Transatlantic relations face difficult times these days. Although they are part of the daily political landscape in the US and Europe, the civil society tends to disregard them as an abstract phenomenon that cannot be influenced.
This article follows the purpose of finding a new approach to foster a more political transatlantic civil society; focusing on the future – pupils. KISS stands for keep it short and simple; meaning that I want to describe an easy-to-establish attempt that could be implemented soon.
Starting with a short historical review, I would like to inform about the so called “Youth Information Officers” in German Armed Forces; an outfit, established solely for the purpose of educating pupils about security politics and later, how to leverage this experience into a new approach of simplified targeted information.
Germany has lost the Second World War. With an entire country in ruins, after devastating years in a horrible racist dictatorship, the formation of new political structures were closely watched by an alert world – and the Germans themselves. Built on strong pillars of trust be the Allies, the Federal Republic of Germany was established in 1949.
From all the new elements of a democratic political system, such as the federal states (Bundesländer) or the ministries in the new capital Bonn, nothing has been discussed more controversially than the foundation of the German Armed Forces – the Bundeswehr. Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, his Secretary of Defense Blank and the western Allies were strongly committed to this as a distinct sign of German autonomy – but at the same time, as a symbol of Germany being a respected member of NATO.
Since the reservations against the young republic´s Army were very strong, the need for enlightenment, especially of the next generation, was seen. So, the Youth Information Officers (Jugendoffiziere) were established. Their focus has neither been on recruiting nor on convincing their audience about the necessity of Armed Forces, far from it. Their task was to empower young people to think about security politics and to develop their own opinion.
This is crucial, because in Germany, there is a so called “Parlamentsarmee”: Not a single politician but only the German parliament (Bundestag) can decide to send soldiers into operations. And since the Bundestag is elected by the broad public, they should have a clear opinion on security politics and transatlantic relations. In 1977, this idea has been underlined by the German Supreme Court, the Bundesverfassungsgericht. The judges basically stated, that if the public is to decide, it has to be informed, too.
So what´s the conclusion so far? If there are reservations, probably even denial, it is instrumental to ensure that people are informed before they decide. If they decide against common sense or the political agenda, it is a democratic process. If they decide against because they don´t care, then it is a potential threat to the very core of democracy itself.
Not just since administrations on both sides of the Atlantic tend to act more focused on national interests, transatlantic relations appear to be on an all-time-low. Yes, they are still on the agenda of politicians and they are discussed and forged in highly regarded think-tanks. But the broad public? They are merely interested and incline to just accept these relations as an abstract thing, way too far away to influence it. And young people, especially those who visit secondary schools other than the “gymnasiale Oberstufe” and whose parents have zero to none interest in politics, are even less likely to ever develop an opinion on transatlantic relations.
I served as a “Jugendoffizier” from 2011 to 2014. It has been the honor of my lifetime to discuss our nation´s security policy with pupils and students. Their way of thinking and asking was sometimes driven by emotions and quite impulsive. From the more than 400 events that I hosted, I remembered those with other secondary schools (Hauptschule / Realschule) the most. Preparing these class room sessions was tough. Because it tends to be difficult to explain things in an easy language.
What if NATO would extend its homepage by a new item “NATO in easy language” or “NATO for pupils”? This could be an addition to the current “10 things you need to know about NATO”. And then, the Alliance could use the well-established social media channels to spread the word. NATO is just one element. But the European Union (EU) for instance has already publications designed especially for the needs of young people and students. And NATO could start a positive domino-effect, inspiring other transatlantic security stakeholders to act likewise.
I have the utmost respect for the idea of the Atlantic Curriculum. Being a strong supporter of the transatlantic idea, it would make me happy and proud to see this curriculum being established. But the interaction in Germany between the federal level and the respective states is rather complex. And initiatives from the past have clearly shown that it takes quite some time – the so called inclusion (educating pupils with and without special needs together) is the best example.
The memo from the First Expedition also mentioned a third party NGO for developing the curriculum. Who is to fund this organization? Who are its stakeholders? Again, the idea is great and deserves support.
But following the ideal of keeping it short and simple: Let´s start a platform of transatlantic participants from NATO, the EU security community, representatives from the member states and members of think tanks to develop an approach for developing didactic materials, such as a homepage, short videos, presentations and brochures, containing not only information, but also possibilities to visit the stakeholders mentioned above. Then, teachers and education professionals should get access to it.
This approach is rather easy to establish, doesn´t cost too much and could bridge the gap between the importance of transatlantic security relations and those, who will define them in the future: pupils and young people.