Board

Board Members

• Josef R. Wuensch
  Josef R. Wuensch

  Josef R. Wuensch is the Chairman of the SusChem board. He is Senior Vice President R&D Performance Materials at BASF. His expertise at BASF covers global research and product development for performance materials based on ‘thermoplastic’, ‘duroplastic’ and biobased / biodegradeable materials.

  Click here to read Josef R. Wuensch‘s full biography.

• Andrés R. Alcántara
  Andrés R. Alcántara

  Andrés R. Alcántara studied chemistry and received his doctorate in organic chemistry from the University of Córdoba, Spain, in 1989. After a postdoctoral stay at the University of Kent at Canterbury, U.K., he joined the Department of Chemistry in Pharmaceutical Sciences at the Complutense University of Madrid, where he is Full Professor in Organic Chemistry and director of the R&D Group of Biotechnology and Applied Materials (TRANSBIOMAT).

  Click here to read Andrés R. Alcántara‘s full biography.

• David Bogle
  David Bogle

  David Bogle is Professor of Chemical Engineering at University College London (UCL) and Pro-Vice-Provost of UCL’s Doctoral School. He is currently Scientific Vice President of the European Federation of Chemical Engineers. His expertise is in Process Systems Engineering and Systems Biology.

  David Bogle was born in Australia but undertook his undergraduate education and PhD in Chemical Engineering at Imperial College London. After a period at British Gas and at the University of Adelaide in Australia he joined University College London (UCL) in 1990. His research is in Process Systems Engineering developing methods for design, optimization and control of chemical and biochemical processes, and in Systems Biology. He is Deputy Director of the Centre for Process Systems Engineering, a joint research centre of UCL and Imperial College London. He was elected Scientific Vice President of the European Federation of Chemical Engineers from 2018. He is a Fellow of Institution of Chemical Engineers and was elected a Fellow of the UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering in 2005.

  As Pro-Vice-Provost he leads the strategy for early career researcher development (doctoral and postdoctoral) at UCL. It has over 5,500 research students and 3500 postdoctoral researchers. He is chair of the League of European Research Universities (LERU) Doctoral Studies Policy Group and member of several advisory boards for early career researcher development across Europe. He recently chaired a review of the UK’s Concordat for the Career Development of Research Staff.

  Click here to read David Bogle‘s full biography.

• Andreas Förster
  Andreas Förster

  Andreas Förster studied chemistry and received his doctorate in physical chemistry from the University of Würzburg in 1997. Since 1997, he has been an employee of DECHEMA, the German Society for Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, where he heads the Department for Research Coordination and Conferences.

  In 2010, he became Head of ProcessNet, the German platform for process engineering, chemical engineering and technical chemistry, jointly supported by DECHEMA and VCI. Dr. Förster has many years of experience in the identification of new trends in chemistry and chemical process engineering, and in the promotion of innovation.

  He is coordinator of the National Technology Platform SusChem Germany. He has a broad international network of experts from industry and academia in the field of chemistry and chemical engineering.

  Click here to read Andreas Förster‘s full biography.

• Thomas Görgen
  Thomas Görgen

  Thomas Görgen is an experienced innovation leader focusing on OPEN INNOVATION. He is heading Alliance Management in Innovation Management and Commercial Sercives at Covestro. The function comprises university and research cooperations, innovation networks with companies, public funding as well as innovation policies.

  Thomas represents Covestro in innovation policy committees of VCI and CEFIC. Amongst others, her serves as director in the Boards of CATALISTI and CLIMATE-KIC.

  From 2005 to 2015, Thomas was responsible for Public Funding at Bayer. Previously, he held various positions at Projektträger Jülich in national and European research funding, i.e. as NCP for Germany (Materials Research). Thomas studied polymer chemistry at RWTH Aachen University.

  Click here to read Thomas Görgen‘s full biography.

• Silke Gotthardt
  Silke Gotthardt

  Silke Gotthardt obtained her PhD in Natural Sciences from the University of Erlangen, Germany, in the field of Pharmaceutical Technology in close cooperation with Parke Davis GmbH, Freiburg, Germany.

  In 1997 she joined Boehringer Ingelheim in Ingelheim, Germany, and moved to several management and senior leadership roles. She led Process Technology Teams in Pharma Product Supply in Germany as well as in the US. After her return to Germany she was responsible for corporate strategic and BPE projects for Drug Substances and Drug Products followed by the assignments as Head of Pharma Production Solids/Central Functions in Ingelheim and as Head of Global Launch & Transfer Operations.

  As of October 2021, she was appointed Head of Process Technology Development within Engineering & Technology at Bayer in Leverkusen.

  Click here to read Silke Gotthardt‘s full biography.

• Philippe Jacques
  Philippe Jacques

  Chemical Engineer graduated from the University of Louvain‐la‐Neuve, Belgium, Philippe JACQUES joined Solvay in 1988 in Brussels, Belgium, and moved to various Intellectual Property, R&D management and senior leadership roles. Qualified European Patent Attorney, he managed Solvay Patent Department before joining Corporate R&I Management Team in 2011. After a 5‐year assignment in Solvay biggest R&I Center in Lyon, France, he is since October 1st, 2018 part-time seconded as Managing Director of the Energy Materials Industrial Research Initiative (EMIRI) Association based in Brussels, to address the innovation‐related challenges ahead of the industry of advanced materials for clean and sustainable energy & mobility.

  EMIRI represents about 60 organisations (industry, research, and associations) active in advanced materials for clean energy & clean mobility technologies. The association contributes to industrial leadership of developers, producers and users of advanced materials for clean energy & clean mobility by shaping an appropriate innovation, manufacturing / industrial and energy policy framework at the European level.

  Click here to read Philippe Jacques‘s full biography.

• Fernando Moreno
  Fernando Moreno

  Now Executive Chairman and founding partner at Solutex, Fernando Moreno has been part of the agro food industry since the beginning of his professional career.

  He has acted in different management positions in Group Vall Companies, Group Leche Pascual and Group SODIAAL, three of the most important companies in the European alimentary market, with responsibilities for expansion in the European and American markets.

  He holds a Doctorate of Engineering in Agronomy from E T S Ingenieros Agrónomos de Madrid and a PDG from IESE. Fernando Moreno is a Board Member at several companies and professional associations.

  Click here to read Fernando Moreno‘s full biography.

• Jarmo Ropponen
  Jarmo Ropponen

  Jarmo Ropponen received his PhD in organic chemistry from the University of Jyväskylä in 2004. He joined VTT in 2008 where he has acted in several R&D and manager positions. Currently he is Vice President of Industrial Chemistry research area.

  Prior the joining VTT he had post-doctoral fellowship periods at the University of Kuopio (2004-2006 and 2007-2008) and KTH Royal institute of Technology (2006-2007). Currently he is also member in ECP4 (The European Composites, Plastics and Polymer Processing Platform) and SusChem-Finland.

  Click here to read Jarmo Ropponen‘s full biography.

• Tanya Sheridan
  Tanya Sheridan

  Tanya Sheridan joined the Royal Society of Chemistry in 2018. As Head of Policy and Evidence, she is Policy responsible for a portfolio of research, policy and responsive work. The aim: to advise decision makers on what they can do so that the chemical sciences community can make the world a better place.

  Tanya has extensive experience of making and implementing public policy. As a civil servant in the UK Government, she developed policy and advised Ministers on energy, employment law, European Union, small business and industry, with a largely economic policy focus.

  Before joining the RSC, Tanya worked for Cambridgeshire County Council, leading economic development programmes and advising elected Councillors. She holds post-graduate degrees in European Studies and Business Administration. She speaks English, German, French and Spanish.

  Click here to read Tanya Sheridan‘s full biography.

• Christoph Weckbecker
  Christoph Weckbecker

  After his studies in Chemistry in Bonn and Munich, Christoph joined Degussa taking over responsibilities in the field of fine chemistry. Here, he was heading a research group working on the synthesis of agro and pharma products and intermediates.

  Then he changed to work in the area of feed additives and headed a research department in this field. He then changed again to become the Head of Innovation Management within one of the Evonik Industries segments. Here, he was able to gain expertise in the field of stage gate processes, innovation portfolio steering or generation of useful innovation KPI. Finally, he took over responsibilities within New Business Development in the field of life science.

  Since summer 2018, Christoph is working at Evonik Corporate Innovation and is responsible for the Group ‘Innovation Networks’. The focus of the actual work is on open innovation, ideation and design thinking processes by setting up networks with new industry or strategic academia partners. He also represents Evonik in different associations and councils and coordinates the innovation relevant activities in Evonik.

  Click here to read Christoph Weckbecker‘s full biography.

• Hans-Georg Weinig
  Hans-Georg Weinig

  Hans-Georg Weinig is since 2016 Director Education, Career and Science at the German Chemical Society (GDCh) in Frankfurt, Germany. His tasks include international affairs, chemistry education and advanced training, organisation of multilateral scientific conferences, scientific consulting of policy makers, promoting career pathways in science as well as exchange of young scientists. He joined GDCh 2009 as scientific coordinator at the GDCh Executive Director’s office; from 2011 until 2015, he was Director Education and Science.

  Prior to his engagement at GDCh he served as scientific officer in the head office of the Leibniz Association in Bonn from 2007 until 2009, and from 2002 until 2006 as project manager in technology transfer, environmental governance and consulting (focus Russia) in a small enterprise in Berlin.

  Hans-Georg studied chemistry in Marburg and Munich, he holds a PhD in organic and bio-organic chemistry from Humboldt University of Berlin. During a post-doctoral stay at University of Rome, Italy, “La Sapienza” he focused on industrial organic chemistry.

  Click here to read Hans-Georg Weinig‘s full biography.