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Patrick Graichen moves to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action as State Secretary
The Executive Director of Agora Energiewende will be responsible for the implementation of climate and energy policy in the German government.
Berlin, 30 November 2021. The current Executive Director and Managing Director of Agora Energiewende, Dr Patrick Graichen, is designated to become State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. Graichen has headed Agora Energiewende since 2014. His new appointment underscores the important role of the think tank in supporting Germany's transformation to climate neutrality.
“The Agora Energiewende team warmly congratulates Patrick Graichen on his new role,” said Managing Director Markus Steigenberger. “At the same time, we thank him for the last eight years. Under Patrick’s direction, Agora has become one of the leading think tanks for climate and energy policy at the German, European, and international level.”
With Graichen leaving, Markus Steigenberger will temporarily take over the management of the organization. He will be supported by the team of Directors, including Matthias Buck (Europe), Simon Müller (Germany), Frank Peter (Industry) and Jesse Scott (International).
“In recent years, Agora Energiewende has been able to make important contributions to the success of the energy transition in Germany, Europe, and globally,” said the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Agora Energiewende, R. Andreas Kraemer. “In the future, we will continue to work towards consistent implementation of the climate targets. The Supervisory Board will now proceed to swiftly appoint a suitable successor to Patrick Graichen.”
About Patrick Graichen
Patrick Graichen has helped build Agora Energiewende since 2012, when he joined as its Deputy Director. Since 2014 he has been heading the think tank as Executive Director. As head of Agora, he gave impetus to domestic and international climate and energy policy. Before joining Agora Energiewende, Graichen worked at the German Federal Ministry for the Environment from 2001 to 2012. Graichen studied political science and economics in Heidelberg and Cambridge, UK, and earned his Doctorate on Municipal Energy Policy at the Interdisciplinary Institute for Environmental Economics at the University of Heidelberg. In 2018, he was named ‘Energy Manager of the Year’ by the journal Energie & Management.
