CEPI Grant Renewed
WASHINGTON, DC (January 9, 2012) – The Bertelsmann Foundation has received another two years’ financial support from the Delegation of the European Union to the United States to continue the Congressional European Parliament Initiative (CEPI) through the end of 2013. The CEPI is dedicated to forging a common trans-Atlantic political culture by bringing together Congressional and European Parliament staffers with similar policy expertise. The semi-annual gatherings are made possible through matching funds from the Bertelsmann Foundation.
Ten staffers from each legislature (for a total of 20 staffers) participate in the meetings – one in Washington, DC and one in Brussels – to confer on policy areas in their portfolios. Two policy areas are chosen each year as focal points for the CEPI. Staffers in the 2012 class of CEPI fellows will have expertise in financial services/banking regulation or agriculture. The 2011 fellows focused on anti-terrorism/border sceurity and energy/natural resources. The first class of fellows in 2010 had expertise in financial services or climate change.
The CEPI grant provides funding for the publishing of the Bertelsmann Foundation’s CapitolWire and EuroWire e-newsletters. These occasional publications bring staffers up to date on the legislative agendas in Congress and the European Parliament. The grant also covers a briefing series, which brings experts outside the legislative arena to discuss policy trends and potential regulation with CEPI fellows and other staffers. Briefings take place on Capitol Hill and within the European Parliament.
The CEPI was established in 2010 with an initial two-year grant from the Delegation of the European Union to the United States. The program is jointly administered by the Bertelsmann Foundation and the Brussels office of the Germany-based Bertelsmann Stiftung.
For further information on the CEPI, click here or here.