Freedom, justice and solidarity are the basic principles underlying the work of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS). The KAS is a political foundation, closely associated with the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU). As co-founder of the CDU and the first Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Konrad Adenauer (1876-1967) united Christian-social, conservative and liberal traditions. His name is synonymous with the democratic reconstruction of Germany, the firm alignment of foreign policy with the trans-Atlantic community of values, the vision of a unified Europe and an orientation towards the social market economy. His intellectual heritage continues to serve both as our aim as well as our obligation today.
In our European and international cooperation efforts we work for people to be able to live self-determined lives in freedom and dignity. We make a contribution underpinned by values to helping Germany meet its growing responsibilities throughout the world.
We encourage people to lend a hand in shaping the future along these lines. With more than 70 offices abroad and projects in over 120 countries, we make a unique contribution to the promotion of democracy, the rule of law and a social market economy. To foster peace and freedom we encourage a continuous dialog at the national and international levels as well as the exchange between cultures and religions.
Human beings in their distinctive dignity and with their rights and responsibilities are at the heart of our work. We are guided by the conviction that human beings are the starting point in the effort to bring about social justice and democratic freedom while promoting sustainable economic activity. By bringing people together who embrace their responsibilities in society, we develop active networks in the political and economic spheres as well as in society itself. The guidance we provide on the basis of our political know-how and knowledge helps to shape the globalization process along more socially equitable, ecologically sustainable and economically efficient lines.
The European Office Brussels actively monitors developments in the European Union since 1978. Furthermore, it supervises projects in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg.
In the tradition of Konrad Adenauer, the first chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, the aim of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung is to influence the European integration process in general and EU politics in particular. The European Office thereby serves as a forum of Christian democratic interests.
Our primary objective is to sharpen the understanding of European integration principles. For more than 60 years after the Second World War, and thus the beginning of the European integration process, the EU as a peace promoting community has had a permanent place in the minds of most European citizens. New contexts of justification have to be conceived in order to effectively confront anti-European movements which are becoming increasingly professional. We emphasize that the EU is more than just a union for peace. It stands for a future in freedom and prosperity.
The European Office Brussels promotes the concept of social market economy enshrined in the Treaty of Lisbon. The principles of social market economy have to be implemented in EU economic and financial policy, social policy as well as its energy and climate policy. In the area of justice and home affairs, further integration steps have to be balanced between national and European identity. The Stockholm Programme has the potential to contribute to a common European legal area.
We want to embed Christian democratic ideas in the ongoing development of a western model of the world order. On the one hand, we focus on promoting a European strategic approach to foreign and security policy. The foundation has, on the other hand, through projects worldwide, obtained extensive experience in the dialogue between cultures. We use actively this expertise in our discussions. We also pursue a stronger network between elites in the Benelux countries and Germany.
The European Office Brussels also houses a program called Multinational Dialogue on Development Policy. This program shapes the development policy dialogue between the EU and KAS partners from developing countries and the European neighborhood. Through the Multinational Dialogue on Development Policy experiences and expertise from KAS projects worldwide as well as the interests of German development policy are included into the EU consultation processes on strategies and instruments for external assistance. The European network of political foundations (ENoP) serves in this context as a crucial platform for the interest intermediation of the KAS.
Our events include presentations, conferences, workshops and dialogue programs. We report and analyze, inform about important political developments and take up positions. In doing so, the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung in Brussels draws on a broad network of partners in the European institutions, governments and parliaments of the Benelux-countries, NATO, think-tanks and in the German and international media. We maintain close relations with governments and parliaments in Berlin and in the federal states as well as to their representatives in Brussels.
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