Fellow Study Tour to the United States

Four weeks before the 2024 US presidential election, our team travelled across Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Michigan to revisit the heart of American industry. With the fellows of our Industrial Heartlands project, we explored how communities are navigating the long road from deindustrialisation to renewal — and what these transitions tell us about politics, identity, and the promises of economic justice.
From Pittsburgh’s high-tech revival to Youngstown’s grassroots urban renewal and the entrepreneurial push in Erie, we encountered impressive local efforts – but also deep-seated wounds, unresolved tensions, and the sobering weight of generational loss.

Survey: public opinion on the politics of the industrial heartlands in the US and Germany

Our new public opinion survey in the US and Germany provides insights into how people in both countries feel in this age of insecurity and how they view their government’s responses, with a focus on industrial policy. It addresses questions such as whether these measures have support in the wider population and how great the potential is for stronger democratic participation and for countering right-wing populism. The results of this survey were first presented and discussed at the Progressive Governance Summit in June 2024 and reveal a clear message for policymakers in both countries. 

Session on Empowering the Regions that Matter at Progressive Governance Summit 2024 

At the Progressive Governance Summit 2024, a number of our Industrial Heartlands Project Fellows discussed how the industrial heartlands in the US and in Germany can be empowered by creating a positive narrative about their future. They were joined on the panel by Henning Meyer, Chief of Staff and Director General for Policy and Coordination at Saarland Ministry of Finance and Science and moderator John Austin, Senior Fellow at the Eisenhower Institute. Among other issues, the analysed how to tap into the economic and political potential of the industrial heartlands and how they can be built more inclusively and resilient, for younger and older generations, for marginalised groups and those who are concerned with the decline of former industries.

On New Industrial Policy for the Middle Classes in Times of Geoeconomic Shifts at Progressive Governance Summit 2024

At our Progressive Governance Summit 20024, political leaders from both sides of the Atlantic discussed new industrial policy of investing in workers while considering foreign policy, trade and climate and its challenges in Europe and the US. The panel discussion started with the exclusive presentation of the results of the project’s survey on the public opinion on the politics of the industrial heartlands in the US and Germany. Based on these findings, the panellists discussed how to include the working class into foreign policy considerations, create new narratives of progressive success in the heartlands and how to make sure climate protection measures work in favour of the people of the heartlands.

Industrial Heartlands Fellow Workshop 

On 22 March 2024, our project fellows came together to reflect, exchange ideas and to set their objectives within fellowship for the year ahead. The full day of productive discussions and work included a session with sounding board member Bill Peduto, the former mayor of Pittsburgh. He gave insights into the current political, economic and scientific developments of the former steel town. 

Kick-Off Seminar and Presentation of First Impulse Papers

On 17 November 2023, we held a workshop called “Democracy at the crossroads in the industrial heartlands – transatlantic perspectives for the future of the places that matter” as part of Das Progressive Zentrum’s Innocracy23 conference. At the workshop, our 12 industrial heartlands project fellows and a delegation of seven decision-makers from the US Midwest discussed best practices, political strategies and policy solutions to foster democratic participation, trust and tangible future perspectives for those living in the places that matter.

Industrial Heartlands and Democracy Study Tour

From November 11 to November 18 2023, elected officials and leaders of economic development and change efforts from the US Midwest travelled to Europe to share and learn from peers in the important work of closing economic divides in our democracies. After a start in Brussels where they attended the Conference on Transatlantic Work to Address Geographies of Discontent, and Charleroi, they toured the transformation regions in Saarland and Saxony and ended up in Berlin to take part in the official launch of our project at Innocracy23. Along the way, they enjoyed various opportunities of exchange with local and federal decision makers.

Project Fellows and Sounding Board

Bringing our project to life: We’ve selected a group of 12 young experts, practitioners, and professionals from the United States and Germany working on shaping the industrial heartlands in both countries towards a greener, better and more democratic future. These fellows are at the heart of our Industrial Heartlands Project. They are complemented by a Sounding Board of nine experts from both sides of the Atlantic who will advise our fellows as well as the project managers.