Faust Pitches Global Impact In Berlin

University President Drew G. Faust commended Harvard’s global impact at an alumni event in Berlin Friday, the latest in a series of international trips she has made as part of the University’s ongoing capital campaign.

Speaking at the Deutsches Historisches Museum, Faust discussed Harvard’s societal role as a modern research university in front of alumni and Harvard supporters in Berlin. She has made a number of similar appearances as part of the “Your Harvard” series around the country and world, including in Beijing, Mexico City, New York, and Boston.

University Drew G. Faust in an interview last spring. By Helen Y. Wu

“We are an inherently—and intentionally—global institution, and we are becoming more expansive in our reach and our presence throughout the world,” Faust said at the event, according to excerpts of her remarks publicized by the Harvard Alumni Association.

Beyond Faust’s remarks, the event also featured a discussion between Harvard professors. Mary Sarotte ’88, a visiting professor from Germany, led a panel on global migration with Juliette Kayyem ’91, a lecturer at the Harvard Kennedy School, and Werner Sollors, an English professor.

Faust’s trip to meet with European alumni comes in the midst of the University’s ongoing capital campaign. Harvard announced it had raised $7 billion in September, officially surpassing its fundraising goal of $6.5 billion, almost two years before its 2018 end date. While it has raised more than its total goal, the University is still seeking money for a number of individual initiatives, such as financial aid and House renewal.

During past appearances about the campaign, Faust has discussed specific fundraising priorities, including the campus in Allston.

In addition to the Alumni Association, several Harvard clubs in Germany sponsored the event, including the Harvard Club of Berlin, the Harvard Club of Hamburg, the Harvard Club of Munich, the Harvard Club of Rhein-Main, and the Harvard Club of Rhein-Ruhr.

The gathering in Berlin was the 12th “Your Harvard” event since the launch of the capital campaign, and the second in Europe—Faust visited London in 2014. Faust’s next stops on the “Your Harvard” tour will be Miami, in February 2017, Singapore the month after, and Minneapolis in June 2017.

—Staff writer Andrew M. Duehren can be reached at andy.duehren@thecrimson.com. Follow him on Twitter @aduehren.

—Staff writer Daphne C. Thompson can be reached at daphne.thompson@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @daphnectho