About Us

Core Team

Melanie Bernhofer – Responsible Editor

Melanie Bernhofer (she/her) is since November 2023 head of the Climate, Trade and Agricultural Policy programme at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung European Union. She joined the office in September 2021 as Project Officer, supporting the work of the Operations Team and of Heads of Programme. Previously, she worked at the think tank “European Policy Centre” where she managed a civil society project. Before that, she interned at the Representation Office of Salzburg to the European Union. Melanie is also a volunteering member of “Young Feminist Europe” and supports the youth organisation in the Policy, Research and Advocacy group. She holds two Bachelor’s degrees in Political Science and in Journalism and Communication Science as well as a Master’s degree in European Studies from the University of Vienna. She speaks German, English, French and Italian. Melanie is the also the office’s focal point for Gender and for the Foundation’s policy on Protection from Sexual Abuse, Violence and Harassment (PSEAH).

Jörg Mühlenhoff – Responsible Editor

Jörg Mühlenhoff is since October 2023 Head of Programme – European Energy Transition at Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung European Union. As part of the office’s Green Transformation Team, he covers EU energy policies and Europe’s transition to a fully renewable energy system. Jörg has 20 years of experience in working for associations and companies in the renewable energy sector in Germany and on the EU level. Prior to joining the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, he advocated for citizens’ access to renewables with BEUC, the European Consumer Organisation, coordinated CAN Europe’s energy scenario building and was scientific advisor at the German Renewable Energies Agency. Jörg is a political scientist and studied at University of Münster and Institut d’études politiques de Lille. He is fluent in German, English, French and Dutch.

Joan Lanfranco – Head of Communications and Outreach

Joan Lanfranco (he/him/his) is Head of Communications and Outreach at the European Union office of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, the German Green political foundation. Joan joined the foundation in August 2020 and he develops and leads the communication and outreach strategy of the office, including website, social media profiles (TwitterLinkedInFacebookInstagramYouTubeFlickr , Bluesky, Mastodon), email marketing, video, data visualisation, podcasts. He  manages the liaison and contact programme, press and media relations, publications and the visitors’ programme. He is also responsible for the strategic communications of the Energy Transition blog (@EnergiewendeGER). Joan has over 15 years of experience in EU and international communications, advocacy and campaigns. Joan worked at the European Parliament, at the transparency watchdog VoteWatch Europe, at the International Trade Union Confederation and at the pan-European communications agency GOPA Com. As freelancer, he also worked as EU reporter, campaigner and public affairs consultant. Joan holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the Autonomous University of Barcelona and a Master’s degree in European Policies and Politics from the College of Europe in Bruges. He speaks fluent English, French, Spanish, Catalan and Italian, intermediate Dutch, is learning German and can understand Portuguese.

Anika Bruck – Project and Event Coordinator

Anika Bruck has been Project and Event Coordinator at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung European Union since September 2024, where she assists the work of the Operations Team and the Heads of Programme. She also is in charge of website content and social media management for the Energy Transition blog. Prior to joining the Foundation, she gained various experience in the European Parliament, the German Embassy in Paris and in the field of political education. Anika holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Sociology from the University of Heidelberg and completed a Master’s in European Studies from the Universities of Opole, Mainz and Dijon. She is fluent in German, English and French, and is currently working on improving her Spanish and Dutch.

Media Development

Palasthotel
As a media solutions laboratory Palasthotel develops tools and designs which enable foundations, NGOs and institutions to inform, foster dialog and involve people.

About the Project and the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung

Initially conceived as an outlet to factually communicate the evolution of the German Energy Transition (Energiewende, in German) to an international audience, today’s The Energy Transition Blog continues to provide fresh content by spotlighting key components of the varied energy transitions now underway worldwide. Against the backdrop of the European Green Deal and the spiraling climate emergency, our diverse team of energy experts has increased their scope while continuously striving to inform our audience about the ever-expanding global Energy Transition.

Though still reporting on German’s unique energy transition, our aim is to provide empowering perspectives that help motivate readers to both join the conversation as well as the call for effective, sustainable and equitable solutions. Utilizing evolving mixed-media and across various social media platforms, we aim to grow our existing international target audience of energy professionals, activists, NGOs, teachers, university professors, students, community leaders and global policymakers, as well as a general audience interested in ecological transformation.

Within concise pieces, our Blog’s stable of authors publish easily fact-checkable, content driven pieces, that address developments with “green mobility,” as well as interrogate new technologies and review emerging debates around “solutions” and “non-solutions” technologies like hydrogen, carbon capture & sequestration and geo-engineering. Our contributors regularly report on new grassroots initiatives, shifting governmental policies, and efforts by civil society, NGOs and the citizen-led Just Transition movement to drive clean energy progress. While giving voice to on-going legal challenges to the status quo, our authors additionally focus on emerging climate and energy related data and scientific studies. Through interviews with recognized experts and analysts, contributors provide insights into the global coal and fossil methane gas phase-outs and the necessity of its success. The Global Energy Transition Podcast also contributes to the Blog’s endeavors.

The Energy Transition Blog was launched in 2012 by the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, the German green political foundation, which has a network of more than 30 foreign offices. Learn more about the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung.

Liability notice

Despite maximum editorial diligence, we accept no liability for the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of our web contents. Articles with a byline do not always reflect the point of view of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung.

For information purposes, this website provides links to external sites. The sole responsibility for external, linked contents is with the operators of the respective sites. Unless there is concrete evidence to the contrary, we do not monitor external links for illegal activities.

If made aware of illegal activity, we will immediately proceed to remove the link in question from our website. For this, please contact EnergyTransition.Blog@eu.boell.org.

Copyright Notice

The contents, that is, all material published on this website, is subject to German copyright law. Wherever possible and appropriate, we do adhere to the strategy pursued by the Creative Commons (CC) movement.

CC licenses make it simple to republish and distribute contents without having to ask our permission. However, should you republish part of our contents, we would be happy to be notified at EnergyTransition.Blog@eu.boell.org

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