70 years old, married, 3 children and soon 4 grandchildren. I studied economics at the University of Münster and then completed the postgraduate course at the German Institute for Development Policy (now IDOS). After initially working in the staff department of a company that sold turnkey industrial plants, particularly for developing countries, I moved to DEG-Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft in Cologne in 1988. Initially as a project manager and later as head of department, I mainly initiated and managed projects and investments in Africa, including the Cotton made in Africa (CmiA) initiative.
In addition to my job, I have always been involved in voluntary work. I am still on the board of the Romero Christian Initiative, which I co-founded 40 years ago. I was chairman of the Bündnis 90/Die Grünen council group in Kerpen for 3 years and a candidate for mayor. For 6 years, during the red-green government period, I led the Federal Working Group North South of the Greens together with colleagues.
Today I am once again a member of the Board of Trustees of the Afghanistan Credit Guarantee Fund Foundation. And I am currently working with the non-governmental organization Südwind on and in a campaign to further develop the sustainable cotton standards BCI, CmiA, GOTS and Fairtrade in such a way that they can generate a living income for “their” small farmers in the long term and exclude the use of synthetic pesticides.
I am a member of the Green Old People, the VCD, BUND, the Society for the Promotion of Museums in Ethiopia and have been co-editor of a neighborhood newspaper for more than 30 years.
