Has a decade of the AfD changed Germany, and why is Berlin repeating elections?

In the latest episode, host Rachel Loxton is joined by journalists Imogen Goodman and Aaron Burnett, as well as political scientist Florian Hartleb and professor of sports management at the German Sport University in Cologne Sebastian Uhrich.

We start by talking about how communities in Germany are supporting victims after the devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.

• Turkish community in Germany gathers to help earthquake victims

We then talk about why Berlin is having to repeat elections from 2021, what the polls are saying and who's responsible for the chaos.

• How the German government will be tested in 2023 by four elections
• EXPLAINED: Why Berlin could vote again after 2021 election disaster

Germany is adapting its immigration and citizenship laws to attract more skilled workers from abroad - but what’s the impact of foreign workers in so-called STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) fields been in the last years? We talk about which countries people have been arriving from, and the growing Indian population in Germany.

• Germany sees '550 percent increase' in Indian IT workers over a decade
• Indians in Germany: Who are they and where do they live?

The far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD) was founded 10 years ago this week. We discuss why the party is controversial, who votes for them, and political scientist Florian Hartleb talks about the impact the party has had on politics and German society.

The Super Bowl is coming up in the States this weekend, but the NFL also has its eyes on growing its American football fanbase in Germany. We talk about where people can watch the Super Bowl in Germany, and professor of sports management Sebastian Uhrich talks about how popular American football is in the Bundesrepublik.

• Where to watch the Super Bowl in Germany

Finally, we share a few German words or phrases associated with Valentine’s Day.

• 8 phrases you need for getting romantic in German
• German phrase of the day: Hab' dich lieb

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