Dr. Melinda Crane (*18/11/1956) presents the news program ‘Journal’ and hosts the talk shows ‘Quadriga’ and ‘Capital Cities’ on ‘Deutsche Welle-TV’.
She is also senior producer of ‘Global Players’, an international discussion show on CNBC. Crane has a J.D. from Harvard Law School and a Ph.D. from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in Medford, Massachusetts, USA. Her journalistic experience includes work for the ‘New York Times Magazine’ and several public TV stations in Germany.
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Moderators
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Dr. Hajo Schumacher (*22/04/1964) is the publisher of ‘V.i.S.d.P.’ a magazine for press relations professionals.
He also freelances for the German newspapers ‘Die Welt’ and ‘SZ Magazin,’ ‘Bunte’ magazine, ‘Spiegel online’ and the radio station ‘Deutschlandradio Kultur’. He co-hosts the political talk show ‘Linksrechts’ on the TV news channel N24. After 1990, Schumacher was head of ‘Spiegel’ magazine’s Berlin office, followed by a stint as editor-in-chief of ‘Max’ magazine. Schumacher graduated from the German School of Journalism in Munich and studied journalism, politics and psychology.
He also freelances for the German newspapers ‘Die Welt’ and ‘SZ Magazin,’ ‘Bunte’ magazine, ‘Spiegel online’ and the radio station ‘Deutschlandradio Kultur’. He co-hosts the political talk show ‘Linksrechts’ on the TV news channel N24. After 1990, Schumacher was head of ‘Spiegel’ magazine’s Berlin office, followed by a stint as editor-in-chief of ‘Max’ magazine. Schumacher graduated from the German School of Journalism in Munich and studied journalism, politics and psychology.
The Speakers
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Anton Milner (*17/02/1961), is co-founder and CEO of Q-Cells AG. After earning a degree in engineering sciences, he went on to work for Royal Dutch Shell Group in The Hague, Netherlands in the areas of oil trading, risk management and business analysis, and for McKinsey & Co. corporate consulting. In late 1999, Q-Cells began manufacturing silicon solar cells with just 19 employees. Today the company is one of the world’s largest solar cell manufacturers and has nearly 1,100 employees. Q-Cells AG generated revenue of 539.5 million euros in 2006.
www.q-cells.com
www.q-cells.com
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Dr. Wulf Bentlage (*29/09/1963) founded Geohumus International GmbH & Co. KG with the retired chemist Dr. Reimar Peppmöller in 2004.
The company sells ‘Geohumus,’ the soil conditioner invented and patented by Peppmöller. 20 employees work for the company in Frankfurt/Main. As CEO, Bentlage is chiefly responsible for key account recruitment and controlling. The company’s new production plant produces around 25,000 tonnes of Geohumus granulate a year. It won the 2006 German Start-Up Award (Deutscher Gründerpreis) for ‘Best Concept’.
www.geohumus.com
The company sells ‘Geohumus,’ the soil conditioner invented and patented by Peppmöller. 20 employees work for the company in Frankfurt/Main. As CEO, Bentlage is chiefly responsible for key account recruitment and controlling. The company’s new production plant produces around 25,000 tonnes of Geohumus granulate a year. It won the 2006 German Start-Up Award (Deutscher Gründerpreis) for ‘Best Concept’.
www.geohumus.com
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Thomas Blades *17/09/1956) has served as CEO of CHOREN Industries GmbH, a globally leading vendor of gasification technologies for solid biomass and carbonaceous residues, since 2004.
The company in Freiberg (Saxony) has about 200 employees and is a leading producer of synthetic biofuels (BTL) based on its internationally patented Carbo-V® process. In addition to his responsibilities at CHOREN ndustries, Blades sits on the boards of the oil and gas companies Twister BV, Netherlands, and Venture Production plc, UK. Prior to joining CHOREN Industries, Blades, who holds a degree in electrical engineering, was President and CEO of SPECTRO, a company in Kleve, Germany, for five years, and Executive Vice President of NUMAR Corporation/Halliburton in Houston, USA for two years.
www.choren.com
The company in Freiberg (Saxony) has about 200 employees and is a leading producer of synthetic biofuels (BTL) based on its internationally patented Carbo-V® process. In addition to his responsibilities at CHOREN ndustries, Blades sits on the boards of the oil and gas companies Twister BV, Netherlands, and Venture Production plc, UK. Prior to joining CHOREN Industries, Blades, who holds a degree in electrical engineering, was President and CEO of SPECTRO, a company in Kleve, Germany, for five years, and Executive Vice President of NUMAR Corporation/Halliburton in Houston, USA for two years.
www.choren.com
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Prof. Dr. Alexander M. Bradshaw (*12/07/1944) has served as Scientific Director of the Max-Planck-Institut für Plasmaphysik (IPP) in Garching and Greifswald since 1999.
With around 1,100 employees, the IPP is one of the largest centres for fusion research in Europe, and hosted the international ITER planning group from 1988 to 2006. After taking his „Habilitation“ in physical chemistry in 1974, Bradshaw worked at the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society in Berlin from 1976 to 1998, from 1980 as a Scientific Fellow and Director. His research concentrates on quantitative photoelectron diffraction, photoionisation phenomena in free molecules, fusion research and general energy topics.
www.ipp.mpg.de
With around 1,100 employees, the IPP is one of the largest centres for fusion research in Europe, and hosted the international ITER planning group from 1988 to 2006. After taking his „Habilitation“ in physical chemistry in 1974, Bradshaw worked at the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society in Berlin from 1976 to 1998, from 1980 as a Scientific Fellow and Director. His research concentrates on quantitative photoelectron diffraction, photoionisation phenomena in free molecules, fusion research and general energy topics.
www.ipp.mpg.de
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Kevin Ali (*20/05/1960) has served as CEO of MSD SHARP & DOHME GMBH Germany as well as Vice President Merck & Co., Inc. for the Region Europe, Middle East, Africa, Canada (EMEAC) since 2005.
Both companies are based in Haar, Bavaria. Prior to this, the US native was CEO of Merck Sharp & Dohme Türkiye Ltd., where he oversaw more than 500 employees and the overall business strategy. Ali also held a number of marketing and product management positions at locations in Germany, Egypt and Cyprus. MSD SHARP & DOHME GMBH is a German subsidiary of Merck & Co. Inc., one of the world’s largest and most research-intensive pharmaceuticals companies. The MSD group of companies in Germany had revenue of 560 million euros in 2006.
www.msd.de
www.merck.com
Both companies are based in Haar, Bavaria. Prior to this, the US native was CEO of Merck Sharp & Dohme Türkiye Ltd., where he oversaw more than 500 employees and the overall business strategy. Ali also held a number of marketing and product management positions at locations in Germany, Egypt and Cyprus. MSD SHARP & DOHME GMBH is a German subsidiary of Merck & Co. Inc., one of the world’s largest and most research-intensive pharmaceuticals companies. The MSD group of companies in Germany had revenue of 560 million euros in 2006.
www.msd.de
www.merck.com
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Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Dr. Alexander Wurzer (*15/04/1969) heads the Institute for Intellectual Property Management at the Steinbeis University Berlin. The biophysicist is a visiting professor for IP Management at the Centre d´Etudes International de la Propriété Industrielle at the Université Robert Schuman in Strasbourg, France, and a visiting lecturer in patent appraisal at Düsseldorf University, the FH Amberg-Weiden, and other academies and universities. He is also managing partner of PATEV GmbH & Co. KG, the Society for Appraising and Exploiting Industrial Property Rights and Technologies. Steinbeis University is part of the Steinbeis network active worldwide in technology and knowledge transfer. In 2005, more than 4,600 employees worked on over 14,000 projects more than 700 Steinbeis companies worldwide.
www.sti-ipm.de
www.sti-ipm.de
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Hans G. Huber (*06/09/1942) has been CEO of Hans Huber AG since 1968.
The medium-size company based in Berching (Bavaria) produces machinery and equipment for sewage and wastewater treatment technology, and sludge processing. Hans Huber studied engineering sciences at the Technical University of Munich, specialising in process engineering. In October 2006, Hans Huber won the German Environmental Award of the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt for his innovative decentralised wastewater recycling technology. The company’s around 800 employees generate annual revenue of around 120 million euros.
www.huber.de
www.huber-solutions.com
The medium-size company based in Berching (Bavaria) produces machinery and equipment for sewage and wastewater treatment technology, and sludge processing. Hans Huber studied engineering sciences at the Technical University of Munich, specialising in process engineering. In October 2006, Hans Huber won the German Environmental Award of the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt for his innovative decentralised wastewater recycling technology. The company’s around 800 employees generate annual revenue of around 120 million euros.
www.huber.de
www.huber-solutions.com
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Dr. Günter Rolf Fuhr (*1953/07/29) has been Director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Biomedical Technology (IBMT) in St. Ingbert (Saarland), which is part of the Fraunhofer network of 58 institutes, since 2001. About 250 employees work at the institute. Fuhr, who holds PhD's in biophysics and cellular biology, has simultaneously the Chair for Biotechnology and Medical Technology at the University of the Saarland Medical Faculty (since 2001), was visiting professor in Japan, USA and other countries (1997 to 2000), Vice Dean of the Mathematics and Natural Sciences Faculty I (1994 to 1996), thereby being full professor at the Institute of Biology at Humboldt University Berlin (1993-2001).
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Peter Krämer (*02/12/1950) is CEO of Reederei Marine Service GmbH in Hamburg.
The company, established by his father in 1958, specialises in transporting oil, chemicals and liquid gas. A lawyer by training, Krämer is also the founder of the ‘Hamburg Society to Promote Democracy and International Law’. The society works to promote international peace. In 2004, Krämer launched the ‘Schools for Africa’ campaign, to which he has donated 3.8 million euros to date. The initiative is organised by UNICEF and backed by the Nelson Mandela Foundation.
www.unicef.de
The company, established by his father in 1958, specialises in transporting oil, chemicals and liquid gas. A lawyer by training, Krämer is also the founder of the ‘Hamburg Society to Promote Democracy and International Law’. The society works to promote international peace. In 2004, Krämer launched the ‘Schools for Africa’ campaign, to which he has donated 3.8 million euros to date. The initiative is organised by UNICEF and backed by the Nelson Mandela Foundation.
www.unicef.de
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Dr. Carl Mesters (*05/09/1956) has been Shell´s Group Chief Scientist Chemistry and Catalysis with around 108.000 employees since 1984.
Prior to this, Mesters a native Dutchman, was Chairman of the Royal Dutch Chemical Association’s Catalysis Society, and in 1998 chaired the 9th Roermond Catalysis Conference. Mesters currently sits on the research committee of the Dutch Institute for Catalysis Research.
www.shell.com/technology
Prior to this, Mesters a native Dutchman, was Chairman of the Royal Dutch Chemical Association’s Catalysis Society, and in 1998 chaired the 9th Roermond Catalysis Conference. Mesters currently sits on the research committee of the Dutch Institute for Catalysis Research.
www.shell.com/technology
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Dr Edgar Meister (*21/05/1940) was a member of the Deutsche Bundesbank executive board from 2002 to 2007, where he was responsible for the Department of Banking and Financial Supervision (since 2002) and the Auditing Department (since 2006).
A lawyer by training, he has also served as Chairman of the Banking Supervision Committee of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) since 1998. From 1993 to 2002, Meister was a member of the Directorate of the Deutsche Bundesbank, responsible for the Department of Banking and Minimum Reserves and the Cash Department. He was Rhineland-Palatinate’s Minister of Finance from 1991 to 1993. Dr Meister now works as a lawyer in Frankfurt.
www.bundesbank.de
A lawyer by training, he has also served as Chairman of the Banking Supervision Committee of the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) since 1998. From 1993 to 2002, Meister was a member of the Directorate of the Deutsche Bundesbank, responsible for the Department of Banking and Minimum Reserves and the Cash Department. He was Rhineland-Palatinate’s Minister of Finance from 1991 to 1993. Dr Meister now works as a lawyer in Frankfurt.
www.bundesbank.de
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Michael Schäfer (*01/06/1953) is the founder and CEO of Energiebau Solarstromsysteme GmbH based in Cologne. Schäfer, who holds a degree in agricultural engineering, originally established the company in 1983 with five other engineers as a firm of planners and trade contractors. As a systems vendor and expert wholesaler, the company now specialises in selling solar power generation facilities. Each year, its 50 employees generate over 100 million euros in revenue. In 2007, the company won Harvard University’s Roy Family Award.
www.sun-over-mbinga.com
www.sun-over-mbinga.com
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Achim Noack (*17/07/1959) was appointed as managing director of Bayer Technology Services GmbH in 2005, having served as head of the company’s US office from 2002 to 2005.
After receiving his master in chemical engineering at the university in Hamburg in 1986 Noack led various engineering departments within the Bayer Group both in Germany and the U.S. Bayer Technology Services, the technological backbone of the Bayer Group, is engaged in process development and engineering, construction and optimization of plants and processes. The service company also develops innovative technology platforms that contribute substantially to the efficiency of Bayer´s operating units. It employs nearly 2,200 experts worldwide at its headquarters in Leverkusen and other German locations, as well as in regional offices in Baytown, Texas, USA; Antwerp, Belgium; Mexico City, Mexico; and Shanghai, People's Republic of China. 2006 sales totaled approx. EUR 380 million.
Additional information about Bayer Technology Services is available at www.bayertechnology.com.
After receiving his master in chemical engineering at the university in Hamburg in 1986 Noack led various engineering departments within the Bayer Group both in Germany and the U.S. Bayer Technology Services, the technological backbone of the Bayer Group, is engaged in process development and engineering, construction and optimization of plants and processes. The service company also develops innovative technology platforms that contribute substantially to the efficiency of Bayer´s operating units. It employs nearly 2,200 experts worldwide at its headquarters in Leverkusen and other German locations, as well as in regional offices in Baytown, Texas, USA; Antwerp, Belgium; Mexico City, Mexico; and Shanghai, People's Republic of China. 2006 sales totaled approx. EUR 380 million.
Additional information about Bayer Technology Services is available at www.bayertechnology.com.
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Odi Lahav (*11/04/1977) is the Head of the European Alternative Investment Group at the rating agency Moody’s Investors Service Ltd. in London.
Lahav graduated from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa with a degree in Actuarial Science and Mathematical Statistics. Prior to joining Moody’s, Odi was the Director of Hedge Fund Ratings at Allenbridge Group Plc, a London-based global research and consulting firm.
www.moodys.com
Lahav graduated from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa with a degree in Actuarial Science and Mathematical Statistics. Prior to joining Moody’s, Odi was the Director of Hedge Fund Ratings at Allenbridge Group Plc, a London-based global research and consulting firm.
www.moodys.com
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Dr. Thomas Heath (*14/09/1948) is Lead Engineer and Engineering Manager for Wavegen Ltd., a wholly owned Scottish subsidiary of Voith Siemens Hydro Power Generation GmbH & Co. KG. With a workforce of around 2,500 employees and an order intake of around 720 million EUR in the past business year, the parent company is a globally leading supplier of hydro power equipment. Before joining Wavegen in 1991, Heath worked as a Materials and Engineering Consultant at Anisotropics Ltd. He studied engineering and holds a PhD from the University of Warwick (1974). His current focus is the establishment of a complete range of reliable turbo-generation products for OWC wave energy systems to satisfy breakwater applications and future floating systems.
www.voithsiemens.com
www.voithsiemens.com
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Prof. Dr. Dr. Franz Josef Radermacher (*20/03/1950) is one of the chief initiators of the Global Marshall Plan Initiative based in Hamburg.
He also heads the Research Institute for Applied Knowledge Processing (FAW/n) at the University of Ulm, where he is a professor for computer sciences. Radermacher has served as Vice President of the Ecosocial Forum Europe since 2001 and as President of the Bundesverband für Wirtschaftsförderung and Außenwirtschaft e.V. (German Association for Business Promotion and Foreign Trade) since 2005. He became a member of the Club of Rome in 2002.
www.globalmarshallplan.org
He also heads the Research Institute for Applied Knowledge Processing (FAW/n) at the University of Ulm, where he is a professor for computer sciences. Radermacher has served as Vice President of the Ecosocial Forum Europe since 2001 and as President of the Bundesverband für Wirtschaftsförderung and Außenwirtschaft e.V. (German Association for Business Promotion and Foreign Trade) since 2005. He became a member of the Club of Rome in 2002.
www.globalmarshallplan.org
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Dr. Sven Rau (*12/02/1973) supervises the German Research Foundation’s “Switchable Organometallic Compounds as functional Units for Catalytic Reactions and Reversible DNA Coordination” project at Friedrich Schiller University in Jena (Thuringia) since 2002. He leads a team of eleven scientists. A doctor of chemistry, he has been part of the Collaborative Research Centre “Metal Mediated Reactions Modelled after Nature”, SFB 436. He is currently qualifying as a professor as part of the research group headed by Prof. Dr. M. Westerhausen at the Institute for Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry.
www.chemie.uni-jena.de/institute/ac/rau/
www.chemie.uni-jena.de/institute/ac/rau/
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Prof. Dr. Günther Schuh (*19/11/1958) sits on the board of governors of the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology (IPT) in Aachen.
He holds degrees in economics and engineering, and has served as the Chair for Production Systems at RWTH Aachen University since 2002 and a member of the board of governors of its machine tools lab. Schuh has held the same position at the Research Institute Research Institute for Rationalisation (FIR) at RWTH since 2004. He also sits on various supervisory and advisory boards. The Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT and its 300 employees pursue application-focused research and development for companies in industry.
http://technologiemanagement.ipt.fraunhofer.de
He holds degrees in economics and engineering, and has served as the Chair for Production Systems at RWTH Aachen University since 2002 and a member of the board of governors of its machine tools lab. Schuh has held the same position at the Research Institute Research Institute for Rationalisation (FIR) at RWTH since 2004. He also sits on various supervisory and advisory boards. The Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT and its 300 employees pursue application-focused research and development for companies in industry.
http://technologiemanagement.ipt.fraunhofer.de
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Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Horst Siebert (*20/03/1938), a German economist, is Heinz Nixdorf Professor in European Integration and Economic Policy at Johns Hopkins University in Bologna, Italy and president emeritus of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, which he headed from 1989 to 2003.
He also sits on the ‘Claremont-Bologna International Economic Policy Forum’ advisory committee. Siebert is a member of the President of the European Commission’s ‘Group of Economic Policy Analysis’ and of the ‘International Economic Association Council’ executive committee. From 1989 to 2003, Siebert was a member of the German Council of Economic Experts. In May 2007, he received the Hayek Award for his decades of efforts to publicly promote a liberal economic order at the national and international levels.
He also sits on the ‘Claremont-Bologna International Economic Policy Forum’ advisory committee. Siebert is a member of the President of the European Commission’s ‘Group of Economic Policy Analysis’ and of the ‘International Economic Association Council’ executive committee. From 1989 to 2003, Siebert was a member of the German Council of Economic Experts. In May 2007, he received the Hayek Award for his decades of efforts to publicly promote a liberal economic order at the national and international levels.
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Stephan Wrage (*28/11/1972) is the founder and CEO of SkySails GmbH & Co. KG, Hamburg.
He is in charge of the company's sales, public and investor relations, and business development. Since 2000, the industrial engineer has devoted himself to developing and marketing towing kites as a means of propulsion. SkySails now holds six patents for this invention and has 42 employees. SkySails was among the 5 finalists of the 2007 "Innovation Award of German Business" for best start-up.
www.skysails.de
He is in charge of the company's sales, public and investor relations, and business development. Since 2000, the industrial engineer has devoted himself to developing and marketing towing kites as a means of propulsion. SkySails now holds six patents for this invention and has 42 employees. SkySails was among the 5 finalists of the 2007 "Innovation Award of German Business" for best start-up.
www.skysails.de
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Sven Utermöhlen (*20/03/1968) is CEO of E.ON Energy Projects GmbH, a wholly-owned subsidiary of E.ON Energie AG based in Munich.
Sven Utermöhlen has a degree in geophysics and has worked in the oil and gas business for Royal Dutch/Shell, and as a corporate consultant at the Boston Consulting Group. Utermöhlen is currently involved in offshore wind power projects in Germany, as well as onshore projects in Poland, France, Italy and eastern Europe. E.ON Energy Projects unites the E.ON Energie group's renewable energy business, as well as projects involving industrial power plants and energy contracting. The company has approximately 70 employees. E.ON Energie AG generated annual revenue of around 68 billion euros in 2006.
Sven Utermöhlen has a degree in geophysics and has worked in the oil and gas business for Royal Dutch/Shell, and as a corporate consultant at the Boston Consulting Group. Utermöhlen is currently involved in offshore wind power projects in Germany, as well as onshore projects in Poland, France, Italy and eastern Europe. E.ON Energy Projects unites the E.ON Energie group's renewable energy business, as well as projects involving industrial power plants and energy contracting. The company has approximately 70 employees. E.ON Energie AG generated annual revenue of around 68 billion euros in 2006.