Roman Eric Sieler

About Me

I am a fourth-year PhD Candidate in Environmental Economics at the University of Basel in Switzerland, exploring ecosystem impacts of climate change, how environmental degradation and pollution affect human health and productivity, and the effectiveness of climate policy. I am particularly passionate about using spatial data, remote sensing and machine learning in combination with econometric micro-analyses. 

I am advised by Beat Hintermann and financed through grants by the Swiss National Science Foundation. During my PhD, I also spent time as a Visiting Scholar at the University of California in Santa Barbara supervised by Tamma Carleton as well as at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile with Juan-Pablo Montero.

Beyond my academic work, I work as climate policy and development consultant and support NGO work in the context of the UN climate conferences, seeking to translate scientific findings into policy action and to empower young people from around the world to share their perspectives in the UN space. 

Research

Detection of Coral Bleaching Events through Satellite Imagery and Machine Learning. Through this ongoing project, I seek to detect large-scale coral bleaching events through the use of satellite imagery and machine learning. The goal is to create a comprehensive dataset for my own as well as other research.

The Impacts of Coral Bleaching on the Biological Standard of Living of Coastal Communities in East Africa. Using the data created through the aforementioned project, this project aims to understand the impacts of coral bleaching on child nutrition in coastal communities across four East African countries. 

Household Responses and Adaptation to Coral bleaching in Tanzania. This project aims at understanding the adaptation behaviour and household response to coral bleaching in Tanzania. 

Bad for Business? The Impact of Air Quality on Firm Outcomes in Germany. This projects seeks to uncover the impacts of air pollution on firm- and plant-level outcomes, including labor productivity, working hours and value added. We employ an improved IV strategy using weather inversion to understand the processes behind potential effects. 

Product Switching under the European Emission Trading Scheme. The question we seek to answer in this project is whether German firms switch to more sustainable - less energy intensive - products as a consequence of the introduction of a carbon price through the European ETS. 

Previous Experience

Beyond my research work, I have several years of experience in international cooperation, research and consulting in the context of energy and climate policy. I currently work as a consultant on climate and development projects with BSS Economic Consultants in Basel, Switzerland. Previously, I was a research analyst with adelphi consult in Berlin, Germany, where I worked for the German-Korean and -Japanese Energy Partnerships and focused on the implementation of research projects, international workshops as well as on supporting the German Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. Other past experiences include working for a Sino-German Cooperation Project seeking to support the establisment of an Emission Trading System in China with giz, German Development Cooperation, in Beijing and interning with the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

© Auswärtiges Amt/Thomas Trutschel

I have several years of experience in the international climate policy space advocating for conservation and increased mitigation efforts and have led a delegation of young people to all UN world climate conferences since COP25. I served as Contact Point of the Mitigation Working Group of the youth constituency in the UNFCCC, coordinating youth advocacy on the topic and spoke on behalf of youth at the opening plenary of COP27. Furthermore, I was an active member of the Oceans Working Group and continue to support the Ambition Working Group of Climate Action Network International. My work also included co-organizing and participating in high-level meetings, including with EU Commissioners, Heads of State and Ministers. I am the Co-Founder and former Coordinator of the Network of European Youth NGOs for Climate Action, served as Board Member of Generation Climate Europe between 2019-22, and was responsible for the political representation of FIMCAP, a large network of youth organizations, as part of its European Presidium between 2021-23. In this function, I worked on the representation of young people on the EU and international level and empowered young people, both from the Global North and the Global South to participate in world climate conferences. I continue to serve as the Sustainability Ambassador of FIMCAP Europe.

Scientific Conference Presentations

• 30th Annual Conference of the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, Bergen, Norway (2025)
• 13th Mannheim Conference on Energy and the Environment, Mannheim, Germany (2025)
• Summer Conference of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, Washington DC, USA (2024)
• Interdisciplinary Ph.D. Workshop in Sustainable Development (IPWSD) at Columbia, New York City, USA (2024)
• 28th Annual Conference of the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, Limassol, Cyprus (2023)
• 11th Mannheim Conference on Energy and the Environment, Mannheim, Germany (2023)

Seminar Presentations and Visits

• Sustainable Future Research Lunch, University of Basel, Switzerland (2025)
• Economics Lunch, University of Basel, Switzerland (2025)
• U.S. Seminar in Business, Law and Economic Policy, New York University, USA (2025)
• Seminar of Arik Levinson, Georgetown University, USA (2025)
• Seminar of Christopher Golden, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, online (2024)
• Gaines Lab, Marine Science Institute, University of California Santa Barbara, USA (2024)
• Scripps Institution, University of California in San Diego, USA (2024)
• Environmental Markets Lab Research Roundtable, University of California Santa Barbara, USA (2024)
• Carleton Lab Meeting, University of California Santa Barbara, USA (2024)
• Ciclo de Seminarios Académicos, Universidad de Talca, Chile (2022)

Other Speaking Engagements

• Youth Climate Forum COP27, An ‘Energy COP' for Net Zero, 2023
• Can Nuclear Play a Role in Achieving SDG7?, IAEA at COP27, 2023
• Bolstering of Youth Climate Action on Global North and Global South, COP27, 2023
• Z2X23 – “Das Ideenfestival von ZEIT ONLINE (the idea festival of ZEIT online)”, 2023
• Lessons from the World Climate Conference COP27, Milieu Law & Policy Consulting Brussels, 2022
• Speaker on behalf of the Youth Constituency, Opening Plenary, COP27 World Climate Conference, 2022
• Climate Forum COP26, Intergenerational Policy Dialogue on Mitigation, Solutions and Just Transition, 2022
• Call to Europe IX: Panel on Climate Justice, Foundation for European Progressive Studies (FEPS), 2020

Political Conference Participations

• United Nations High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, "Reinforcing the 2030 Agenda and eradicating poverty in times of multiple crises: the effective delivery of sustainable, resilient and innovative solutions”, New York, USA, 2024
• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), COP 28, Dubai, UAE, 2023
• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Bonn Climate Change Conference, SB58, Bonn, Germany, 2023
• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), COP 27, Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, 2022
• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Bonn Climate Change Conference, SB56, Bonn, Germany, 2022 (virtual)
• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), COP 26, Glasgow, United Kingdom, 2021
• UNFCCC Technology Executive Committee, Twentieth Meeting, virtual, 2020
• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), COP 25, Madrid, Spain, 2019

• Münch, Marie; Hannes Seitz, Henri Dörr, Roman Sieler, Franziska Teichmann and Jana Narita (2024). Status of Hydrogen and Potential for Cooperation: Australia, Germany, Japan, and Korea. Berlin: adelphi.
  
• Seitz, Hannes; Roman Sieler and Jana Narita (2024). Renewable energy potential in Korea and Germany. Berlin: adelphi. 
  
• Sieler, Roman Eric; and Henri Dörr (2023). Certification of green and low-carbon hydrogen. Berlin: adelphi. 
  
• Sieler, Roman Eric; Lisa Cames, Bianca Schuster, Sören Borghardt, and Benjamin La Trobe (2022). Hydrogen Factsheet – Japan. Berlin: adelphi.
• Sieler, Roman Eric (2022). Offshore Wind – Achieved Cost Reductions in Germany. Berlin: adelphi.
• Sieler, Roman Eric (2021). Mit Wasserstoff Richtung Net Zero: Klima- und Energiepolitik in Japan, Südkorea und Australien (With Hydrogen towards Net Zero. Cliamte and Energy Policy in Japan, South Korea and Australia). insight asia-pacific, German Asia-Pacific Business Association. 
• Narita, Jana; Lisa Cames, Miha Jensterle, Roman Eric Sieler and Momo Paula Lühmann (2020). Energy Efficiency in Industry and Buildings in South Korea and Germany. Berlin: adelphi.
• Kerres, Pia; Roman Eric Sieler, Jana Narita, Jakob Eckardt and Lucy Overbeck (2020). Germany’s policy practices for improving community acceptance of wind farms. Berlin: adelphi.
• Hirschberger, Bernd; Alexandra Nicandrou; Roman Sieler et al. (2020). Young voices on climate justice - the European Youth and Climate Justice Report 2020, Generation Climate Europe.
• Sieler, Roman Eric (2019). "Do coral reefs matter? An analysis of the effects of climate induced coral bleaching on the biological standard of living in Indonesia". MEDEG Research Thesis Excellence Student Paper Series, Lund University.  
• Kamenik, Anna Maria; Roman Sieler; Nina Welke (2016). “Jugendverbände als partizipatorisches Lernfeld“ (The role of youth organizations as spaces for learning participation). Der Bürger im Staat, Heft 4-2016, Landeszentrale für politische Bildung Baden-Württemberg, Stuttgart, ISSN 0007–3121

Please find my full CV here: