experience for German teachers as well, since their students can learn about not only the academic benefits, but the job market advantages that German has to offer as well.

As part of the Year of German-American Friendship, this event helps encourage the valuable relationships that exist between Germany and Alabama through intercultural exchange. 

Ein ganz großes Dankeschön an Pauline!
 
50 Scholarships to Pave Path into Automotive Industry
 
By Kyle Morris for Yellowhammer.com
 
The Alabama Automotive Manufacturers Association (AAMA) and Alabama Community College System (ACCS) have partnered to give a total of $180,000 in scholarships, as well as mentors, to 50 students seeking a technical education certificate or associate degree in the automotive manufacturing industry.

AAMA president Ron Davis said the scholarship program provides students with "tremendous opportunities."

"The access our scholarship recipients have to mentors in the industry, in addition to the training they'll receive while studying at an Alabama community college, provides tremendous opportunities in the automotive manufacturing industry," Davis said. "Our partnership with Alabama's community colleges is industry and education working together the way they should to help individuals succeed."

Interested students with at least a 2.5 GPA can learn more information and apply directly through the website, https://dreamitdoitalabama.com/aama/ . Applicants must use the scholarship toward an automotive-related program.

Each scholarship recipient will receive $3,600. According to the press release, the award covers tuition, fees and/or books needed. A full submission for the scholarship requires the following: a completed application; a resume; a maximum 500-word essay on why the student wants to work in Alabama's automotive industry; one signed reference letter; an unofficial college or high school transcript; and a headshot photo.


Ein bisschen Spaß
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