Germany's Secretary of State for the Energiewende - Ep88: Patrick Graichen

Cleaning Up: Leadership in an Age of Climate Change

Patrick Graichen is a State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. He has held this post since 15 December 2021 and is responsible for energy and climate policy.

From 2012, Graichen was instrumental in setting up the think tank Agora Energiewende, taking on the roles of Executive Director and Managing Director from 2014 until his move to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action.

He began his career in public service at the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, first as an officer in the Division for International Climate Protection, then as Personal Assistant to a State Secretary, and subsequently as Head of Division for Climate and Energy Policy. During this time, he played a leading role in negotiating the economic instruments of the Kyoto Protocol, the Federal Government's 2007 Integrated Energy and Climate Programme, the EU's 2008 Climate and Energy Package, and legislative procedures in the field of energy law.

Patrick Graichen studied Political Science and Economics in Heidelberg and Cambridge, UK, before going on to earn his doctorate at the Interdisciplinary Institute for Environmental Economics at the University of Heidelberg.