Speakers 2011
Hermann Amecke
- Analyst at the Climate Policy Initiative Berlin (CPI), hosted by the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW)
- Focus on the building sector
- MSc in Environmental Policy and Regulation (London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE)
LR Rudi Anschober
- Regional Minister for Energy, Austria
- Opening Address
Abdelkader Baccouche
- Head of department and in charge of the national programme of promoting solar thermal energy, National Agency for Energy Conservation, Tunesia
- Postgraduate diploma (N ational Engineering Graduate school)
Phil Bacon
- Responsible for sales and distribution at Sertec Energy, a solar panel manufacturer in Great Britain
- Founding director of Tidal Energy
- BSc. Hons. in mechanical engineering
Riccardo Battisti
- Since 2008 working with Ambiente Italia at the headquarter in Rome
- Before, Secretary General of the Italian Solar Thermal Association (Assolterm)
- Degree in Mechanical Engineering (University of Rome), PhD in Energy
Hans Martin Behr
- Since 2009, executive manager of Holz-Energie-Zentrum Olsberg
- Since 2008, executive manager of Power Pellets Vertriebs GmbH
- Degree in forest science (University of Göttingen)
Nils Borg
- Executive Director of the European Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (eceee)
- Editor for the newsletter of the International Association for Energy Efficient Lighting
- Educational background: languages, political science and economic history
Valérie Borroni
- Project manager at RhÎne-Alpénergie-Environnement, focus on biogas, wood energy and environmental management
- Before, project manager at Cabinet Chavet, Paris. Working fields: forest management, statistics
- Master degree in environmental sciences and regional development (Lille)
Stefano Carosio
- Group member of the European Construction Technology Platform
- Division Manager Research and Innovation at DâAppolonia SpA, Italy
- Degree in Chemical Engineering (University of Genoa), PhD
Gerhard Dell
- Energy Commissioner to the Upper Austrian Government
- Director of O.Ă. Energiesparverband
- National award for energy research
- Lecturer at the University of Linz
- Degree and a post-graduate degree (PhDengineering, Dr.tech.) in Electrical Engineering and Energy Economics. He worked as researcher on renewable energy sources and energy efficiency projects at the Technical University Graz
Speaker at the European Pellet Conference
Speaker at the Conference "Building Renovation"
Harry âDutchâ Dresser
- Founding and managing director of Maine Energy Systems in Bethel, Maine, USA
- Vice-President of the Maine Pellet Fuels Association
Sorcha Edwards
- Deputy Secretary General at CECODHAS, the European Liaison Committee for Social Housing
- Fields: energy coordination, communication, coordination of the project âPower House Europeâ
Chairperson at the Conference "Building Renovation"
Christiane Egger
- Deputy manager of the O.Ă. Energiesparverband
- Conference director of the World Sustainable Energy Days
- Lawyer and environmental engineer with long-term experience in developing and implementing sustainable energy projects on international and regional levels
Speaker at the European Pellet Conference
Speaker at the Conference "Solar Process Heat"
Jan Geiss
- Secretary General of EUFORES - The European Forum for Renewable Energy Sources
- Chair of the Board of the Sustainable Development Forum Germany
- PhD in Political Science and Economics (University of Passau, Germany)
Javier Gil BarnĂł
- Head of the department "Thermo-chemical Applications of Biomass" at the National Renewable Energy Centre (CENER), Spain
- Before, senior researcher at the Biomass Energy Department at CENER
- Degree in chemistry (University of Saragossa), PhD
Ralf Goldmann
- Since 2007 at the European Investment Bank (EIB), core activities on energy efficiency and on energy performance contracting projects in the public sector
- Before, head of the national and international consulting divisions of the Berlin Energy agency
- Degree in mechanical engineering, specialised in thermodynamics
Reinhard Haas
- Professor at the Institute of Electric Facilities and Energy Industry at the Vienna University of Technology
- Research in the areas of dissemination strategies for renewables, sustainable energy systems, liberalisation vs. regulation of energy markets, energy figures and scenarios
- Coordination of national and European projects
Andreas HĂ€berle
- EO of PSE AG, a spin-off company from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, Germany
- Before, scientist and project manager at Fraunhofer ISE
- Degree in physics at the Technical University of Munich, PhD
Roger Hackstock
- Executive Manager at the Association Austria Solar
- Before, personal assistant of the executive manager of the Austrian Energy Agency â E.V.A.
- Degree in electric and environmental engineering (Technical University of Vienna)
MEP Fiona Hall
- Vice-President of the European Forum for Renewable Energy Sources (EUFORES)
- Since 2004, Member of the European Parliament and since 2009 leader of the Liberal Democrat European Parliamentary Party
- Member of the Industry, Research and Energy Committee
Hans Hartmann
- Head of the field "solid biofuels" at the "Technologie- und Förderzentrum im Kompetenzzentrum fĂŒr Nachwachsende Rohstoffe", Germany
- Before, project manager at the Bavarian "Landesanstalt fĂŒr Landtechnik" at the TU MĂŒnchen
- Degree in agricultural sciences, PhD (Technical University of Munich)
Christiane Hennig
- Scientist at the German Biomass Research Centre (DBFZ)
- Before, project manager at the International Network for Environmental Management (INEM) in Budapest
- Degree in business management (TU Freiberg and Central European University in Budapest), postgraduate study Environmental Management and Policy (Lund University, Sweden)
Stefan Herzog
- Project manager at Seeger Engineering, Germany
- Concept development and design of pellet and briquette production plants
- Degree in industrial engineering and management
Stefan HeĂ
- Fraunhofer-Institut fĂŒr Solare Energiesysteme (ISE) in the department âThermal collectors and applicationsâ
- Leader of the projects âRefleCâ (Federal Ministry for Environment) and the IEE-project âSolar Process Heatâ (SO-PRO)
- Degree in environmental and process technology (University of Applied Sciences, Augsburg)
Eberhard Hinz
- Scientist at the Institute for Housing and Environment (IWU), Darmstadt, focus on sustainable development of the residential building stock
- Before, project manager at Investitionsbank Schleswig-Holstein in Kiel
- Degree in mechanical engineering
Michaela Holl
- Policy officer in the European Commission, Directorate-General Energy (ENER)
- Before, parliamentary assistant and researcher at the European Parliament
- Diploma in international business and cultural studies, master in European economic studies
Seamus Hoyne
- Managing Director of the Tipperary Energy Agency, which he set up in 1998
- Programme specialist at the Tipperary Institute (a higher education institution), focus on sustainable energy
- Degree of the University of Limerick
Andreas Huber
- European Institute for Energy Research, Germany. Projects on behavioural change measures, the diffusion of technologies and local climate policies
- Before, researcher at the chair for European Sociological Studies at Bamberg University
- Masterâs degree in sociology
Georg Hubmer
- Founder and executive director of CONA
- Special focus on the research and development of solar air collectors and solar drying applications
- Diploma in law, PhD
Figen Kadirgan
- Professor at the chemistry department at the Istanbul Technical University
- Head of the executive board of Selektif Teknoloji, Turkey
- BSc. (University of Istanbul), M.S. and Ph.D. (University of Poitiers, France)
Jaap Kiel
- Joined the Energy research Centre of the Netherlands (ECN) in 1990
- R&D on slagging and fouling, agglomeration, tar formation, biomass pre-treatment and upgrading, gas cleaning. Managing the torrefaction development at ECN
- Graduated from the University of Twente, the Netherlands, PhD
Heinz Kopetz
- Since 2008, Board member of the World Bioenergy Association
- Before, chairman of the Austrian biomass association (until 2010)
- Degree in agriculture (University of Vienna) and national economics (Iowa State University, USA)
Vlasta Krmelj
- Director of energap, the energy agency of the region Podravje, Slovenia
- Lecturer at the University of Maribor at the Faculty for Civil Engineering
- Degree in chemical technology, Ph.D.
Vollrad Kuhn
- Business Development Manager at Johnson Controls, field energy solutions, focus on energy performance contracting in Europe
- Energy Efficiency Building Retrofit Program of the Clinton Climate Initiative
- Degree in Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture at the University of Rostock
Andrew Lang
- Representative of the Australasia-Oceania region on the Board of the World Bioenergy Association
- Chairman of the innovative SMARTimbers marketing cooperative
Fanny-Pomme Langue
- Since 2009, Policy officer in DG ENER (Unit Regulatory Policy and Promotion of Renewable Energy)
- Before, deputy director of the French Forest Cooperatives Federation
- Diploma in Political Sciences (University of Lyon), Master in EU policy (University of Louvain la Neuve) and in agricultural law (University of La Sorbonne, Paris)
Marcos MartĂn Larrañaga
- Vice President of the European Biomass Association (AEBIOM)
- Manager of the Spanish Bioenergy Association (AVEBIOM)
- CEO of Bioenergy Strategies S.L.
- Master of Engineering in Forestry (Universidad de Valladolid)
Florian Leitl
- Executive director of NAU in Bavaria and NAU in Austria, subsidiaries of BauhĂŒtte Leitl Werke GmbH
- Before, commercial and technical director of Leitl Tank GmbH
- Degree of the University of Mining Leoben
Friedrich Lettner
- Engineering consultant. Fields: analysis of energy plants, optimisation of district heating and process heat systems, industrial and regional energy plans
- Before, assistant at the Institute of Thermal Engineering at the Graz University of Technology
- Degree in mechanical engineering and economics (Graz University of Technology), PhD
Hampus Mörner
- Employee at the Swedish Bioenergy Association, main focus on solid biofuels
- Secretary of the Swedish Association of Pellets Producers (PIR)
- Master of Science in Forestry
Robert van Muiden
- General manager at Van Uden Bulk Logistics in Rotterdam, NL
- Before, commercial manager at REBES, Rotterdam/Zwijndrecht, in depth acknowledgement of mineral logistics and inland barging
Gordon Murray
- Executive director of the Wood Pellet Association of Canada (WPAC)
- Worked in senior management for international forest products manufacturers, owner and operator of a forestry services company
- Bachelor of Science in Forestry (University of British Columbia)
Birgit Musil-SchlÀffer
- Senior Researcher in the Austrian Competence Centre Bioenergy 2020+
- Focus on R&D activities and studies in the field of biomass combustion
- Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, MBA for Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Alexandra Notay
- Vice President, Strategic Programmes for the Urban Land Institute (ULI), UK
- Leads the virtual team for an innovative web project promoting energy efficient buildings
- B.A. (Hons) in International Relations (University of Sussex)
Xavier Noyon
- Secretary General at the European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF)
- Before, Senior Consultant Logos Public Affairs, Brussels
- Master in Law (University Potsdam), Master in European Public Affairs (Institute dâEtudes Politiques, Strasbourg)
Christine Ăhlinger
- Head of Sector International Tasks at O.Ă. Energiesparverband
- Project management of international projects in the field of energy efficiency and renewable energy sources, scientific work ranging from technical publications to the organisation of seminars and workshops.
- Diploma in law, post graduate training on energy & environmental advice
Sudhir Panse
- Adjunct professor in physics at the Institute of Chemical Technology in Mumbai (India)
- Working on a solar thermal project sponsored by the "University Grants Commission" (India)
- Consultant to Enersun Power Tech
Michael Paula
- Head of the Department of Energy and Environmental Technologies at the Federal Ministry of Transport, Innovation and Technology, Austria
- Initiation of the âAustrian Strategieprozess ENERGIE 2050â
- R&D strategies in the field of technological sustainability
Ksenia Petrichenko
- Scientist and PhD candidate at the Central European University (Budapest, Hungary)
- Junior researcher at the Centre for Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Policy in Budapest
- Master of Science in environmental sciences, Master of Arts in economics (State University Moscow, Russia)
Helmut Poppe
- Since 2000, Poppe*Prehal Architekten
- Before, lecturer at Technical University Vienna and at the University of Applied Sciences Kuchl
- Studies at the University Linz, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH Zurich) and the Vienna University of Technology
Francisco Puente Salve
- Project director at ESCAN Consulting, Spain
- Teaches at the Rey Juan Carlos University and at the European Energy Manager Expert Course at the Polytechnic University in Madrid
- MSc Energy and Fuels Engineer (Polytechnic University Madrid)
Olga S. Rakitova
- Executive director of the National Bioenergy Union since 2007
- Before, bioenergy director in the Wood Industries Confederation of North-West Russia
- General director and chief editor of the magazine âThe Bioenergy International, Russiaâ since 2006
- Master in Management, woodworking and forestry specialization (St. Petersburg State Forest Technical Academy), MBA-program in the Reutlingen University of Applied Science (Germany)
Christian Rakos
- Since 2005, managing director of proPellets Austria
- Before, responsible for the issue renewable energy sources at the Energieverwertungsagentur
- Study of Physics, Philosophy and History
Rudolf Rawe
- Professor an der Fachhochschule Gelsenkirchen, Fachbereich Versorgung und Entsorgung, Themenschwerpunkte: Biomassefeuerungen und Staubabscheidung
- Studium Maschinenbau (TH Aachen), Promotion an der RuhruniversitÀt Bochum
Hana Riemer
- Scientist at the institute of "Bauklimatik und Haustechnik" at the Technical University of Munich
- Executive manager of NEAT Ingenieure
- Degree in architecture (Technical University of Munich)
Hubert Röder
- Senior consultant and project leader at Pöyry Management Consulting, Munich
- Specialized in biofuel and biomass availability analysis, biomass utilisation strategies and renewable energy / forest industry cluster concepts
- Degree in Forest Sciences (University of Munich), PhD
Matthias Rommel
- Head of the âInstitut fĂŒr Solartechnik SPF an der Hochschule Rapperswilâ, Switzerland
- Before, head of the unit âsolar collectors and applicationsâ at the Fraunhofer Institut fĂŒr Solare Energiesysteme in Freiburg
- Degree in physics (Technical University Darmstadt, Albert Ludwigs University, Freiburg)
Speaker at the Conference "Solar Process Heat"
MEP Paul RĂŒbig
- Since 1996, member of the European Parliament
- Foundation of companies in Germany, France and Great Britain
- Studies of business administration, marketing and production technologies (University of Linz)
Speaker at the European Pellet Conference
Jean-Luc Sadorge
- Director of the âPĂŽle Alsace Energivieâ, a cluster dedicated to positive energy buildings and head of agriculture, forest, tourism and environment directorate at the region of Alsace, France
- Before, Director of the federation of regional nature parks of France
- Agronomy engineer
Speaker at the Conference "Building Renovation"
Andreas Schneider
- Scientific employee at the institute for energy management and environmental process engineering at the University of Siegen
- Working field: combustion and gasification mode of mixed fuels
- Degree in mechanical engineering (University Siegen)
Andrew M. Shapiro
- Owner of Energy Balance, providing energy and building design consulting services
- Member of the American Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA) and the American Solar Energy Society (ASES)
- Bachelor degree in Engineering (Brown University)
VladimĂr Sochor
- Head of the economic department and senior consultant in the field of energy saving and energy performance contracting (EPC) at SEVEN, Czech Republic
- Before, he worked for the ESCOs Siemens and Martia
- Graduated from the University of Economics
Karl Stadlober
- Manager of the department âHolzenergiezentrumâ at the Landforst company (Styria)
- Member of the Austrian standards committee for pellets logistics (M 7136) and storage (M 7137)
- Traines logistics and storage at the training programme of the Austrian biomass association for chimney sweepers and plumbers
Gerald Steinmaurer
- Managing director at the Austria Solar Innovation Center â ASiC, Wels, Austria
- Before, manager of the business unit "fault detection and information retrieval" at the Competence Center for Mechatronics in Linz (LCM)
- Degree in electrical engineering (Technical University of Graz), PhD
William Strauss
- President and founder of FutureMetrics, expert in the economics of production and use of biomass fuels
- MBA in finance (University of New Hampshire), PhD
Vladimir Slavev Tabutov
- Co-founder and Managing Director of Hydroenergy Company, Bulgaria
- Co-founder, member of the Management Board, and photovoltaic chairman of the Bulgarian Association of Renewable Energy Producer
- BBA of the International University in Germany Bruchsal
Erich Temper
- Since 2005, technical and product manager at Gasokol, Austria
- Before, project staff at an engineering office for technical building equipment
Mark Thornbloom
- Principal of Kelelo Engineering, providing engineering consulting to solar thermal commercial and industrial projects, USA
- Vice-Chair at the Solar Rating and Certification Corporation (SRCC), an independent non-profit U.S. entity
- Master degree in mechanical engineering
Silvia-Adriana TicÇu
- Member of the European Parliament
- Before, observer in European Parliament and vice-chair in the Committee on Transport and Tourism
- Master of Business Administration
Casper Tigchelaar
- Researcher at the Energy Research Centre of the Netherlands (ECN), NL
- Key topic: energy related consumer behaviour
- MSc degree in environmental social science (University of Utrecht)
Costas Travasaros
- Representative of the Greek Solar Industry Association at the European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF)
- Manager and partner of "Prime Laser Technology", development and manufacturing absorbers for solar thermal collectors
- Before, export manager and board member at FOCO Solar Systems
MEP Claude Turmes
- Since 1999 member of the Green/EFA (European Free Alliance) in the European Parliament
- Since 2002 vice-president of the Green/EFA
- Launch of the concept "Energy Intelligent Europe"
Aare VabamÀgi
- Project manager at the Estonian Climate and Energy Agency (KENA) in Tallinn, fields: energy advisory services, energy projects in municipalities
- Before, managing director of the "Foundation of Regional Energy Centres", a network of 3 energy centres of different Estonian regions
- Degree of the Tallinn Technical University
Mieke Vandewal
- Marketing manager of the standardisation programmes of sustainability and torrefaction of the Peterson Control Union Group, NL
- Participation in the Rotterdam Biomass Commodity Network
- Master degree in the field of international transport and logistics
Steven J. Walker
- Founder and chief executive officer of New England Wood Pellet, the largest manufacturer and distributor of pellet fuels in the northeastern United States
- Founder Propell Energy to sell, install and service high efficiency European-designed pellet boilers
Judi Wangalwa Wakhungu
- Executive Director of the African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) in Nairobi, Kenya
- On national and international boards and committees, such as the African Conservation Centre, the International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD), the World Bioenergy Association
- B.S. degree in geology (St. Lawrence University in New York), a M.S. degree in petroleum geology (Acadia University in Nova Scotia, Canada), Ph.D. in energy resources management from (Pennsylvania State University)
Andreas Weigle
- Head of the subsidiary Andritz Feed & Biofuel in Germany
- More than 25 years of experience in the pelletising technology
Mohammad Hassan Zarbakhsh
- Manager of the field training and awareness at the Iran Energy Efficiency Organisation
- Training courses in energy management in Iran, South Korea, Germany and Japan
- Master degree in mechanical engineering (Memphis State University, USA)
Zhao Yongqiang
- Assistant professor at the Center for Renewable Energy Development of the Energy Research Institute (ERI), China
- Bachelor degree of thermal energy and power engineering (Xiâan Jiaotong University), Master degree of public management (TsingHua University)
Ladislav Zidek
- General director of BIOMASA, Slovakia
- Before, director of the agency for regional development in Zilina
- Graduated from the Comenius University, PhD
