Balancing continuity and change, the charitable Stiftung Mercator has updated the strategy that will guide its work over the next five years. At the same time, Lars Grotewold assumed his new role as Chairman of the Executive Board at the beginning of the year, succeeding Wolfgang Rohe, who is stepping down due to his retirement.
Stiftung Mercator will continue to focus its work on digitalisation, Europe’s role in the world, climate, and participation and social cohesion. At the same time, it has further refined its goals and approaches across all program areas. For example, the former Climate Action Centre will broaden its scope to explicitly include adaptation to the growing impacts of climate change. The aim is to advance an integrated and socially just climate policy that brings together effective mitigation, the active removal of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, and strengthened resilience to climate impacts. Reflecting this evolution, the Centre has been given the new name Climate-Resilient Society.
“Throughout the new strategic period, we will continue to adapt our work whenever this is required by an environment marked by uncertainty and multiple, overlapping crises,” said Lars Grotewold, the foundation’s new Chairman of the Executive Board , who previously led the Climate Action Centre. “This requires organisational agility, a willingness to take informed risks, and systematic, cross-program learning”.
Joining forces with democratic groups
Within the Participation and Cohesion Centre, priorities have also shifted. The focus is now even more strongly on socioeconomically disadvantaged people, regardless of their background, and on promoting fair access to opportunities – for example in the labour market and housing sector. To strengthen trust in public institutions and the liberal democratic order, the Centre supports democratic structures, particularly at the local level.
The Digital Society Centre supports initiatives aimed at advancing the digital transformation of the state to enhance its capacity to act in the public interest. It also works to curb platform business models that undermine democratic processes. In addition, the Centre seeks to better connect digital policy with other thematic fields and broader societal debates.
Against the backdrop of a rapidly changing global order – and particularly a reassessment of transatlantic relations – the Europe in the World Centre promotes exchange among academia, civil society, politics, and business to help shape a renewed European self-understanding. This approach combines internal cohesion with a more strategic engagement in external relations. One key area of work is access to critical raw materials. The foundation’s focus countries, China and Turkey, where Stiftung Mercator maintains its own offices, play an important role in this context.
“Our overarching ambition remains to enable social progress that serves the common good,” Grotewold emphasized. “This is something we can only achieve in close collaboration with a broad alliance of democratic actors.”
About Lars Grotewold
Dr. Lars Grotewold has been Chairman of the Executive Board of Stiftung Mercator since January 1, 2026. He previously built and led the foundation’s Climate Action division starting in 2009. In this role, he was responsible for the strategic development of the funding portfolio and partner network. He is a co-founder of several leading policy think tanks, including Agora Energiewende, Agora Verkehrswende, the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change, and the energy and climate news service Clean Energy Wire. Before joining Stiftung Mercator, the PhD-trained molecular biologist worked at the secretariat of the German Council of Science and Humanities (Wissenschaftsrat) following research appointments in Germany and abroad.
Press Contact
Lothar Kuhn | Director Communications
T +49 201 245 22-36 | lothar.kuhn@stiftung-mercator.de
About Stiftung Mercator
Stiftung Mercator is a private, independent, and non-profit foundation that works at the intersection of research, policy, and practice. Since 1996, it has been committed to fostering a more inclusive, participatory, and cohesive society. To this end, the foundation supports and develops initiatives that expand opportunities for participation and strengthen social cohesion in an increasingly diverse society. Stiftung Mercator advocates for an open and democratic Europe, a rights-based digital transformation of the state and society, and socially just climate action. The foundation is active in Germany, across Europe, and globally. It maintains a strong connection to the Ruhr region, home to the founding family and the foundation’s headquarters.
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