The UfU has a new board
On August 30, we successfully held the General Meeting 2023. Numerous members attended and joined us in determining the future of the association. We adopted the 2023 budget, reported on the latest activities in the association and also presented further plans for the future. The general meeting concluded with a barbecue. However, the main point was the election of a new Board of Directors. We are very grateful that people have once again agreed to support the association with their expertise and oversee its development in the coming years.
UfU would like to thank all members of the Board of Directors for their commitment!
Chairman of the Management Board
Adrian Johst has been with UfU since its founding year. Mr. Johst has been a member of the Executive Board since 2001 – first as an assessor, then as Deputy Chairman. In 2023, he succeeded Dr. Michael Zschiesche as Chairman of the Institute. Mr. Johst holds a degree in biology and has been Managing Director of Naturstiftung David since 1999.
1st Vice-Chairman
In the wake of the Graichen affair, the UfU Board also dealt with compliance issues. The Executive Board was therefore restructured when the new Board was elected in August 2023. The honorary board is now always in the majority over the full-time executive board, including in the BGB area. As a result, our long-standing Board Spokesman Dr. Michael Zschiesche stepped down as Chairman of the UfU Board to make way for Adrian Johst as the new Chairman. Berthold Breid was also elected as treasurer. Michael Zschiesche will take over the position of Deputy Chairman of the Board with immediate effect, as will Florian Kliche.
2nd Vice-Chairman
Florian Kliche is also Managing Director at UfU and heads the Energy Efficiency and Energy Transition department at UfU. Mr. Kliche holds a degree in industrial engineering and has already served one term on the UfU Board. With immediate effect, Florian Kliche will take over as second deputy chairman of the board.
Treasurer on the Board of Directors
The Board has a new treasurer. Berthold Breid will keep a watchful eye on UfU’s finances in future. Berthold Breid is the founder and managing director of the Renewables Academy, an internationally active organization for training and capacity building in the field of renewable energies and energy efficiency.
Member of the UfU Board
Dr. Bianca Schemel got to know UfU in 2009 as a freelancer. She has been a member of the UfU Board since 2014. She works as a scientist, author and lecturer. Her expertise in the field of education for sustainable development is always an enrichment for UfU.
Member of the UfU Board
Sandra Kolberg is an environmental scientist and was already part of the UfU board in the previous period. Ms. Kolberg is one of two managing directors of GRÜNE LIGA Berlin e.V.
Member of the Executive Board
Malte Schmidthals was head of department at UfU from 1992 to 2016 and therefore knows the institute very well. Mr. Schmidthals currently works for the Institute for Futures Studies and Technology Assessment (IZT) in the field of education and digital media. He focuses on resource and climate protection and their integration into ESD and vocational education. IZT and UfU are members of Ecornet, a network of eight institutes for socio-ecological research.
Member of the UfU Board
Dr. Reinhard Klenke was there from the very beginning. He co-founded the UfU. Dr. Klenke holds a degree in biology and works for the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research in the field of nature conservation research. He is also acting head of the Department of Nature Conservation and Environmental Communication at UfU.
Employee representation on the Executive Board
Sophie Dolinga represents the interests of UfU employees on the Board. She was elected by the employees together with two other representatives and confirmed at the general meeting. Ms. Dolinga works as a political scientist in the field of environmental law and participation. As a research assistant, she deals with topics relating to democracy, civil society and participation.