Dr Carsten Gerhardt studied physics and mathematics as well as English literature at the University of Wuppertal and Bethel College in Kansas, USA, before earning his PhD in theoretical solid state physics at the University of Wuppertal and Université Laval in Québec, Canada. He also holds a business degree.

In 1998 he became a consultant with The Boston Consulting Group (BCG). His focus there was on companies in the fields of banking and insurance, energy, pharmaceuticals and health care, manufacturing, as well as non-governmental organisations. In 2008 he joined the consulting firm A.T. Kearney as a member of the extended executive board in charge of sustainability in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Eastern Europe. Specifically, he supports companies in those countries in their efforts to reconcile the need for long-term competitiveness with social and ecological responsibility. He develops strategies for sustainable business and ways to implement them.

As part of his work for A.T. Kearney, Dr Gerhardt participates in the preselection process for the annual German Sustainability Award. Aside from his professional activities, he is also one of the founders and chairman of Wuppertalbewegung e.V., an initiative that supports sustainable projects that will benefit the population of the city of Wuppertal. The group’s first project is the conversion of an old cross-town railway track into a pedestrian, bike and inline skating path.