First Vigoni Lecture with EU Commissioner Günther Oettinger and Minister of State Dr. Werner Hoyer, 12 December 2011, Berlin
Through this new event series supported by the Federal Foreign Service, the IEP continues to expand its German-Italian dialog and makes it accessible to a wider audience. This reinforces their traditional partnership with the German-Italian institution Villa Vigoni and will be instrumental in making its work known far beyond the meeting center at Lake Como.
The first Vigoni Lecture, with over 200 attendees, emphasized the importance of the German-Italian relationship and the combined effects of both countries on European issues. Featuring EU Commissioner Oettinger and Minister of State Hoyer, prominent and knowledgeable speakers discussed current events in national and European politics, ranging from the economic situation in Italy and Germany in regards to the debt crisis in the Eurozone to the challenges in the field of energy policy.
The first Vigoni Lecture laid the cornerstone for a regularly occurring lecture event featuring prominent figures and is to be continued in 2012 in Rome. It demonstrated not only the strengthened need for dialog in light of the change in government in Rome, but also the great need to provide a forum in which the audience can exchange views and learn about the interests, politics and attitudes of the “other” side.