Claude GENGLER

Director of the Forum EUROPA foundation, Luxembourg
Claude Gengler (born 1963), a Luxembourger, studied Geography and Regional Development Planning in Luxembourg, Metz and Paris (Sorbonne). He completed his doctorate at Paul Verlaine University in Metz on the topic ‘General State Regional Development Planning Policy in Luxembourg’ (2007). Professional career: research associate at CEPS/INSTEAD in Luxembourg (1987-90); government official (where the last position he held was as an assistant head of a government department) in the Ministry for Regional Development Planning in Luxembourg (1990-99); department head in charge of the ‘Greater Region’ at the Banque Générale du Luxembourg, which is now BGL BNP Paribas (1999-2002); since April 2002, he has been executive director of the Forum EUROPA foundation with the goal of supervising cross-border cooperation in the greater region of SaarLorLux/Rhineland-Palatinate/Wallonia in a manner which asks a lot of the region as well as providing it with its full support. The author and co-author of numerous publications on Luxembourg and the Greater Region, Gengler is also a newspaper columnist and the editor of the FORUM EUROPA series. He holds the European Medal of Merit in silver for services to the Greater Region and Europe. Interests (alongside family, art and holidaying in the mountains): Europe, Greater Region, cross-border cooperation, regional development planning, demographic change, issues of governance, media, politics.