On January 26, 2024 – Gunda Röstel – the long-standing Chairwoman of the University Council of Dresden University of Technology (TUD), was awarded the German Federal Cross of Merit for her outstanding social commitment. This highest recognition for services to the common good was awarded to Röstel at a ceremony in the Saxon State Chancellery by Minister President Michael Kretschmer. Kretschmer presented the Federal Cross of Merit on behalf of the Federal President. Prof. Dr. Ursula Staudinger, Rector of the TUD, had nominated Röstel as an outstanding personality.

"We warmly congratulate Gunda Röstel on this exceptional award. She has shaped the development of TU Dresden and left her permanent mark. She rendered outstanding services to TU Dresden, to Saxony as a science hub and to both social and ecological issues," said Prof. Staudinger.

The Minister President paid tribute to Gunda Röstel's commitment, for example in the energy and water industry and as part of the German Water Partnership, which she co-founded. He also emphasized her extremely successful commitment as Chair of the TUD University Council. He also highlighted her merits in supporting TU Dresden on its way to becoming a University of Excellence.

CV: Gunda Röstel

Gunda Röstel studied special education in Rostock and then worked as a teacher and principal. From 1996 to 2000, she was the national chairwoman of the Bündnis 90/Die Grünen party. She later worked as an authorized officer at Gelsenwasser AG and took over the position of Managing Director of Stadtentwässerung Dresden GmbH (urban drainage) in 2004. She was a member of the Board of Trustees of TU Dresden until 2008 and chaired the TUD University Council from 2010 until 2023. In the fields of the environment and sustainability, she has been involved as Chair of the Executive Board of the German Water Partnership, as a member of the German Council for Sustainable Development, the Federal Government's Hydrogen Council and the Saxony Innovation Advisory Council.

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