Olga Loegel is an Innovation Partnerships and Trainings Specialist at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). She develops and coordinates training activities, innovation challenges and partnerships that support the uptake of ECMWF’s scientific and technical capabilities, with a particular focus on capacity development and climate resilience in Africa.
Her work includes managing the ECMWF AI Weather Quest, an international benchmarking and learning framework for AI/ML-based sub-seasonal forecasting. She works across scientific, technical and institutional communities to translate stakeholder needs into collaborative initiatives, foster knowledge exchange and support the practical use of emerging technologies.
Olga has over six years of experience building collaboration between public scientific institutions, including governmental and intergovernmental organisations, and their wider innovation ecosystems. She holds a Master’s degree in Engineering from IMT Atlantique, with a specialisation in innovation management.
- From October 2026 – Innovation Partnerships and Trainings Specialist at ECMWF, Bonn – Developing and coordinating training activities, innovation challenges and partnerships to strengthen the uptake of ECMWF capabilities, particularly in support of climate resilience and capacity development in Africa. Managing the continued development of the ECMWF AI Weather Quest and contributing to collaboration and knowledge exchange across the international weather, climate and AI/ML communities.
- September 2024 to September 2026 – User Engagement and Outreach Associate at ECMWF, Bonn – Designed and delivered international user-engagement and innovation initiatives for Destination Earth. Led the end-to-end development and operation of the ECMWF AI Weather Quest, translating stakeholder needs into a global AI/ML forecasting framework involving more than 250 participants, 55 teams and 100 models, and coordinating scientific, technical, legal, communications and international partners. Also led programme and training development for the DestinE User eXchange Forum #5 and supported wider innovation activities, including Copernicus hackathons, encouraging the uptake of ECMWF and Copernicus services.
- September 2022 to August 2024 – Business Analyst at the European Space Agency (ESA), Rome and Paris – Developed engagement initiatives supporting the commercial uptake of space technologies and facilitated collaboration among ESA programmes, entrepreneurs, researchers, investors, industry and institutional partners. Conducted ecosystem and market analyses, supported the development and implementation of ESA’s Commercialisation Policy, and coordinated stakeholder consultations, events and student consulting projects.
- December 2020 to August 2022 – Public Sector Innovation Consultant at Wavestone, Paris – Advised French public institutions on innovation projects, environmental data platforms and digital public services. Translated policy objectives and stakeholder needs into governance frameworks and implementation plans, while coordinating institutional stakeholders, end users and technical teams.
- March 2020 to November 2020 – Innovation Consultant and Startup and Technology Scout at Starburst Accelerator, Paris – Identified relevant technologies and startups and initiated partnerships between the accelerator’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and its industrial and institutional partners.
