Angela Merkel

        Angela Merkel is considered the most powerful woman in the world and the fourth most important person in the world (http://www.forbes.com/wealth/power-women/list).  Who is she and how did she get where she is today?  Merkel is the first woman Chancellor (our equivalent of the President) of Germany.   As Chancellor of Germany, she is the head of the most profitable member country of the European Union (EU) and she has great political influence in both the EU and the world.

Merkel did not start out in politics.  She was born in 1954 in Hamburg, Germany and studied science.  She received a doctorate in physics in 1978 and worked as a chemist for the Academy of Sciences for many years. (http://www.biography.com/people/angela-merkel-9406424).  Merkel got into politics when was appointed to the German Ministry of Women and Youth in 1990.  She continued to rise in the ranks of the party for 15 years.  In 2005 as the leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) political party, Merkel was elected as the first women Chancellor of Germany.

She is has long been a close ally of the United States and has stated that she believes that Europe in too dependent on Russian oil (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angela_Merkel).  In February of this year, President Obama awarded her the President Medal of Freedom for her contributions to contributing the U.S. interests and peace in the world.