Kremlis George
Mr. George Kremlis is currently Principal Advisor to the Greek Prime Minister on energy, climate, environment and circular economy issues.
He is a member of the Board of the European Public Law Organisation. He is also a member of the environmental and social advisory council of the EBRD.
He is Honorary Director of the European Commission and Active Senior responsible for circular economy in the islands.
He started his career therein in 1981. He was a Legal advisor (from January 1981) in the European Commission’s Legal Service, with an interruption of three years (1990-1993) in Greece where he exercised the functions of Advisor to the Greek Minister of National Economy (1990), National Co-ordinator for the EEC internal market (1990-1992), Head of the EEC Committee under the Greek Prime Minister (1993), and Secretary General for European Affairs in the Ministry of National Economy (1993). During this period he was also a Member of the Greek Competition authority.
In 1995 he joined DGENV. From 1995 to 2004 he served as Head of the Legal Unit, responsible for all legal issues in the DG. From 2004 to 2005 he was the Head of the “Legal affairs and Governance” Unit, and from June 2005 to May 2013 Head of the Unit “Cohesion Policy and Environmental Impact assessments”. From June 2013 till 30 March 2018 he has served as Head of the “Mainstreaming and Environmental Assessments” Unit (former “Enforcement, Cohesion Policy & European Semester, Cluster 1” Unit); in-between, from March to August 2011, he served as Acting Director of the Directorate “Legal Affairs and Cohesion” and from June 2013 to January 2014 as Director ad interim of the Directorate “Implementation, Governance and Semester”.
In his last position he was also the Chairman of the ENEA-MA (European Network of Environmental and Managing Authorities), and the EIA/SEA (Environmental Impact Assessment / Strategic Environmental Assessment) Experts Groups.
He is also currently the Chair of the Bureau of the Espoo Convention and the SEA Protocol, Chair of the MOP in 2019 and elected Chair for the upcoming MOP in December 2020.
He has also served as a member of the Board of the National Centre for Environment and Sustainable Development in Greece, and as a member of the Greek Regulatory Authority for Energy (RAE). He is Founding and Honorary President of the Hellenic Environmental Law Association.
He was a lawyer of the Greek Supreme Court and at the beginning of his career he has been a Research fellow at the Centre of International Economic and European Law (1979-80), in Thessaloniki.
He is visiting Professor in a number of universities, in Greece and abroad, especially on post-graduate studies. He is the co-author of a four volumes Commentary, Article by Article, of the EU Treaties (in Greek). He is also the author of a very large number of various publications, in English, French and Greek, including books and articles, on EU Policy and Law, in particular institutional law, business law, private international law, environmental law, and comparative law.