Achim Hagen

Achim Hagen serves as Guest Professor for Environmental and Political Economics at Humboldt University of Berlin while leading the PECan research group. He maintains dual affiliations as Research Associate at the Berlin School of Economics and Fellow at the Berlin Center for Consumer Policies. His recent work includes a December 2024 visiting researcher position at the ifo Institute / CESifo where he collaborated with Waldemar Marz.

His educational credentials include:

• BS in Environmental Sciences/Economic Sciences (Leuphana University Lüneburg)
• MA in Sustainability Economics and Management (Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg)
• PhD in Economics and Governance of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin)

Hagen's research pioneers the political economy of climate transitions, investigating how election cycles shape government strategies for energy investments. His work reveals how green subsidy policies create intertemporal policy constraints, with governments using high renewable energy subsidies to prevent stranded assets under successor administrations while strategically influencing electoral outcomes through investment decisions. This research bridges environmental economics, political science, and financial regulation to address carbon transition challenges.

As director of the PECan research group, Hagen examines the institutional frameworks governing climate finance and policy implementation. His methodology integrates game-theoretic political economy models with empirical analysis of energy investment patterns, focusing on the tension between immediate electoral incentives and long-term sustainability goals in democratic systems.

While the available documentation does not specify current advising activities or grant funding details, Hagen's research program demonstrates strong institutional support through his multi-affiliation positions and recent collaborative work at the ifo Institute. His academic trajectory shows consistent specialization in the political dimensions of climate policy implementation.