One Year after the "Arab Spring"

150 young people from European and Arab countries took part in a two-day congress that opened with a panel discussion held by Dr. Hans-Gert Pöttering, chairman of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, Prof. Dr. Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga, former President of the Republic Latvia, Anwar Esmat El Sadat, Co-Founder of the Reform and Development Party in Egypt, founder and chairman of the El Sadat Association for Social Development and Welfare member of the Board of Directors of the General Federation of NGOs/Foundations in Egypt, and Mohammed Tawfik Mouline, General Director of the Royal Institute for Strategic Studies (IRES) in the Kingdom of Morocco.

After a lively discussion with a lot of questions, the participants split up into five work shop groups to deepen certain aspects concerning results and influences of the "Arab spring". These work shops dealt with "Images and Conceptions: What do young Arabs think about Germany / Europe? What do young Europeans think about the Arab countries in the wake of the revolution?" (work shop I), "The Relationship between Muslims and Christians" (work shop II), "The European Union and the Mediterranean – Which Role Ought Germany to Play?" (work shop III), "The Social Media and their Role in Politics and Society" (work shop IV), and "The Position and Role of Men and Women in society" (work shop V).