08 Jun 2022

Meet our speakers at the New European Bauhaus Festival!

Meet the policymakers and practitioners of our „Celebration of Soil, Seeds, and Senses“ at more than 2.000 meters above sea level. This Side Event of the 1st New European Bauhaus Festival is initiated and led by AGORA European Green Deal.

Meet our Speakers here!

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Verena Ringler

Host and moderator of the „Celebration of Soil, Seeds, and Senses“ by AGORA European Green Deal. The incoming Helmut Schmidt Fellow on green transition leadership has been initiating European endeavours at the diplomacy-society interface.

Melanie Plangger

The trained political scientist has worked with the Office of the Regional Government, Tyrol on cross-border cooperation and European affairs until mid-2022. The author of the doctoral thesis, “Moving Mountains to Brussels” envisions a European Youth Laboratory on Soil.

Stefanie Pontasch

The biologist and farmer advances biodiversity. She works with municipalities, companies, scientists and citizens to renature, develop and monitor species-rich meadows and wildflower areas. She envisions to realize 100s of Citizen Biotopes (e.g. street islands) in rural Europe.T

Thomas Peham

Soil expert at the Office of the Regional Government, Tyrol. He oversees Tyrol’s 100-year-old seedbank, which is one of the two world’s oldest seedbanks. It contains 1.000 samples of seeds and planting material from 35 plant species (grains, fruit, vegetables).

Anna Heringer

The prize-winning architect and Hon.Prof. of the UNESCO Chair for Earthen Architecture, Constructive Cultures and Sustainable Development says that soils from Sweden to Spain provide us with mud—THE recyclable housing material of tomorrow.

Julia Seeber

The soil ecologist is Senior Researcher at the European Academy, EURAC, in Bolzano, Italy as well as a Senior Lecturer at Innsbruck University. She participates in “Soilbon”, a first-time global collection and comparison of 1.000 soil samples. She advocates soil education for all.

Alenka Smerkolj

The first female Secretary-General of the Alpine Convention underscores that „Soil is a precious resource. It is fragile and almost non-renewable. To protect our soil, we need to raise awareness and build alliances between regions as well as between generations."

Christian Steiner

The landscape planner is Lower Austria’s Rural development coordinator and chairs the Board of the European Land and Soil Alliance. He says that “soil functions are a common good” and shall be treated as such in our spatial and landscape management.

Claudia Sacher

The agriculture and food innovator initiated and opened Innsbruck’s “Global Field” in June 2022. This 2000m² large field exhibits the most important arable crops of the entire world and is part of a rapidly growing global initiative to raise awareness on resource justice.

Maria Legner

Sh is a trained sociologist and spatial planner, works with Climate Alliance Tyrol and manages the Links4Soil initiative there. She propagates participatory spatial and long-term planning at local level.

Johannes Kostenzer

The trained biologist is Tyrol’s Environmental Ombudsman and Delegate to the Commission on Education and Communication at the International Union for Conservation of Nature, IUCN. He propagates prudency in our relationship with nature.