Erck Rickmers (born 29 April 1964 in Bremerhaven) is a German businessman and politician of the

SPD The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the ...

(Social Democratic Party). He was an MP from 2011 to 2012.

Early life and education

Erck Rickmers was born and grew up in Bremerhaven. He comes from the Rickmers family of entrepreneurs in Bremerhaven, whose founder, Rickmer Clasen Rickmers, founded the Rickmers shipyard in Bremerhaven in 1834. He did his schooling at the

Stiftung Louisenlund Stiftung Louisenlund is a privately run boarding school for boys and girls in Güby, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. History The school's main building is in Louisenlund Castle, which was built by Hermann von Motz between 1772 and 1776 for Prince C ...

in Schleswig-Holstein. After receiving his

Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...

certificate and completing his military service with the

German Air Force The German Air Force (german: Luftwaffe, lit=air weapon or air arm, ) is the aerial warfare branch of the , the armed forces of Germany. The German Air Force (as part of the ''Bundeswehr'') was founded in 1956 during the era of the Cold War a ...

, he qualified as a shipping merchant following an apprenticeship with the Hamburg shipping company Ernst Russ. Among other positions, Rickmers subsequently worked as a ship broker at Harper Petersen & Co. in London. Rickmers attended a graduate program at the University of California, Santa Barbara, completing an M.A. degree in Religious Studies from 2015 to 2017.

Politics

Rickmers is a member of the

Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the ...

(SPD). At the 2011 Hamburg state election, he became a member of the Hamburg Parliament. As a member of the Hamburg Parliament, Rickmers chaired the committee on economics, innovation, and media and was a member of both the budget committee and the committee on public enterprises. In 2013, he reportedly left politics.

Business career

In 1992 Rickmers co-founded the Hamburg-based investment company Nordcapital and became its sole shareholder in 1996. In 1998 he established the shipping company E.R. Schiffahrt. In 2008 Rickmers merged his assets under the umbrella of E.R. Capital Holding. Rickmers was selected as a chairman of the group in 2010.

Personal life

Rickmers is based in Hamburg, Germany. He is married to Cristina Sartori; they have five daughters.

Philanthropy

In 2016 Rickmers established the International Foundation for the Humanities and Social Change. The foundation supports research centers at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and at the Ca' Foscari University of Venice, as well as the University of Cambridge and the Humboldt University of Berlin.

Publications

* Erik Lindner: ''175 Jahre Rickmers''. Hoffmann und Campe 2009, , S. 241–280.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rickmers, Erck 1964 births Living people Social Democratic Party of Germany politicians Members of the Hamburg Parliament