Energy System Transformation: Delegation Trip to Germany

Jennifer Kearney, Executive Partner of Gotham 360, spent the week of March 12 - 16, 2018, in Berlin, Germany as one of ten delegates from New York State for a special energy briefing and best practices exchange between New York and the nation of Germany.

After a successful inaugural delegation trip to Berlin in June 2017, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy once again invited policy-makers, entrepreneurs, and energy experts from New York State to participate in a trip to Germany in March 2018.

The goal of this now annual delegation is to strengthen the transatlantic energy cooperation between Germany and New York State. The trip is jointly organized by the German American Chamber of Commerce in New York and the Renewables Academy (RENAC) in Berlin.

Events and excursions in Berlin were as varied as a meeting with one of the largest utilities in Germany to a visit to the technical university campus, which demonstrates innovation with its solar PV façade. Such meetings and site visits were bookended by panel discussions and intra-delegation workshops to debrief. Topics of discussion at meetings, events, and site visits throughout the week included key challenges towards decarbonization, cross-country grid planning, technology in the fields of fuel cells and clean mobility, renewable energy storage, and more.

Industry transformation towards a sustainable energy future will not happen successfully, nor on the necessary global scale, without cross-borders coordination such as this delegation trip to Germany, and Gotham 360 is honored to play a role in the exchange.

We look forward to growing the connections that were made during this delegation trip long past Jennifer's return to New York as well as taking lessons learned back to our clients and the larger New York State energy landscape.