Frauke Thies becomes new Executive Director at Agora Energiewende

Berlin, 3 May 2022. Frauke Thies will be the new Executive Director of think tank Agora Energiewende as of the 1^st of July. The environmental scientist and MBA has been working in leadership positions in various organisations in the climate and energy sector for over ten years. Thies will lead the organisation as Executive Director together with current Agora Managing Director Markus Steigenberger. She will primarily work in Agora's Brussels office, strengthening the think tank's European work.

"With her broad network, her high level of expertise in energy and climate policy, as well as her many years of leadership experience in various organisations and associations, Frauke Thies brings all the skills needed to successfully guide Agora Energiewende well into the future," said Markus Steigenberger. "I am very much looking forward to working with her to lead the dynamically developing organisation, which now has over 120 employees in four offices, and projects in 20 countries."

Previously, Frauke Thies led the climate domain at Open Society Foundations Europe and held senior leadership positions at various associations such as Smart Energy Europe (smartEn) and SolarPower Europe in Brussels. Since 2016, she has repeatedly been voted the most important non-institutional influencer in the EU energy policy field in Euractiv's EurActory40 ranking.

"I am extremely pleased to be working with the Agora Energiewende team to drive climate neutrality across all sectors in Germany, Europe, and globally," said Frauke Thies. In her new role as Executive Director, she reports directly to the Supervisory Board. "With her European and international experience, Frauke Thies is the ideal Executive Director for the increasingly global Agora. Together with her, we will work towards consistent implementation of the climate targets, and are very well prepared for the climate and energy policy challenges of the coming years," said the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Agora Energiewende, R. Andreas Kraemer.

Personal details
Frauke Thies was previously responsible for the climate portfolio of the Open Society Foundations in Europe. Prior to that, she worked in European associations for eight years, including as Executive Director of the European business association for digital and decentralised energy solutions, smartEn, from 2015 to 2020, and as Policy Director at SolarPower Europe from 2012 to 2015. Thies started her career at the environmental organisation Greenpeace, where she held various positions in EU energy policy from 2005 to 2012, with secondments to the USA and India. Thies holds a Master of Environmental Sciences from the University of Lüneburg and a Master of Business Administration from Vlerick Business School in Belgium.