Maryke van Staden

Maryke oversees the Local Governments for Sustainability's (ICLEI) global strategy on integrated climate action, resilient development, access to finance, as well as research and innovation. She leads a fantastic team of multi-disciplinary experts in Bonn and works closely with 24 ICLEI offices around the globe to serve ICLEI's global network of 2,500+ local and regional governments in 125 countries.

She is a senior expert addressing climate change resilience, adaptation and mitigation (integrated climate action); access to sustainable energy; enhancing resilience of communities, systems and infrastructure; access to finance for local action; also exploring how data, information and knowledge resulting from reporting and research can inform decision-making.  

An international political scientist by training, with two degrees from the University of Pretoria (1989, 1991), Maryke’s career spans nearly 30 years in the areas of energy & climate policy and security. She worked for national government, the private sector and NGOs, here notably for the International Solar Energy Society (ISES) on global renewable energy roll-out, then moving to the ICLEI European Secretariat – where for 7 years she guided climate and energy activities across the wider European and MENA region, and now celebrating 9 years at the ICLEI World Secretariat.

Key topics of interest are: a just and inclusive transition to a sustainable future; energy and geo-political security; enhancing resilience and exploring practical ways of achieving climate neutrality and net-zero emissions in cities, towns and regions around the globe at the latest by 2050, using resilient development as the entry point. Further key themes are informed decision-making; public reporting and transparency; effective multilevel governance; well-coordinated planning and action to achieve substantial positive impact.