The City as Innovator: Lessons from Germany
A lecture with:
Mr. Thomas Geisel
Mayor of Düsseldorf
The City of Düsseldorf is the capital of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the seventh most populous city in the country. It is a center for international business, arts, and culture. It is also a city at the forefront of policy innovation in areas like housing, technology, and the social integration of immigrants. Düsseldorf's international, cultural, and economic diversity ranked it sixth in the world in Mercer's 2015 Quality of Living survey.
Thomas Geisel was born in 1963 in the German city of Ellwangen. A lawyer by education, with an MPA from Harvard Kennedy School, he also holds a master’s degree in government from Georgetown University in Washington D.C. Following his studies primarily in the U.S. and in Germany, Geisel worked in the energy sector for most of his life. There, he held various positions for Enron (London), Ruhrgas A.G. and E.ON Ruhrgas A.G. where he was director for gas procurement.
In 2013, at the age of 50, Mr. Geisel decided to run for mayor of Düsseldorf. He became the first social-democratic mayor after 15 years of conservative rule in the city. His political focus is to create more housing and schooling possibilities for the growing population, to develop sustainable infrastructure and to strengthen socially disadvantaged neighborhoods. Providing humane and efficient care for the thousands of refugees who currently reside in or are expected to come to Düsseldorf has become one of the most important tasks of his term so far.
This event is supported by the Michael C. Olshausen Lecture Fund.
