The International Berlin Gathering, an event which dates back to 1996, takes place every year upon invitation by parliamentarians from the breakfast group at the German Bundestag. For several years, the President of the German Bundestag has been at the head of this invitation committee.
This conference is the brainchild of former Federal Minister Dr Hans-Jochen Vogel (1926-2020), formerly chairman of the Social Democratic parliamentary group in the German Bundestag, as well as the late Dr Lothar Späth (1937-2016), who was Minister-President of the German federal state of Baden-Wuerttemberg. Among the invitees to the International Berlin Gathering are representatives from German parliaments, governments, administrations, economy, and society, as well as parliamentarians, government members, ambassadors and other guests from more than 50 countries.
The International Berlin Gathering is part of a far-reaching international network, for example with ties to members of both houses of the US Congress. Both the International Berlin Gathering and the American National Prayer Breakfast have become models for similar events with numerous members of parliaments and governments in many other countries of the world.