Establishment of the Copenhagen Cleantech Cluster. Scaling Green Startups in Silicon Valley. Matchmaking between the world of research and green front-runner companies.

These are just some of the stars that Marianna Lubanski has on her shoulders. Today, she is an angel investor and advisor for green startups – and now also the new person in charge of the Green Transition Denmark's new Advisory Board. A green Advisory Board, which brings together leading companies, organizations and experts in a forum for dialogue, knowledge sharing, experience exchange to identify and realize opportunities across the green transition.

All the way from Silicon Valley to DTU in Lyngby, her career has had a clear green thread - with a focus on green growth, innovation and business development.

"For me, the green transition is the absolute most important task we as humans face. That is why it is also the area that for me is meaningful to work with, and where I have tried to create change," says Marianna Lubanski.

Another clear thread in her long-standing career, both in Denmark and internationally, is the focus on collaboration and partnerships across research, business, politicians - and therefore precisely the link between the green agenda and the transversal dialogue forum is also the reason why she has said agree to sit at the end of the table when RGO's newly established Advisory Board meets for the first time in August.

"I really hope that the Advisory Board can become an important meeting place for actors across business, politics, research and civil society. A place where we can meet and learn from each other, be challenged, see new opportunities and come up with ideas, recommendations and knowledge that can help promote the change. There is a need for that," says Lubanski.

We must remember hope

Marianna Lubanski herself grew up in the forest and later in her adult life again chose to settle in the middle of nature. As we talk about her plans and ambitions for the Advisory Board, Lubanski's 8-year-old grandson is building a fire pit out in the garden – a garden that he says he learns more from exploring than from going to school.

"I have nature completely under my skin, and it is so important, both to maintain hope and to protect everything we have to take care of. Also when we talk politics at Christiansborg, the future talks about growth or making new export plans. This is often overlooked, and then we miss out on good solutions, new opportunities and synergies," she says.

Therefore, her ambition is also that the Advisory Board can help start some new, challenging and nuanced debates about our nature, our behavior, our planet, our growth - and thus contribute to making us smarter about how we can create transversal solutions that can bring us in the direction of a society where we live within the planetary boundaries.

Partnerships and dialogue lead to next practice

Lubanski's entire career has been about creating dialogue and facilitating partnerships, as a lever to accelerate the green transition. Among the things she herself is most proud of is the building of the Copenhagen Cleantech Cluster (today CLEAN), which at the time was the largest EU-funded project Denmark had ever had. A cluster that was supposed to govern green Denmark - and support the development of a green business community. And which today has a cluster for both water and environmental technology, which brings together companies, utility companies, knowledge institutions and the public sector.

According to Lubanski, precisely that mindset and way of working together is crucial if we are to succeed in the green transition.

"It is only through cooperation and dialogue that we change and solve something. That is why it is so important that we gather people around the table and create a curious and inclusive space where we can gain new knowledge, new insights, open up and from there we can move on."

The risk without this is that we lock ourselves in and overlook opportunities and blind spots - and that we thus end up doing things unwisely and inappropriately, she points out: "We cannot afford to overlook anything when it comes to the climate challenge. There is simply no time for that. That is why it is so important that we do not lock ourselves into one technology or overlook a possible path in climate change.”

Lubanski, as the foreperson, will thus also insist that both the Advisory Board must be an important forum for new insights, networks, but also influence in relation to being able to "set an agenda" and help illuminate the new paths and opportunities" in climate change. And a forum that will be relevant both for members, RGO and the surrounding community", she points out.

About the Green Transition Denmark Advisory Board

The green Advisory Board is an advisory body where experts from green front-runner companies, trade unions and municipalities together discuss major current environmental challenges.

It is a forum for lively and inspiring dialogue, where deep professional knowledge and experience are brought into play, and broad alliances are built and relationships across parties and members are strengthened.

Together, we work to focus agendas and clarify opportunities for development across value chains in the green transition.

Participants in the Advisory board include, among others, Velux, Coop, Better Energy, European Energy, Innargi, Hjørring Municipality, Lederne and the Center for Sustainable Hospitals.

The Advisory Board can provide qualitative input and ideas for the ongoing work of the Green Transition Denmark by identifying potential activities and cooperation opportunities.

Curriculum Vitae

2024 – Lubanski Holding, green startup investor, board member, mentor and advisor

2019 – 2024 Science City Lyngby, CEO

2018 – 2024 Copenhagen Business School, external lecturer

2018 – 2018 NOISE + CO ApS, founder and partner

2013 – 2018 Copenhagen Capacity, Director Investment Promotion

2011 – 2013 Copenhagen Capacity, Business Development Director, Copenhagen Cleantech Cluster (current CLEAN)

2010 – 2011 Grundfos Management A/S, Business Development Director, Industry

2008 – 2010 Innovation Center Denmark, Silicon Valley, Executive Director

2006 – 2008 Monday Morning, development director

2004 – 2006 Human House A/S (former Gurre Group), director and co-owner

2000 – 2003 Gurre-gruppen ApS, director and co-owner

1998 – 2000 Oxford Research A/S, senior consultant

1995 – 1998 Monday Morning, development consultant

1992 – 1995 Mellemfolkeligt Samvirke, financial advisor