Cem Özdemir
Member of the German Bundestag
Cem Özdemir is Member of the German Bundestag and since 1981 he has been member of the political party Bündnis 90/Die Grünen (Alliance 90/The Greens). For ten years he has been chairman of his party.
Born in Bad Urach as son of Turkish parents, he studied social pedagogy at the Evangelische Fachhochschule für Sozialwesen in Reutlingen. Ecology and sustainability have already been main topics in his younger years and so his accession to the Green Party was a decision consistent with his interests. As Germany's first politician with a Turkish background he was elected Member of the German Bundestag in 1994.
Between 2004 and 2009 he was a Member of the European Parliament. Cem Özdemir was Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs of the Green Party and Vice-President of the CIA Special Committee. From 2008 to January 2018 Cem Özdemir served as chair of the Green Party and since 2013 he has been Member of the German Bundestag again. He was the Green Party top candidate for the 2017 German federal election.
In 1996 he received the Theodor-Heuss-Medal as well as the Civis Media Prize for his commitment for a prejudice-free coexistence of Germans and migrants. In 2009 the Turkish Tunceli University awarded him an honorary degree for his commitment for understanding between cultures. (212 words)and lecturer.
