Hamburg – The organisational consultant Katrin-Susanne Richter and the entrepreneur Dr. Thiemo Gropp have been appointed Directors of the DESERTEC Foundation. Max Schön, entrepreneur and President of the German Chapter of the Club of Rome, takes over as Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the non-profit Foundation.
The previous Directors Dr. Gerhard Timm and Friedrich Führ will remain closely connected with the Foundation. Dr. Gerhard Timm has been elected into the Supervisory Board. Friedrich Führ is developing concepts for events to actively promote the DESERTEC idea in additional regions of the world and to reach new target audiences.
"I am deeply grateful to the founding Directors, Dr. Gerhard Timm and Friedrich Führ, for their dedication and their invaluable contribution to the establishment of the DESERTEC Foundation," said Dr. Gerhard Knies, the previous Chairman of the Supervisory Board and main initiator of the Foundation. "Being over 70 years old now, I am happy to hand over the Chair of the Supervisory Board to such an experienced manager as Max Schön."
Dr. Gerhard Knies is now Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Foundation, and will dedicate himself to the further development of the DESERTEC concept as a global solution for clean energy supply.
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About the Individuals
Katrin-Susanne Richter (41) joined the DESERTEC Foundation in January 2010. Previously, she worked as an organisational and leadership consultant and held management positions in several fast-growing software companies. Katrin-Susanne Richter has a master’s degree in mathematics, and holds an MBA from the international business school INSEAD in France.
Dr. Thiemo Gropp (40) is a co-founder of the DESERTEC Foundation and has been following the development of renewable energies for many years. As an entrepreneur he has built and led several nationally as well as internationally successful technology companies. Dr. Thiemo Gropp studied physics in Germany and the USA and has a PhD in biochemistry.
About the DESERTEC Foundation
The DESERTEC Foundation has evolved from a network of politicians, academics and economists from Europe, the Middle East and North Africa and the German Chapter of the Club of Rome, which jointly developed the DESERTEC Concept.
The DESERTEC Concept aims for a fundamental transformation of the global supply of energy. The objective is to convert power production to renewable sources, in particular, harnessing the high energy potential of the world’s desert regions. DESERTEC is a holistic concept that, besides energy security and climate protection, addresses the subjects of drinking water supply, socio-economic development, international cooperation, and security policy.
The DESERTEC Foundation advises interested NGOs, commercial enterprises, national governments, and international organisations and brings them together to accelerate the implementation of the DESERTEC Concept. The Foundation cooperates with universities, scientific institutions and other partners to establish local expertise for participation in DESERTEC projects.
