Joachim Luther
Joachim Luther (born March 31, 1941, in Hannover, Germany) received his PhD in experimental physics at the University of Hannover in 1970. In 1974, he became professor of laser physics at the University of Oldenburg. In the beginning of the 1980s, his scientific interest shifted towards renewable energy sources like solar power and wind power. Since 1993, Luther headed the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE in Freiburg, Germany, then establishing it as the largest research center for solar energy in Europe. Professor Luther retired from ISE in 2006. In 2008, he was asked to head the newly founded Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS).
Joachim Luther served as member of leading advisory boards on renewable energy in Germany and in the European Union. He also was elected, in 1999, to be the Editor-in-Chief of the journal Solar Energy.
In 2005, Luther was awarded the prestigious Becquerel prize and the German Environment Foundation prize. In 2008, he was named one of the Heroes of the Environment (2008) by the Time magazine.