Spotlight on … Diplomat in Residence Oliver Schramm

What does your role as Diplomat in Residence at the GIGA entail?

What exactly remains to be seen, but I will certainly offer my help a) regarding my connections within the FFO and b) as well with the extensive network I have created in 35 years as a diplomat serving in countries like South Korea, the U.S., Italy, Peru and the UK. I am currently involved in promoting some GIGA-events, i.e. the GIGA-day at the FFO or the Digitral-workshop planned to happen in Singapore early December. Also involved in preparing a German-Indonesian dialogue event in Berlin.

What are your main tasks at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?

That is hard to answer as we as diplomats rotate usually every four years from one posting to the other or back home to HQ. So, the role always varies according to the topic connected to it (Political, Cultural, Economic, Consular, Press etc.) and to the country one is working in. Basically it is always to connect people with Germany and promote our various initiatives and of course to further our interests abroad in the best possible way.

What motivated you personally to become a diplomat?

That is easy: I always thought the world is too big to just stay and live at home. And as a half- Italian living two different cultures (although not too different in that case) always attracted me, learning more about different perspectives on life as well as some “universal” ones that unite as all wherever we may live or come from. Also helping to connect people has always held a great deal of satisfaction for me.

What were your most exciting stations in your career so far?

Many if not all: I lived and worked in South Korea during the time of the IMF-crisis and, more importantly, the following era of Kim Dae-Jung’s “sunshine policy” (very exciting for a German diplomat). I spent a year at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government on and after 9/11 happened. I served for two years as Deputy Spokesman at the German Embassy in Washington, DC, during the “transatlantic ice-age” over the war in Iraq. I was Minister of Economic Affairs at the German Embassy in London, during the crucial phase of Brexit and as Consul General in San Francisco I witnessed how ChatGPT (and others) burst onto the scene changing our daily lives fundamentally. So, you see, never a dull moment.

Which research topics are currently of particular relevance to the Federal Foreign Office?

Well, coming from San Francisco I see Tech and AI as imminent research topics – its consequences, risks and challenges, need for regulation, cyber-threats etc. It is a topic that is ranking quite high also within the FFO (cyber diplomacy, data lab).

What advantages do you see in the close cooperation between the GIGA and the Foreign Office?

I believe that the GIGA with its “standalone qualities”, being the only institution in Germany bridging and connecting scientific research and think tank policy exchange on a global scale has a lot to offer to the FFO. “Theoria cum praxi” (Leibniz-motto) is exactly what our Foreign Service needs very much in a constantly changing political and oftentimes severely disruptive environment.

Personal briefing or briefing paper - How do you prefer to exchange information with researchers?

I very much believe in personal interaction and hence would always prefer a personal briefing to a briefing paper.