As eager consumers of American culture through film, music or literature, and through their many business dealings with U.S.-based actors, Europeans feel quite familiar with the United States.  Yet this familiarity does not mean that there is a deep understanding of the issues shaping U.S. society and policy.  Indeed, the political philosophy and system of reference in the U.S. are very different from the European and French models.  Meanwhile, U.S. political developments and choices stand to affect the world at large.  The economic difficulties facing the Obama administration, the polarization of U.S. politics, as well as the debate over a possible decline of the country, constitute indirect but key factors for countries the world over.  Europeans would therefore benefit greatly from better insight and more perspective on the United States.

Program activities

Events:·          
Reports of all events of the program are available online; starting in the Fall of 2011, you can also watch podcasts of the meetings on DailyMotion (please go to each event's page).
.  The December annual conferences are the flagship event of the program.  Held at Ifri since 2000, they are now a tradition, bringing together key figures and numerous participants. Under a renewed setting, the 2012 edition of the conference will take place on December 7th.
.  A series of seminars on economics, foreign and domestic policy issues is conducted in cooperation with the French American Foundation-France.  Seminars in 2012 are held under the banner "Obama, year 4: Towards a Second Term?".

Publications:
.   The program publishes a collection of online policy papers called Potomac Papers. They present analyses of U.S. policies, politics and social debates, and are reviewed by experts before publication. They are written either in English or French, with a one-page executive summary in both languages. Laurence Nardon is the editor.
.  The Chroniques Américaines are the program's contribution to Ifri's collection of online editorials.

The Team