Thought Leadership for Policy Convergence Across V4 Countries
We bring together the most influential voices for a regional ‘Industry of the Future Taskforce’.
The Taskforce will not only provide inputs for the publication but also act as ambassadors for decarbonisation efforts.
- Directors are increasingly expected to provide a positive and consistent contribution to climate change policy discussion. Our project offers opportunities to publicly articulate decarbonization agenda.
- The project provides forum to shape the medium-term action plans and bridge the gap between public sector and the business community.
- Collaborate with peers on the sustainability agenda and share best practices in a way that falls within the confines of applicable competition laws.
- Organized seminars and trainings help to gain competencies in climate change, decarbonization and climate policies.
Members
- All
- Czech Republic
- Slovakia
- Hungary
- Poland
Richard Filčák
Academia
Richard is Head of the Institute and Senior Researcher at the Slovak Academy of Sciences/CSPS-Institute for Forecasting. His work is focused on environmental and social policy development, and trends in the transitional countries of Central and Eastern Europe – paying particular attention to the economic and social cohesion policies vis-à-vis climate change.
Peter Balík
Policy
Peter holds the position of General Director of the Section for Innovation, Strategic Investments and Analyzes (HUB) at the Ministry of Investments, Regional Development and Informatisation of the Slovak Republic.
He also worked as an expert within JASPERS (European Investment Bank) and focused on projects funded by the ESI Funds in the areas of innovation, research and development and the promotion of smart cities. In the past, Peter worked as an economic specialist at the US Embassy in Bratislava and also as the director of the Department of Innovation and Digital Economy at the Ministry of Economy of the Slovak Republic.
Michal Pintér
Steel Industry
Michal has been appointed as Director of Governmental, EU Affairs & REACH at U.S. Steel Kosice (USSK) in 2007. In his function, he also represents USSK in the Slovak National Union of Employers, as the chair of the European and Foreign Affairs Committee, in the American Chamber of Commerce in Slovakia – as its Vice President, as well as int the Czech Steel Union as a member of the Supervisory Board and in the European Steel Association EUROFER.
Michal is also a coordinator of delegates of the Employers Category (17 industrial sectors) to Consultative Commission for Industrial Change (CCMI) at the European Economic and Social Committee, representing Eurofer and APEAL - The Association of European Producers of Steel for Packaging.
Kateřina Špániková
Finance
Kateřina Špániková is Head of ESG & Support Products at Raiffeisenbank a.s She is responsible for sustainable finance product and ESG advisory for corporate clients of the bank. In her role, she supports customers’ transition to a responsible and sustainable business model, increases ESG awareness both internally and externally and develops sustainable finance solutions.
Before joining Raiffeisenbank she worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers in regulatory advisory for financial institutions.
Martin Šauer
Policy
Martin serves as a Policy Officer at the Department of Energy and Climate Protection at the Ministry of Environment of the Czech Republic. His primary focus is on innovative technologies in the energy sector and carbon pricing. He is part of the team responsible for negotiating the EU ETS revision during the Czech Presidency at the Council of the EU and the key contact for the European Innovation Fund in the Czech Republic.
Mirosław Motyka
Steel industry
Polish Steel Association HIPH, President of the Board
Graduated from German Philology at Jagiellonian University in Krakow and took a six-month practice at the Humboldt University in Berlin. Finished the UEC Training Course on the Iron and Steel Training Program in Pittsburg, USA. Completed postgraduate courses organized by Ernst & Young and Warsaw School of Economics (the Executive Studies in Finance.) 1988 -2022: ArcelorMittal Poland SA where he has worked at investment, trade, finance (project finance ECSC), foreign relations, assistant of CEO positions, and since 2009 as Director Government Affairs. Vice-President of the Employers of Poland from 2007 to 2012, Chairman of the Council of ZPPH (Steel Employers Association) till now. Member of the Scientific Council of Łukasiewicz Research Network – Institute for Ferrous Metallurgy.
Since 2013 The Council Chairman of HIPH – Polish Steel Association. 2022 – President of the Board of Polish Steel Association (HIPH).
Jan Burian
Industry Insights
Jan Burian, Senior Director, Head of Manufacturing Insights EMEA, IDC, Jan Burian is a research director for IDC Manufacturing Insights. His core research coverage includes Industry 4.0, digital transformation, and IT and automation tools in the manufacturing environment across industries such as automotive, machinery, steel, and consumer products.
His focus is on the level of adoption of the technologies that are relevant for the production company of the future, and on the connection between strategy, technology, and workforce. This involves dealing with artificial intelligence for production planning, supply chain planning and quality management, seamless data flows, collaborative robotics, intelligent process automation, and predictive maintenance, among others. Another key focus is the industry-wide adoption of technology, including horizontal and vertical collaboration across the supply chain.
Branislav Brežný
Chemicals Industry
Branislav has been active in chemical industry including mineral fertilizers industry for more than 22 years. A key part of this professional career was dedicated to Duslo Šaľa, one of the largest chemical companies in Slovakia.
He started his professional career in Duslo Šaľa as a technician, later he was responsible for management of production and innovation of rubber chemicals, dispersions and adhesives. From 2015 he holds the position of the managing director of VUCHT, R&D and engineering company focused on active development of chemical technologies for both inorganic and organic processes.
Rudolf Mackovič
Cement Industry
Rudolf is a Managing Director of the Slovak Cement Association, which covers the production of nearly four million tons of cement per year in the Slovak Republic.
With 22 years of expertise in cement production, quality, process technologies and the environment, he held various positions in the cement industry for large industrial corporations in eight countries on three continents
Pavel Kubička
Energy Sector
Pavel is a Member of the Board and Director of Decarbonization at ČEZ ESCO, assisting clients to decrease their carbon footprint. Previously, he worked as CEO, Director of Strategy, Director of Corporate Development, and a McKinsey consultant on many exciting projects across Europe. Pavel’s expertise and areas of interest include strategy, sustainability, innovations, and crisis management. Before his business career, he published original research in molecular biology in top scientific journals. And he is an avid mountain hiker.
Paweł Gładysz, Ph.D.
Research
Paweł Gładysz is an assistant professor at the Faculty of Energy and Fuels - AGH University of Science and Technology in Kraków, Poland. He is also a Managing Manager of the project entitled “Strategy development for CO2 capture, transport, utilization and storage in Poland, and pilot implementation of Polish CCUS Cluster” at the AGH University of Science and Technology Center of Energy. He graduated from his PhD studies in 2015 from the Silesian University of Technology in Power Engineering. Since 2010, he has been working in several research and industrial projects in the field of thermal engineering, modelling and optimization of thermal processes (mainly carbon capture and storage technologies and combined heat-and-power cycles), life cycle assessment, system input-output analysis, both thermo-ecological and techno-economic analysis, as well as energy policy.
Roland Fazekas
Steel industry
Roland Fazekas is the CEO of Carboferr Commodities Ltd and Carboferr Ipari Holding Ltd. He is also a Managing Partner of Acélpartner Steel Processing and Trading Ltd and of Fórum Plussz Ltd. In 2017, Mr Fazekas became the President of the Hungarian Steel and Metal Traders Association, with the goal to promote the Hungarian Steel Industry at an international level and involve Hungarian companies in governmental and EU projects. He holds a Master of Science (MSc) degree focused in Economics from the Corvinus University of Budapest and a Master of Science (MSc) degree in European Studies from the London School of Economics. He started his career in the banking sector in 1997 and worked in several senior positions for Raiffeisen Bank and K&H Bank. Leaving the banking sector behind, in 2007 he became the managing partner of an investment holding company. In 2011, he founded Carboferr Ltd, which is a company mainly engaged in the wholesale of steel and plastic products.
Dr. Barbara Botos
Policy
Dr. Barbara Botos is in charge of international, EU and national climate change policy making including through the field of energy efficiency and project implementation. She also supervises the National Climate Protection Authority responsible for national F gas regulation and the Hungarian emission trading system.
She has been actively involved in the UNFCCC and EU climate negotiations for the last 12 years as head of the Hungarian delegation and UNFCCC and IPCC focal point of Hungary. She also coordinates international and bilateral climate finance programmes within the Ministry and has coordinated the setting up the Western Balkans Green Centre.
She is a Hubert H. Humphrey fellow of Cornell University, Ithaca, New York State, specialised in city and regional planning, has a PhD degree in Earth Science, has an MSc in Environmental Policy and Science, and another one as a biologist. Previously, Barbara was Head of Department of Climate Policy at the Ministry of National Development and has been teaching at several universities and worked for local governments in the field of environmental protection and climate policy. Ms Botos is a university lecturer at Károly Eszterházy Catholic University, and a member of the Women in Energy Association.
Gábor Gyura
Finance
Gábor Gyura is Head of the Sustainable Finance Department at the Central Bank of Hungary. He is responsible for the Central Bank's Green Program and is mainly involved in supporting the development of the Hungarian green financial segment and the environmental risk management of the financial system. He is a representative of the Central Bank of Hungary in several international organizations dealing with sustainable and climate finance, such as the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS) and the commissions of the European Supervisory Authorities.
Ottó Magera
Cement Industry
Ottó Magera is a senior cement industry expert with over fifteen years of experience in operational and commercial responsibilities in the building materials industry, managing sales, operations, and personnel at the local and regional (CZ, AT, SK, HU) levels. Leadership experience with Holcim, CRH and Duna-Dráva Ltd.
Dr Róbert Keszte
Chemicals Industry
Dr. Róbert Keszte has a multiple decade experience in engineering and leading Continental factory units in Hungary as well as in Romania. Under his leadership, the Budapest plant has turned into a world-renowned manufacturer: it was recognized as the “Factory of the Year” in 2018, 2019 and 2021, and also the “Supplier of the Year” in 2020. As a Managing Director of Continental Automotive Hungary Ltd and the Head of Focus Country Hungary, he actively participates in the Industry 4.0 model plant program as a partner of the Hungarian government. He holds a doctorate in Mechanical Engineering and a bachelor's degree in Economics.
The Industry Taskforce
The Taskforce will pool key decision makers and power brokers from the region to provide expert input, peer review for research and act as ambassadors of the project.
