Christian Schaffner

Dr. Christian Schaffner is a Lecturer at the Department of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering at ETH Zurich and has served as the Executive Director of the Energy Science Center (ESC) since 2013. The ESC, an interdisciplinary center at ETH Zurich, focuses on advancing sustainable energy research and fostering collaboration across academia, industry, government, and society. Schaffner previously led the grid section at the Swiss Federal Office of Energy, developing grid expansion strategies and smart grid roadmaps, and contributed to EU-Switzerland energy supply negotiations.

He holds an M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Electric Power Systems from ETH Zurich (1998 and 2004, respectively), along with a diploma in higher education teaching from the same institution. His research emphasizes environmentally friendly, economically viable energy systems, with a focus on grid infrastructure, policy, and international energy cooperation. Schaffner’s leadership at the ESC unites over fifty professors from eleven departments at ETH Zurich to address global energy challenges.