Conferences

World
Sustainable
Energy Days 2026

24 - 27 February 2026
in Wels

Call for Papers

Speakers 2024

Markus Achleitner

Speaker E-Mobility Conference​​​​​​​

  • Regional Minister for Economy and Energy, Upper Austria
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Franz Baischer

Speaker Industrial Conference​​​​​​​

  • Sustainability Specialist, B&R Industrial Automation, Austria
  • 20 years of experience in the optimisation of industrial processes
  • Expert in building and energy savings, and in process engineering in the energy sector
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Vincent Berrutto

Speaker Industrial Conference​​​​​​​

  • Head of Unit Competitiveness, Digitalisation and Technology Collaboration, European Commission, DG Energy
  • Previously, Head of Unit in charge of energy efficiency, European Commmission, EASME
  • PhD in Building Science, University Savoie Mont Blanc, France
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Ulrike Beyer

Speaker Industrial Conference​​​​​​​

  • Head of hydrogen Taskforce "Referenzfabrik.H2", Fraunhofer IWU, Germany
  • Research focus on new solutions for the industrial mass production of hydrogen system components
  • PhD in Machine Construction, TU Chemnitz, Germany
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Claudia Canevari

Speaker Policy Conference​​​​​​​
Speaker Workshop Cities & Regions

  • Head of Unit Energy Efficiency: Policy and Financing unit, European Commission, DG Energy
  • 25 years of experience in the European Commission in DG Energy, DG Communication and DG Environment
  • Master of Laws, London School of Economics
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Claudia Carani

Speaker Workshop Cities & Regions

  • Senior Expert, Energy and Sustainable Development Agency (AESS), Italy
  • Expert in the provision of technical assistance for the transformation of cities and communities to low carbon economies
  • Degree in Environmental Sciences, Università degli studi di Parma, Italy
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Luca Cenci

Speaker Pellet Conference​​​​​​​

  • Export Manager, Dab Distributori, Italy
  • Work experience in international advertising and corporate trading
  • Engineering degree in Nanotechnology, IHK Saarbrücken, Germany
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Gerhard Dell

Speaker Pellet Conference
Speaker Policy Conference​​​​​​​

  • Energy Commissioner to the Upper Austrian Government and Managing Director of OÖ Energiesparverband, Austria 
  • Lecturer at the University of Linz, Austria
  • Doctorate and Post-Graduate Degrees (PhD engineering, Dr. tech.) in Electrical Engineering and Energy Economics
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Ivan Derkink

Speaker Pellet Conference​​​​​​​

  • Head of Sales Carbon Capture, Bright Renewables, The Netherlands
  • Work experience in international sales of wood combustion systems
  • Engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering
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Sandrine Deternay

Speaker Workshop "Cities and regions"

  • Finance Director, City of Albertville, France
  • Previously, Finance Director, City of Sénas, France
  • Master’s degree in Maritime Law, University of Brest/France and Degree in European Affairs, European Institute of Nice/France
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Irene di Padua

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Policy Director and Coordinator of the Domestic Heating working group, Bioenergy Europe 
  • Previously, Policy Officer at Bioenergy Europe and Solar Heat Europe/ESTIF; EU Affairs Assistant at EUBIA and European Chemical Regions Network (ECRN)
  • MA in European Studies, Institute of EU studies, ULB/Belgium; BA in International Relationship and Diplomatic Sciences, University of Trieste, Italy
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Julije Domac

Speaker Workshop "Cities and regions"

  • Managing Director of the North-West Croatia Regional Energy Agency (REGEA) and President of FEDARENE 
  • Special Adviser on Energy and Climate for the Office of President of the Republic of Croatia
  • PhD in Energy, University of Zagreb, Croatia
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Bartosz Dubiński

Speaker Workshop "Cities and regions"

  • CEO, Mazovia Energy Agency, Poland
  • 14 years of work experience in the energy sector
  • Master’s degree in Economics and Regional Policies, Warsaw University, Poland; Executive MBA, Brooks University, UK
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Filip Dumitriu

Chairperson Workshop "Cities and regions"

  • Director of FEDARENE (European Federation of Regions and Energy Agencies)
  • Previously, Project & Policy Manager, FEDARENE
  • Degree in Law with specialisation in International & European Law
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Christoph Ebersdorfer

Speaker E-Mobility Conference​​​​​​​

  • Regional Sales Manager Germany/Austria/Switzerland, XCharge Europe 
  • Several years of experience in the EV charging infrastructure business and in total more than 10 years of work experience in the mobility sector
  • Master’s degree in Industrial Engineering, Technische Universität Wien, Austria
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Christiane Egger

Speaker Pellet Conference
Speaker Policy Conference​​​​​​​
Speaker Workshop Cities & Regions

  • Deputy General Manager of the OÖ Energiesparverband and Manager of the Cleantech-Cluster Energy, Austria
  • Conference Director of the World Sustainable Energy Days 
  • Degrees in Law (University of Graz) and Environmental Engineering (Technical University of Graz), Austria
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Emre Elmas

Speaker E-Mobility Conference​​​​​​​

  • Fundraiser for R&D projects, Farplas, Turkey; Coordinator of the REVOLUTION Project
  • Several years of work experience in the field of smart cities and urban mobility
  • Bachelor’s degree in Management
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Werner Emhofer

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Sales Manager Export, Fröling, Austria
  • Over 15 years of experience in the sales of biomass heating systems 
  • Degree in Economics, Johannes Kepler Universität Linz, Austria 
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Matteo Favero

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Area Manager Wood Biofuels and Certification Schemes, Italian Agroforestry Energy Association (AIEL), Italy
  • Vice-president of the Board of Directors, European Pellet Council
  • PhD in "Land, Forest, Resources and Health", University of Padova, Italy 
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Michael Finell

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Associate Professor in Forest Biomaterials and Technology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
  • 15 years of experience in research projects with the Swedish pellet industry
  • PhD in Engineering
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Arno Gattinger

Speaker Industrial Conference

  • Expert, Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology, Austria
  • Austrian representative of the Clean Hydrogen Joint Undertaking
  • Master’s degree, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
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Gilles Gauthier

Chairperson Pellet Conference

  • Research and Business Development Manager, Hawkins Wright, Belgium
  • Previously, Director at Bioenergy Europe
  • Master’s degree in Industrial Engineering
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Jan Geiss

Chairperson Policy Conference

  • Secretary General, European Forum for Renewable Energy Sources (EUFORES)
  • Previously, President of the Renewable Energy House, Brussels 
  • PhD in Political Science and Economics, University of Passau, Germany
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João Pedro Gouveia

Speaker Policy Conference

  • Principal Researcher, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Portugal
  • Part of the coordination team of the EU Energy Poverty Advisory; Founder and board member of APEEN (Portuguese Association for Energy Economics)
  • PhD in Climate Change and Sustainable Development Policies, NOVA University of Lisbon, Portugal
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Katrin Helmberger

Speaker Industrial Conference

  • Head of Corporate Sustainability, Fronius, Austria
  • Previously, Team Leader Environmental Management, Fronius, Austria
  • Bachelor’s degree, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
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Seamus Hoyne

Speaker Workshop "Cities and regions"

  • Dean Flexible and Work Based Learning, Technological University of the Shannon and Chairperson of Tipperary Energy Agency, Ireland 
  • Secretary General of FEDARENE (European Federation of Agencies and Regions for Energy and the Environment) 
  • Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering in Renewable Energy, University of Limerick; MSc in Energy Management, University of Ulster, Ireland
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Wolfgang Hribernik

Speaker Industrial Conference

  • Head of the Center for Energy, Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT), Austria
  • Coordinator of the NEFI (New Energy for Industry) Programme
  • Doctorate in Electrical Engineering, ETH Zürich, Switzerland
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Aavo Isak

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Founder and Non-Executive Director, Pelltech, Estonia
  • More than 15 years of experience in the pellet and energy sector
  • MSc in Agricultural Entrepreneurship, Estonian University of Life Sciences
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Anette Jahn

Speaker Policy Conference
Speaker Workshop "Cities and regions"

  • Head of Sector, Energy & Climate Unit, European Commission, CINEA
  • Responsible for the clean energy priorities for Cities & Regions, Energy Efficiency Finance and Building Smartness under the LIFE Clean Energy Transition Programme
  • Master’s degree in International Politics, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium; Degree in Economics, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany
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Brian Keane

Speaker Industry Conference

  • Founder and President, SmartPower, USA
  • Previously, CEO at WeeGreen and Operating Advisor at Pegasus Capital Advisors
  • Bachelor’s degree in Broadcast Journalism and Political Science, The American University, USA
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Nadejda Khamrakulova

Speaker Policy Conference

  • Economic Affairs Officer, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, Switzerland
  • 15 years of experience in the field of sustainable energy with focus on energy efficiency and renewable energy
  • Master’s degree in Law, University of Geneva; Executive Master’s degree in Development Policies and Practices, Switzerland
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Thomas Kienberger

Speaker Industrial Conference

  • Head of the Chair of Energy Network Technology, University of Leoben, Austria
  • Previously, Head of R&D and General Manager at agnion Entrade, and Visiting Lecturer at Graz University of Technology, Austria
  • PhD in Thermal Engineering and Master’s degree in Electrotechnical Engineering, Graz University of Technology, Austria
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Jaroslav Klusák

Speaker Workshop "Cities and regions"

  • Director of the Prague Renewable Energy Community, Czech Republic 
  • Chairman of the Association of Local Energy Managers of the Czech Republic 
  • Doctorate in Environmental Economics
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Susanne Koblitz

Speaker E-Mobility Conference

  • Freelance consultant for EV charging technologies
  • Previously, Head of charging technology, IONITY
  • PhD in Particle Physics, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz & CERN, Germany
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Stefan Kopp

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • International Sales Director and Head of Technical Sales Department, Hargassner, Austria
  • President and CEO, Hargassner North America, Canada
  • MA in Cultural and Social Sciences – Economics and Law, Paris-Lodron Universität Salzburg, Austria
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Vlasta Krmelj

Speaker Workshop "Cities and regions"
Chairperson Pellet Conference​​​​​​​

  • Director of the Energy and Climate Agency of Podravje (ENERGAP) and Mayor of the Municipality Selnica ob Dravi, Slovenia
  • Expert in the fields of sustainable energy use and renewable energy sources, energy management and financing energy projects
  • PhD in Chemical Engineering, University of Maribor, Slovenia
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Biljana Kulišić

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Policy Officer, Unit Decarbonisation and Sustainability of Energy Sources, European Commission, DG Energy 
  • More than 20 years of experience in concerted policy and assessing socio-economic aspects of bioenergy
  • PhD in Agroeconomics, University of Josip Juraj Strossmayer of Osijek, Croatia
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Özben Kutlu

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Senior Researcher, Ege University, Turkey
  • More than 15 years of experience in collaborative biomass energy projects
  • PhD in Energy Technology, Ege University, Turkey
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Guangqing Liu

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Director, Biomass Energy and Environmental Engineering Research Centre of Beijing, University of Chemical Technology; Chairman, Clean Stoves Committee of China Association of Rural Energy Industry, China
  • Doctorate degree, China Agricultural University, China
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Bengt-Erik Löfgren

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • CEO, ÄFAB, Sweden
  • More than 35 years of experience as independent consultant in the bioenergy sector
  • Expert in biomass and combustion technology
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Pauline Lucas

Speaker Policy Conference

  • Policy Director, Euroheat & Power, Belgium
  • Expert in leading advocacy efforts on the EU stage to support the deployment of decarbonised heating and cooling networks 
  • Degrees in Law and European Public Affairs
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Rohan Shailesh Modi

Speaker E-Mobility Conference

  • Advisor, GIZ, Germany
  • Previously, technical Expert, GIZ, India
  • MBA in Power Management and Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, India
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Gordon Murray

Speaker and Chairperson Pellet Conference

  • Executive Director, Wood Pellet Association of Canada (WPAC)
  • Board Member of the European Pellet Council; Member of the Steering Committee, Biomass Power Group of the UK Renewable Energy Association; Member of the Stakeholder Advisory Group of the Sustainable Biomass Program (SBP)
  • BSc in Forestry, University of British Columbia, Canada
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Michael Nagl

Chairperson E-Mobility Conference

  • Region of Upper Austria, Directorate Environment and Water Management, Department of Environmental Protection, Austria
  • Head of the Unit Strategic Energy Planning
  • Master’s of Engineering in Process Technology 
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Stefan Ortner

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Managing Director and Co-Owner, ÖkoFEN Global Headquarters, Austria
  • 10 years of experience in the areas of product management, R&D, marketing and international market development for pellet heating systems
  • Degree in Innovation and Product Management, University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria, Austria
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Christine Öhlinger

Chairperson Industrial Conference

  • Head of Sector International Tasks, OÖ Energiesparverband, Austria
  • Project management of international projects in the fields of energy efficiency and renewable energy
  • Diploma in Law, Postgraduate Training in Energy & Environmental Advice
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Tiziana Pirelli

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Coordinator, Global Bioenergy Partnership (GBEP) Secretariat at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO-UN), Italy
  • Previous work experience at the Centre for Agriculture and Agricultural Economics (CREA), as lead technical advisor at FAO, and as adviser for the region Friuli Venezia Giulia 
  • PhD in Economics, Ecology and Preservation of Agricultural and Landscapes, MSc and BSc in Agricultural Sciences and Technologies, University of Udine, Italy
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Giulia Pizzini

Speaker Workshop "Cities and regions"

  • Senior Energy Expert, Institute for European Energy and Climate Policy (IEECP), The Netherlands
  • Coordinator of the H2020 Project Prospect+ 
  • MSc in Environmental Policy and Regulation, London School of Economics and Political Sciences
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Gayathri Prakash

Speaker Industrial Conference

  • Programme Officer, Innovation and End Use sectors, IRENA, Germany
  • Expert on energy scenarios development, hard-to-abate sector decarbonisation pathways, technology outlooks for wind and solar PV, and renewable power integration measures
  • MSc. in Renewable Energy with specialisation on distributed generation and grid integration
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Francisco Puente

Speaker Industrial Conference

  • General Manager, ESCAN Energy Consulting, Spain
  • Previously, Technological Engineer for ENEL Group and Planning Engineer at Técnicas Reunidas, Spain
  • PhD in Industrial Engineering, University of Vigo, Spain; Executive MBA, EOI Business School, Spain 
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Christian Rakos

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • CEO of proPellets Austria and Save Energy Austria 
  • President of the World Bioenergy Association
  • Doctorate in Technical Physics, Technische Universität Wien, Austria
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Hubert Röder

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Professor in Sustainable Business Economics, Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University of Applied Science, Germany
  • Speaker of the Forestry and Wood Cluster Initiative, Germany
  • Doctorate in Forestry, LMU Munich, Germany
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Pablo Rodero Masdemont

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Responsible of Biofuels Certification, AVEBIOM, Spain; President of the European Pellet Council
  • Expert on bioenergy and solid biomass quality, and Board Member of Bioenergy Europe
  • Master’s degree in Forestry Engineering, Universidad Politénica de Madrid, Spain
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Alexander Sauer

Speaker Industrial Conference

  • Head of Institute for Energy Efficiency in Production at the University of Stuttgart, Germany
  • Director, Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation (IPA), Germany 
  • Doctorate in Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, Germany 
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Leonhard Schitter

Speaker Policy Conference

  • CEO, Energie AG Oberösterreich, Austria 
  • Previously, CEO of Salzburg AG, and Managing Director of M. Kaindl (wood industry)
  • Doctorate in Law, Paris-Lodron Universität Salzburg, Master's degree in European Energy Economics, University of Applied Sciences Kufstein-Tirol
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Jürgen Schneider

Speaker Policy Conference

  • Director General Climate and Energy, Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology (BMK), Austria
  • Previously, spokesman and member of the management board, Environment Agency Austria; Project manager in the field of environment and health, WHO, Germany
  • PhD in Chemistry, University of Vienna, Austria
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Markus Schranzer

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Head of Sales, Germany/Austria/Switzerland, HoSt Bioenergie 
  • Previously, Business Development Senior Manager, Kohlbach Energieanlagen, Austria and Head of international business development, SDL Solutions, UK 
  • Degree in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering
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Phil Spatz

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Research Associate, Department of Energy Plants Technology, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Germany
  • Experience in the development and programming of an automatic measurement recording system for pneumatic delivery vehicles for wood pellets
  • Master's and bachelor’s degrees in Mechanical Engineering, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Germany
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Gerald Steinmaurer

Chairperson Young Energy Researchers Conference​​​​​​​

  • Head of Center of Excellence Energy, University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria, Austria
  • Head of Research Group ASiC, University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria, Austria
  • PhD in Mechatronics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria
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Daniel Stetter

Speaker E-Mobility Conference

  • Director Smart Energy and Mobility Solutions, Fraunhofer IAO, Germany
  • Previously, Researcher, German Aerospace Center, Germany
  • PhD in Energy Engineering, Graduate Degree in Economics, MSc. in Physics
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Hermann Stockinger

Speaker E-Mobility Conference

  • CEO and Founder, Easelink, Austria
  • Over 10 years of experience in the fields of EV charging and automotive
  • Degree in Industrial and Mechanical Engineering, Graz University of Technology, Austria
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Jens Strüker

Speaker Industrial Conference

  • Professor of Information Systems and Digital Energy Management, University of Bayreuth, Germany
  • Co-Director, Fraunhofer Blockchain Lab; Deputy Director, Branch Business & Information Systems Engineering, Fraunhofer FIT, Germany 
  • PhD in Information Systems and Business Administration, University of Freiburg, Germany
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Kenneth Tran

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • CEO, Ayo Biomass LLC, Vietnam, and Founding CEO of Koidra
  • Previously, Principal Researcher at Microsoft Research, USA
  • PhD in Computational Mathematics, University of Texas at Austin, USA
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Kai Tullius

Speaker E-Mobility Conference

  • Policy Officer, European Commission, DG MOVE
  • Work experience for the European Commission in DG Energy and DG CNECT, as well as for a Transport IT consultancy in Germany
  • Master’s degree in Economics, University of Hamburg, Germany
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János Ungár

Speaker E-Mobility Conference

  • Board Member, AVERE; Managing Partner, Emobility Solutions, Hungary
  • Previously, president of the Hungarian Electromobility Association
  • Master’s degree in Energy Market Economics, Corvinus University of Budapest, Hungary
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Raphaëlle Viénot

Speaker Workshop "Cities and regions"

  • Deputy General Manager, AREC Occitanie, France
  • Previously, Deputy Director for the Region Occitanie in France, in charge of Energy transition, hydrogen and the circular economy
  • Master’s degrees in law and Economics of Local Communities, and in Political Sciences and Administration 
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Rickard Waern

Speaker Workshop "Cities and regions"

  • Innovation Manager, Innovatum Science Park/West Sweden Energy Agency, Sweden
  • Previous work experience for the Gothenburg Region, Sweden
  • Master of Arts in Environmental Social Science
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Tim Weitzel

Speaker Pellet Conference

  • Head of the Chair of Information Systems and Services, University Bamberg, Germany
  • Previously, Dean of the Faculty of Information Systems and Applied Computer Science and Deputy President of the Senate, University Bamberg, Germany
  • Doctorate in Business Administration, Goethe University Frankfurt, Germany
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Leo Wierda

Speaker Policy Conference

  • Senior Research Engineer, Van Holsteijn en Kemna BV (VHK), The Netherlands
  • Previous work experience in the fields of high-concentration photovoltaics and aerospace structures
  • PhD in Industrial Design Engineering and MSc in Mechanical Engineering, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands
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Daniel Wohl

Speaker E-Mobility Conference

  • MBA and MPP Candidate, Harvard Business School & Harvard Kennedy School, USA
  • Previous work experience at Tesla in the fields of Finance, Strategy and Business Development
  • BA in Economics, Williams College, USA
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Elisabeth Wopienka

Chairperson Young Energy Researchers Conference​​​​​​​

  • Area Management – Fixed Bed Conversion Systems, BEST – Bioenergy and Sustainable Technologies, Austria
  • Research experience in the field of biomass combustion and thermochemical conversion 
  • PhD in Chemical Engineering, Technische Universität Wien, Austria
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Marisca Zweistra

Speaker E-Mobility Conference

  • Programme Manager Smart Charging, ElaadNL, The Netherlands
  • 19 years of experience in energy transition related topics such as data analytics and consumer acceptance 
  • PhD in Process Engineering, Wageningen University, The Netherlands
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Speakers Young Energy Researchers 2024