Management and Boards

Management and Boards

The GIGA is headed by the President (ad interim) as prima inter pares with the Executive Board. The Research Council is responsible for developing the Institute’s scientific orientation. The GIGA’s management team are supported and advised by three external bodies: the Board of Trustees, the Academic Advisory Board, and the Council for Financial Affairs. This page introduces our management team and the three external bodies.


  • President

    Prof. Dr. Sabine Kurtenbach has been President (ad interim) of the GIGA since 1 April 2024. 

    Sabine Kurtenbach has been a researcher for many years, most recently serving as part of the GIGA Institute for Latin American Studies’ management team. Via interdisciplinary approaches and comparative and cross-regional analyses, her academic work addresses peace and conflict research, with a regional focus on Latin America. Kurtenbach has also contributed her expertise to various German and international organisations over the years. She has been an Honorary Professor at the University of Marburg since 2018.

    Julia Kramer, Executive Assistant to the Leadership, and Sonja Bartsch, Research Manager, work closely with the Executive Board and the President. 

    For more information, please contact us at: [email protected]


    Executive Board

    The Executive Board consists of the President, the Vice President, the Directors of the regional institutes, and the Managing Director.

    This body strategically guides the entire Institute, coordinates its work, and advises on the allocation of financial resources. The Executive Board is also responsible for all matters concerning human resources development and is assisted therein by the Equal Opportunity Commissioners.



    Research Council

    The Research Council advises on the Institute’s research direction and acts as the hub of subject-matter development, as well as being responsible for the Institute’s research plan. The Research Council assists the Executive Board in research and personnel strategies.

    The Research Council is composed of the President, the Vice President, the Directors of the regional institutes, the Heads of the research programmes, the Research Manager, and the Academic Director of the GIGA Doctoral Programme.



    External Boards

    The German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA) is a foundation under civil law. It is accountable to and supported and advised by a Board of Trustees, an Academic Advisory Board, and a Council for Financial Affairs.

    Board of Trustees

    The Board of Trustees monitors the legality and efficiency of the Institute’s work, including financial planning and financial reporting. It also appoints the President of the GIGA and the other members of the Executive Board.

    • Dr. Eva Gümbel (Chair), State Councillor, Ministry of Science, Research, Equalities and Districts, Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg

    • Dr. Christian Becker, Federal Foreign Office, Berlin

    • Orlando Baquero, Latin American Business Association, Hamburg

    • Andreas Cichowicz, NDR Editor-in-Chief of Television, Hamburg

    • Prof. Dr. Louise Fawcett, University of Oxford, Great Britain

    • Gottfried von Gemmingen, Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Bonn

    • Christoph Kannengießer, German–African Business Association, Hamburg

    • Philip Koch, Head of Strategy and International Relations, Hamburg Chamber of Commerce

    • Prof. Dr. Sebastian Lentz, Director, Leibniz Institute for Regional Geography, Vice President of the Leibniz Association, Leipzig

    • Corinna Nienstedt, Head of the State Office, Hamburg Senate Chancellery

    • Helene Rang, German Near and Middle East Association, Berlin

    • Almut Rößner, German Asia-Pacific Business Association, Hamburg


    Academic Advisory Board

    The Academic Advisory Board advises the Board of Trustees and the Executive Board on research planning, research collaboration, and the presentation of research findings.

    • Prof. Dr. Louise Fawcett (Chair), University of Oxford, Great Britain

    • Prof. Dr. Mark Hallerberg (Deputy Chair), Hertie School of Governance, Berlin, Germany

    • Prof. Dr. Amitabh Mattoo (Deputy Chair), Jawaharlal Nehru University, Centre for International Politics, Organization and Disarmament (CIPOD), New Delhi, India

    • Prof. Dr. Steven Bernstein, University of Toronto, Canada

    • Prof. Dr. Aurel Croissant, University of Heidelberg, Germany

    • Prof. Dr. Daniel Drezner, Tufts University, The Fletcher School, Medford, USA

    • Prof. Dr. Ulrike Grote, Leibniz University Hannover, Institute for Environmental Economics and World Trade, Germany

    • Prof. Dr. Robert Howse, New York University School of Law, USA

    • Prof. Dr. Henry Kwasi Prempeh, Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana)

    • Prof. Dr. Valérie Rosoux, Catholic University of Louvain (UCL), Belgium

    • Prof. Dr. Natalia Saltalamacchia, Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM), Mexico


    Council for Financial Affairs

    The Council for Financial Affairs supports the Board of Trustees in financial, organisational, and personnel matters.

    • Katja Linke (Chair), Ministry of Science, Research, Equalities and Districts, Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg

    • Harald Herrmann (Deputy Chair), Federal Foreign Office, Berlin

    • Jürgen Bethke, Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften (ISAS), e.V.

    • Dr. Thomas Held, German Foundation for Peace Research (DSF)

    President (ad interim)

    Prof. Dr. Sabine Kurtenbach is President (ad interim) of the GIGA.

    Prof. Dr. Sabine Kurtenbach

    Regional Institutes

    Africa|Asia|Latin America|Middle East

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