Maria MALTSCHNIG serves since 2016 as Director of Karl-Renner-Institut, which is the political academy of the Austrian Social Democratic Party. She graduated from Vienna University of Economics (having a degree in socioeconomics), and she has extensive political experience, having started her involvement in VSSTÖ (Federation of Socialist Students) – of which organisation she also was elected a chair of in 2008 -2009. Subsequently, she worked as a consultant for the Chamber of Labour and for the Federal Ministry of Finance, after which she was appointed as the Head of the Cabinet of the Austrian Chancellor in 2016. In parallel with the diverse responsibilities, she also was a member of the supervisory board of the publishing house “Facultas Verlags-und Buchhandels AG“ in 2014 -2016.