Friday, June 12, 2009

Democrats Abroad Switzerland – June/July e-Newsletter
DACH members receive a monthly e-newsletter with fun and useful information for Democrats across Switzerland. Please forward to other Americans living abroad, and encourage them to join Democrats Abroad.
Email Contents Overview
1. Events in next month
Basel: 2 July – Monthly meeting from 7-9pm at Centrepoint.
Geneva: 16 June – After work drinks 6-8pm at Brasserie des Halles de l’Ile
Geneva: 25 June – US Mission invites Americans to Town Hall meeting
Geneva: 16 July – After work drinks 6-8pm at Brasserie des Halles de l’Ile
Zurich: 2 July - Monthly DA Happy Happy Hour, 6-7:30pm at Regenbogen Bar
Zurich: 4 July – Celebrates Independence Day at Restaurant Alter Tobelhof
Ticino: DA meet up during Locarno film festival in August
2. DACH launches a BLOG with pages for each region: www.democrats.ch
3. We need your feedback – final call to fill out the DACH survey!
4. Global Issues Forum May events recap, photos & videos
5. Organizing for America
6. TV worth watching
7. Contact us
1. Events in the next month: Mark your calendars
Basel Monthly meeting July 2nd
Democrats Abroad members in Basel are meeting on July 2nd from 7pm-9pm in the Centrepoint library for our monthly meeting. This month's topic: The Landscape of Financial Regulatory Reform in the Wake of the Global Economic Crisis. Read more
Geneva All work and no play… is not fun at all.
Join fellow democrats, once per month, in a more relaxed after work atmosphere, for cocktails and conversation. In June we’ll kick off this tradition in Geneva at Brasserie Des Halles de l’Ile, on Tuesday, June 16th from 6pm to 8pm. This is a great chance to introduce new members to Democrats Abroad, so be sure to bring your friends. Save the date for July 16th, same time, same place! Read more.
Geneva US Mission in Geneva to host first ever “town hall” meeting
On June 25th, at 6pm, the US Mission to the UN, WTO, and the Organization for Disarmament, located in Geneva, is hosting its first ever “town hall” meeting, open to all Americans living in Switzerland. Space is limited, so please RSVP to events@democrats.ch. Read more.
Zurich Join Democrats Abroad in Zurich for a 'Happy Happy Hour’, which will be held every 1st Thursday of each month. Our first one will be on Thursday, July 2nd at the Regenbogen Bar. Meet up with new and old friends and join us for an hour of fun. All are welcome. Read more. Contact zurich@democrats.ch for more info.
Zurich 4th of July Events! Celebrate American Independence together!
The American Club of Zurich is, once again, organizing a fabulous July 4th party at the Restaurant Alter Tobelhof!! Democrats Abroad in Zurich is inviting all of our members to attend this great party where there will be: live music, great food (buffet), drinks, prizes, and FIREWORKS!!! Read more
Ticino DA meet up during Locarno Film Festival – August 8-16th, in Ticino. A group of Democrats Abroad members will be traveling to the festival and will meet with other Americans living in the area and enjoying some of the great features the festival has to offer. More to come soon on this event. Contact us if you want to get involved in planning: Ticino@democrats.ch. Look out for news on DA Ticino Blog.
We need YOUR help. We plan to launch monthly social meet ups in Lausanne, Basel, and other cities as well, so if you know of an interesting bar, pub, brasserie, or breuhaus, why not organize an after work drinks event in your area for Democrats Abroad members and friends? Contact us at info@democrats.ch
2. Visit our Blog!
In addition to the official website for Democrats Abroad Switzerland, we have created a blog with information specific to our activities in Switzerland to supplement our global website. Please visit www.Democrats.ch to find everything you need to know about our local organization, our ExCom members, and our past and upcoming activities, plus a number of other helpful links, resources, and of course . . . videos and photos! Check out the pages dedicated specifically to announcements and events in your region: Basel, Geneva, Ticino, Vaud & Zurich! We add new postings to our blog on a continuous basis, so be sure to check back frequently! Want to contribute or get more involved in your region? Send us an email.
3. We need to hear from you! Please complete our survey.
Our goal as an organization is to reach out to American’s living in Switzerland to make sure they are registered to vote and to engage them in the political process. It is also our mission to help raise funds for our own outreach projects in Switzerland and for the Democrats Abroad global organization. In general, the nominal costs of our local events are strictly to cover venue rentals and voter registration drives. We don’t charge membership dues, so we rely on your donations and your participation in our events so that we may continue our important work. It is therefore very important that we know what kind of events are of most interest to our membership.
We have prepared a short survey designed to find out what sorts of activities you would be most likely to support. We have heard from many of you, but we want to offer one last chance to reply. Please take a few minutes to respond to the questions in our survey right now by clicking the link below. Also, you’ll have the chance to win an Obama t-shirt just for participating.
4. Global Issues Forum kicked off to a great start!
During May, Democrats Abroad Switzerland was proud to kick off the first Global Issues Forum, this time focusing on the global economic crisis, with a range of activities throughout the country. In Geneva, US Ambassador to the World Trade Organization, Peter Allgeier, spoke before a group of more than 70 attendees. In Basel, Bill White, Director of the Economic Development Review Committee of the OECD, spoke to a group of over 50 at WWZ in Basel. Zurich and Geneva also held documentary film viewings and discussions of PBS Frontline’s Inside the Meltdown. As a special feature for those who missed our first Global Issues Forum events, we asked Bill White to pose a question to Ambassador Allgeier, and we posted his video responses on our blog here. We invite you to view this and other questions and the Ambassador’s responses at http.geneva.democrats.ch. Look forward to future “Global Issues Forum” presentations on health care, energy, and many other important topics. Contact us if you would like to get involved and volunteer to help plan the next ones!
The Obama presidential campaign was so successful because it got so many individual people involved in the political process. Now that President Obama is in office, it is vital that each one of us continue to help support his agenda. You don’t need to wait for a Democrats Abroad event! Start by visiting the Organizing for America website at www.barackobama.com. Sign in (or set up your account if you don’t have one) and see what activities might interest you. There are activities that you can do by yourself or in a group. There are discussion guides, video presentations, and documentary film links on topics of interest to Americans, such as health care, the environment, and the financial crisis, as well as information on phone banking and letter writing initiatives that anyone can do in their spare time. If you decide, for instance, to host a discussion in your home on health care using the program provided on the site, let us know and we’ll help spread the word in your area of Switzerland about it so that others may join. Working together and individually, we can make a difference and create the change we voted for!
NBC's Inside the White House offers a great peak at the life of the President, First Lady and White House staff. Click here to see NBC's Inside the White House
Click on this link to access the DACH contacts page, which includes contacts and links to:
Chapter / Regional Contacts
Press Liaison
Democrats Abroad Switzerland Officers
Email to Send Questions
Volunteer

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