Rainer Grießhammer (born 14 July 1953) is a German chemist and member of the executive board of the Oeko-Institut.
Besides his practical work, Grießhammer is managing director of the Future Heritage Foundation (Stiftung Zukunftserbe) in Freiburg (since 2000). He is the author of numerous scientific articles and popular science publications. Since 2012, Grießhammer has been honorary professor for sustainable products at the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg.
Education and career
Grießhammer studied chemistry at the University of Basel and at the Eberhard Karls University, Tübingen. After graduating, he began his career as a scientist at the Oeko-Institut and has helped to shape the institute’s development over more than 30 years – including as a member of its committee and of its executive board. The progression of his career mirrors the evolution of the environmental movement from a neglected sideline to a key societal and political topic of the present day.
In parallel to his work at the Oeko-Institut Grießhammer was the publisher of the chemical policy journal Informationsdienst Chemie und Umwelt, ICU (1984–1997), gave lectures at the University of Giessen (1996–1999) and has served since 2000 as executive director of the Legacy for the Future Foundation (Stiftung Zukunftserbe). Since 2012, Grießhammer has been honorary professor for sustainable products at the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg and a member of the research advisory board of the “Consumers, Market and Policy” Research Centre at the Zeppelin University in Friedrichshafen.
Fields of work and (selected) projects
Griesshammer’s main areas of work have been "chemistry and environment" (1982–1992), product evaluation and life-cycle assessments (1989–1995), sustainable development and material flow management (1992–2000), sustainable products and consumption, and transformations (from around 1996 to now). His product-related studies substantially influenced the international development of methods in the field of life-cycle assessment (life-cycle management, material flow analyses and product sustainability assessment). Corresponding projects and critical reviews were carried out at EU level and in Denmark, France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland.
The research projects in the area of "chemistry and environment" (1982–1992) concentrated on the environmental impacts caused by chemicals and the specific problems associated with them, on the one hand, and on German chemicals legislation, European Union chemicals law and the conception of a new chemicals policy, on the other. This phase culminated and concluded with work in and on behalf of the Enquete Commission of the German Bundestag on “Protection of Humanity and the Environment”. Both the concept of a societally transformed management of chemicals and the results of the Enquete Commission of the German Bundestag were substantially influenced by Griesshammer.
In the area of “product evaluation and life-cycle assessments” (1989–1995), Grießhammer most notably contributed (including internationally, under the auspices of SETAC) to developing the life-cycle assessment (LCA) method and by carrying out practice-oriented LCAs and sustainability assessments of all kinds of products (laundry detergents, domestic appliances, TV sets, computers, products containing CFCs, recycled paper, packaging, surgical drape materials, plastics, textiles and coffee). The ISO 14040 standard requires extensive “critical reviews” to be performed for published life-cycle assessments – in this connection Rainer Grießhammer is one of the expert reviewers in most frequent demand internationally.
His research work in the area of sustainable development and material flow management (1992–2000) concentrated on overarching environmental objectives and sustainability indicators, on concretising and implementing the guiding vision of sustainable development at the level of products and materials in general, and for certain sectors and areas of need in particular (information and communication, construction and housing, clothing and washing), and on the structuring of stake-holder cooperation.