Putting a Human Face on Global Trade

By WEDC Secretary and CEO John Miller

There’s no better way to get to know someone than by meeting face-to-face, talking things over, and experiencing their culture and their roots. That’s true not only for individuals and businesses, but for nations and states as well.

This was the guiding motivation when Wisconsin Gov. Patrick Lucey and Albert Osswald, the Minister-President of Hessen, Germany, declared their intent in September 1976 to “establish a Partnership as a symbol of their existing friendly relations” between the two states.

During a recent trade trip by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation to Germany, Switzerland, and France, I joined our partners in Hessen in kicking off the 50^th anniversary of our sister-state relationship.

In addition to meeting with business and government leaders, our delegation had the chance to experience Hessen’s annual state fair – Hessentag – and toast our states’ golden anniversary with a special Buddy Beer brewed in a collaboration between Sheboygan’s 3 Sheeps Brewery and Hessen’s Glaabsbräu brewery.

Wisconsin’s ties with Germany run deep. In addition to German immigrants playing a major role in our state’s history, Germany is Wisconsin’s fifth-largest trading partner, accounting for nearly $1 billion in state exports in 2025.

Our state is also home to a number of leading German companies, including Haribo in Pleasant Prairie, Messer and Schunk in Menomonee Falls, Merck/Millipore Sigma in Madison, Verona, and Sheboygan Falls, and Schutz Container Systems in Kenosha.

What drives these and other investments in Wisconsin is a sense of shared values and shared vision: a commitment to education, research, and innovation, particularly in the fields of biohealth, clean energy, and advanced manufacturing.

Our visit happened to coincide with the G7 Summit. While world leaders focused on the contentious issues of tariffs, trade, and global security, our conversations explored ways to move forward at the state-to-state and business-to-business level.

Later this year, Wisconsin will host the Hessen delegation, where we will announce new ways our two communities can strengthen relations for the next 50 years – through academic and entrepreneurial partnerships, cultural events, and academic and entrepreneurial exchanges.

John W. Miller is the Secretary and CEO of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC), the state’s leading economic development organization.