Ecologic Institute has the pleasure of introducing our three newest Senior Policy Advisors. These exemplary individuals bring with them a wealth of national and international expertise as well as a prominent and diverse portfolio of experience. We are delighted to have them onboard to strengthen our work and thinking with respect to research with impact and innovative education.
Lorenzo Fioramonti joined Ecologic Institute as Senior Policy Advisor in 2020. He is a Professor of Political Economy at the University of Pretoria (South Africa) and founding director and associate fellow at the Centre for the Study of Governance Innovation. During his time as Italian Minister of Education, University and Research, he pioneered innovations like the introduction of mandatory classes about sustainable development in all schools and universities, making Italy the first country to do so in the world.
Lorenzo Fioramonti is a Member of Parliament in Italy and a global promoter of a new concept of development, the "wellbeing economy", that is a system of production and consumption based on social, economic and environmental sustainability.
He has worked with leading scientists and Nobel Prize recipients, and has held the following positions:
- first Jean Monnet Programme Chair in Africa;
- president of the European Union Studies Association of Sub-Saharan Africa;
- UNESCO/UNU Chair in Regional Integration, Migration and Free Movement of People;
- fellow of the Centre for Social Investment of the University of Heidelberg, the Hertie School of Governance and the United Nations University.
He is the author of over 70 scientific articles, two film documentaries and 10 books, which have been translated into over 10 languages. His articles have appeared in leading outlets, including The New York Times, Financial Times, The Guardian, the Harvard Business Review, Der Freitag, and Foreign Policy.
Arne Lietz joined Ecologic Institute as a Senior Policy Advisor in 2019. He was a Member of the European Parliament 2014-2019. He was a full member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Development. As a foreign policy expert, he brought, for the first time ever, a report on climate diplomacy to the Foreign Affairs Committee, which he also presented at the United Nations and the Munich Security Conference. In addition, he was committed to the UN Agenda 2030 with its Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and worked in particular on a framework legislation for European textile supply chains. He also worked on the SDGs with business associations, churches, non-governmental organisations, foundations and European national parliaments.
For his studies of contemporary history, politics and education, Arne Lietz was awarded scholarships by the German Academic Scholarship Foundation (Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes), the Hertie Foundation, the Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin and the German Academic Exchange Service. In addition to study visits to South Africa, he worked for an extended period in the United States.
Heino von Meyer came onboard as Senior Policy Advisor in 2019. In 2019, he also became Head Global Relations and Networking of the International PtX Hub, working towards a "fossil free economy". Before that, he was heading the OECD Berlin Centre. His work covers a wide range of topics from economic, financial, trade and development issues to social affairs, environment, and good governance. He is in close contact with governments, administrations, social partners and civil society organisations and active in numerous multi-stakeholder forums.
From 1991 to 2002, Heino von Meyer worked in various departments of the OECD Headquarters in Paris. He was head of the Working Group on Regional Statistics, focusing on indicators and analyses of sustainable rural development, before moving to the Environmental Directorate, responsible for the OECD country reports on environmental policy, as well as for analyses and concepts for the integration of economic, social and ecological concerns.