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Dr. Kirsten Scholl is EPICO’s Director for EU Affairs in the Brussels office.
Kirsten brings more than 25 years of experience in European policy-making and law, having held senior leadership positions within the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs. Most recently, she served as Director General and Head of the Directorate for European Policy, advising the Ministry’s political leadership on all aspects of European affairs. In this role, Kirsten was responsible for EU policy coordination within the federal government, EU law, state aid, EU economic policy, foreign trade law, sanctions and export controls. She chaired interministerial coordination processes, represented Germany in European bodies and bilateral governmental committees, and accompanied high-level political exchanges. Key milestones of her tenure include Germany’s EU Council Presidency, the Brexit negotiations, Franco-German governmental consultations, and ministerial conferences with Turkey and the Western Balkans.
Previously, Kirsten served as Deputy Director General at the Division for General European Policy Coordination, EU Structural Policy and EU Law, where she held lead responsibility for EU structural policy negotiations and worked closely with the European Court of Justice. Earlier in her career, she was Head of the Central Legal Affairs Unit and the Future of the EU Unit at the Ministry. Her professional experience also includes postings at Germany’s Permanent Representation to the EU in Brussels.
Kirsten holds a PhD in Law with Summa Cum Laude from Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, awarded for her dissertation on state responsibility among EU Member States for infringements of EU law. She completed both her First and Second State Examinations in Law with distinction. , including training at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. She has received several distinctions, including the French Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite for her contributions to Franco-German cooperation and an award from the Law Faculty of LMU Munich for her outstanding doctoral thesis.
Alongside her professional activities, Kirsten is a member of the Managing Board of the Foundation Europa-Kolleg Hamburg and lectured on European law in the European Business Studies programme at the University of Applied Sciences Augsburg.
She is fluent in German, English and French, and has a basic command of Portuguese.
Areas of expertise
EU coordination, EU law, state aid, EU economic and regional policy, foreign trade law
Languages
German, English, French, Portuguese
Awards
Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite, French Order of Merit in recognition of services to Franco-German cooperation
Award for outstanding dissertation, Doctoral Law, Faculty of the Ludwig-Maximilians-Univesity Munich
Other positions
Member of the Managing Board, Foundation Europa-Kolleg Hamburg
Lecturer European Business Studies – European Law, University of Applied Sciences Augsburg
Education
PhD in Law, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich
Second State Examination, Higher Regional Court of Nuremberg
First State Examination, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich
Publications & Blog Posts
Publications
Media Outreach & External Publications
Media Coverage and Citations
- ENDS Europe
"What is necessary for business to make the decarbonisation business case is to have predictability" - Read the article
- Contexte
"The sliding scale approach risks failing to address” industry concerns of penalising scrap recycling, potentially causing market confusion" - Read the article
About EPICO KlimaInnovation
EPICO is an independent climate and energy policy think tank based in Berlin and Brussels. Founded in 2021 by Dr Bernd Weber, EPICO has a social market-oriented approach to promote a socially cohesive and environmentally sustainable transition to climate neutrality. Supported by its broad-based Advisory Council, EPICO provides a platform and network for diverse stakeholders from politics, academia, industry, and civil society to exchange and find majorities for ambitious climate policies.
For media and press requests, please contact Michela Sandron (EU Media) or Agata Gurgenidze (German Media).