It is with a heavy heart and deep sadness that we have to say goodbye to our long-standing and valued board member, Rosa Hemmers. Her sudden death on November 8, 2023 has left a huge gap. Rosa Hemmers was not only a dedicated board member for almost two decades, but also a companion who played a key role in shaping the life of our association.

The importance of Rosa Hemmers for Grüner Strom Label e.V.

We have had the honor of having Rosa Hemmers, with her extensive professional experience in the energy industry and in the field of renewable energies, at our side as a board member since 2005.

Grüner Strom Label e.V. was founded in 1998 on the initiative of EUROSOLAR by several environmental and consumer protection organizations. EUROSOLAR and six other major environmental, peace and consumer organizations still support our association. Rosa Hemmers has represented her association EUROSOLAR in our General Assembly since 2005 and was directly elected to the Board by the other supporting associations in the same year. For almost two decades, she helped shape the life of our association with a lot of heart, courage, idealism and passion.

At the interface between the environmental associations and the energy industry, Rosa Hemmers understood how to keep an eye on different needs, ensure a good balance where possible and, where necessary, assert the interests of the association against large companies - always with the aim of contributing to a rapid, decentralized and citizen-oriented energy transition. She always felt committed to the common good and, as a pioneer, fought for the expansion of renewable energies at an early stage when this topic was still far from being accepted by most people. She was not deterred by headwinds and did not shy away from conflict, but always remained solution-oriented and willing to cooperate.

"The debates surrounding the energy transition make one thing clear: it would be wrong to rely solely on politicians to set the right course. In the expansion of renewable energies to date, it has become clear that organizations, companies and citizens are always needed to lead the way and provide additional impetus." said Rosa Hemmers at the "Innovation Conference" of Grüner Strom Label e.V. on July 2, 2014.

Under her influence, we experienced numerous successes and positive changes as an association. From 2005 to 2017 in particular, she shaped the operational business as Managing Director. Among other things, she worked with the team to establish new business areas and drove forward the professionalization of the office. She was characterized by values such as integrity, respect, humanity, open-mindedness and humour.

She was an anchor point for the team, not only professionally but also personally. Her hearty laugh lightened up difficult moments and she made sure that fun and shared experiences were not neglected alongside work.

Rosa Hemmer's significant work will remain unforgotten and we are deeply grateful for the mark she has left on our community.Without her commitment, the development of our association would not have been possible. She worked for a better world not only with us, but also with other organizations, companies and initiatives.

We are losing a warm-hearted, humorous and inspiring person. It is now our responsibility to uphold the values she stood for. We are grateful for the time we were able to spend with her.

Dietmar Oeliger and Marcus Bollmann for the Executive Board and the sponsoring associations of Grüner Strom Label e.V.

Daniel Craffonara, Christian Knops and Michelle Markwart for the Grüner Strom Label e.V. team.

In memory of Rosa Hemmers, we will make a donation to the charitable organization Help for women in need - Frauenhaus Bonn e.V. in which she served as honorary chairwoman for many years.

About Rosa Hemmers

Rosa Hemmers was a graduate geographer (graduated from Friedrich-Wilhelms University in 1978) and a graduate tropical technologist (graduated from Cologne University of Applied Sciences in 1980). She has held many important positions in the renewable energy sector throughout her career, underlining her extensive experience and expertise.

From 1980 to 1990, she worked at the Fachinformationszentrum Karlsruhe - Gesellschaft für wissenschaftliche und technische Information, where she was responsible for the development and operation of the BINE information service and later took over the office management. For over ten years, Rosa Hemmers worked as deputy managing director of the ASEW working group for economical energy and water use in association, consulting and lobbying work for the municipal energy industry. Among other things, her focus was on setting up advisory centers, training energy and environmental consultants, developing new business areas and products and promoting environmentally responsible corporate strategies. She worked for Stadtwerke Aachen for seventeen years from 2001, where she was responsible for energy efficiency and innovation, among other things. in.

In 2004, Rosa Hemmers founded the consulting firm SynergieKomm Agentur für Nachhaltigkeit und Innovation, with which she has advised stakeholders from the public and private sectors on developing and promoting climate strategies. Her focus has always been on the practical implementation of measures to protect the climate, increase energy efficiency and use renewable energies.  

From 2004 to 2006, she worked in the NRW state parliament administration in Düsseldorf and was responsible for the technical coordination of a commission of inquiry on the subject of "Rising oil and gas prices and their impact on the economy and consumers".

For over 30 years, Rosa Hemmers campaigned for renewable energies in the (energy) political arena, particularly as a board member of EUROSOLAR and Grüner Strom Label e.V. (Green Electricity Label).