Michael Miersch
Dirk Maxeiner
Fact file
Maxeiner and Miersch
Dirk Maxeiner
Dirk Maxeiner, born in 1953, was on the editorial staff of "Hobby", a technology magazine, and "Stern", a major weekly german magazine. In the eighties he developed a city magazine in Paris of which he was the editor in chief and publisher. After that he established the environmental magazine "Chancen" where he was the editor in chief until 1988. Then from 1988 until 1993 he was editor in chief of the german magazine "Natur" - at that time the biggest European ecological magazine. Since 1993 Maxeiner has worked as a freelance writer. He writes nonfiction books and op-eds for newspapers, magazines and periodicals. Moreover, he gives lectures about the topics of his publications. His books have been awarded prizes including (two times) "Science book of the year". He writes a weekly column in the German national daily "Die Welt" together with Michael Miersch. As a team Maxeiner and Miersch wrote several books which were very much discussed in the German speaking countries and beyond.
In a team with Michael Miersch, Dirk Maxeiner wrote the books Das Mephisto-Prinzip (The Mephisto-Principle, 2001) and Die Zukunft und ihre Feinde (The Future and its Foes, 2002) which caused a lot of political controversy and heated discussions in the media.
Published prior to these two books were the bestsellers Öko-Optimismus (Eco-Optimsm, which received the Science book of the Year 1996 award), Lexikon der Öko-Irrtümer (Encyclopaedia of Eco-Myths and Misconceptions, 1998) and Life Counts (Science book of the Year 2000). Life Counts was compiled in cooperation with UNEP and IUCN and published in North America, Latin America, China and many other countries.
2007: Hurra, wir retten die Welt! (Hooray, let’s save the world!)
2007: Schöner Denken (How to remodel your thoughts). A guide on how to be politically incorrect. (Written together with Henryk M. Broder and Josef Joffe).
2008: Biokost und Ökokult (Organic food and eco-cult). Which foods are both good for you and the environment
2008: Frohe Botschaften (Good News). Comments on everyday madness (in contemporary Germany)
Awards
Ludwig Erhard Prize for Economic
Journalism 2005
For the Columns in DIE WELT
(Awarded by the Ludwig-Erhard-Stiftung e.V.)
Award of the Bavarian Communication Association for Outstanding Environmental Communication
Science Book of the Year 1996
for Eco-Optimism (Öko-Optimismus)
Science Book of the Year 2000
for Life Counts
Prize "Reading for the Environment 2003"
Of Deutsche Umweltstiftung (German Environment
Foundation)
for Life Counts
Articles by Dirk Maxeiner have appeared in:
Bild, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Financial Times
Germany, Frankfurter Rundschau, die tageszeitung, Die Welt, Die Weltwoche,
Der Spiegel, Stern, Die Zeit,
Globo, brand eins, Manager Magazin, Merian, Playboy, The Wall Street
Journal Europe
and many other European newspapers and magazines.
Michael Miersch
Michael Miersch is a journalist, author and documentary filmmaker. He is science editor at FOCUS. Together with Dirk Maxeiner he writes a weekly column for DIE WELT.
Michael Miersch was born in Frankfurt am Main in 1956. He received his journalistic training at die tageszeitung and was an editor with the environmental magazines Chancen and natur. In 1993, he became a free-lance journalist and has been working for major newspapers, magazines and radio stations in Germany, Austria and Switzerland ever since. Also, he is the author of numerous books and a writer of documentaries. While working on feature stories and films, Michael Miersch traveled to dozens of countries on all five continents. He wrote commentaries for publications of the WELT group and acted as an advisor to the editors in chief of the magazines Cicero and Die Weltwoche.
In a team with Dirk Maxeiner, Michael Miersch wrote the books Das Mephisto-Prinzip (The Mephisto-Principle, 2001) and Die Zukunft und ihre Feinde (The Future and its Foes, 2002) which caused a lot of political controversy and heated discussions in the media.
Published prior to these two books were the bestsellers Öko-Optimismus (Eco-Optimsm, which received the Science book of the Year 1996 award), Lexikon der Öko-Irrtümer (Encyclopaedia of Eco-Myths and Misconceptions, 1998) and Life Counts (Science book of the Year 2000). Life Counts was compiled in cooperation with UNEP and IUCN and published in North America, Latin America, China and many other countries.
2007: Schöner Denken (How to remodel your thoughts). A guide on how to be politically incorrect. (Co-written with Henryk M. Broder and Josef Joffe).
2008: Biokost und Ökokult (Organic food and eco-cult). Which foods are both good for you and the environment
2008: Frohe Botschaften (Good News). Comments on everyday madness
2010: Früher war alles besser (Those were the days... - A ruthless review (co-written with Henryk M. Broder and Josef Joffe)
Michael Miersch is a founding member of the journalistic network Die Achse des Guten. He is married, has two children and lives in Munich and Berlin.
Awards
InnoPlanta Prize 2010
Silver medal of the Naturale film festival awarding nature documentaries
Ludwig Erhard Prize for Economic Journalism 2005
For the Columns in DIE WELT
(Awarded by the Ludwig-Erhard-Stiftung e.V.)
Informedia Prize for Economic Journalism
Friedrich Vogel Prize for Economic Journalism
Children's Science Book of 1996
for Do you know the Difference?
(Awarded by the National Science Teachers' Association, USA)
Science Book of the Year 1996
for Eco-Optimism (Öko-Optimismus)
Award of the Bavarian Communication Association for Outstanding Environmental Communication
Science Book of the Year 2000
for Life Counts
(Panel of scientists and journalists, appointed by the magazine Bild der Wissenschaft)
Prize "Reading for the Environment 2003"
Of Deutsche Umweltstiftung (German Environment
Foundation)
for Life Counts
Documentary films by Michael Miersch (selection)
Und ewig sterben die Wälder
(And our forests are still dying)
Co-written with Tobias Streck. 52 minutes, arte and BR, 2011. The German "Waldsterben": forest dieback alarmism in the 1980s and what became of it.
Ein Wald voller Gespenster
(A forest full of spirits)
Camera ans direction: Gerd Weiss. 45 minutes, arte and
WDR, 2009.
About scientists and lemurs in Madagascar.
Serengeti hinter den Deichen
(Serengeti beyond the levees)
Camera ans direction: Gerd Weiss. 45 minutes, arte and
WDR, 2007.
How large wild animals shape landscapes.
Ach du lieber Hirsch
(Oh My Deer)
Camera ans direction: Gerd Weiss. 45 minutes, arte and
WDR, 2005.
About the relationship between man and red deer.
Durch's wilde Korsika
(Wild Corsica)
Camera and direction: Gerd Weiss. 45 minutes.
arte and WDR 2004. About the wildlife of Corsica
Tierische Untermieter
(Animal Subtenants)
Camera and direction: Gerd Weiss. 45 minutes.
arte and WDR 2003. On wild animals in industrial settingsn
Tiger, Bauern und Touristen
(Tigers, Peasants and Tourists)
Direction: Hiltrud Jäschke, camera: Devlin
Bose. MDR 2001
How Indian village dwellers approach conservation
Gottes liebste Kreatur (God's Dearest Creature)
Camera: Gerd Weiss. 45 minutes. arte and WDR 2001
Sheep in religion, culture and cuisine
Reporter der Schöpfung (Reporters of Creation)
(Four part series) Camera: Gerd Weiss. Four
45-minute episodes. WDR 1997
A cultural history of nature films
Kundschafter im Tierreich
(Spys in the Animal Kingdom)
(Six part series) Camera: Gerd Weiss. Six 30-minute
episodes. WDR, 1995
Portraits of zoologists and their animals
Articles by Michael Miersch have appeared in more than seventy European
newspapers and magazines, including:
Bild, brand eins, Brigitte, Cicero, Emma, Financial Times Germany, Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung, Frankfurter Rundschau, Geo, Merian, Der Spiegel, SZ-Magazin, die tageszeitung, The Wall Street Journal Europe, Die Welt, Die Weltwoche, Die Zeit
Copyright © 1996-2011 Dirk Maxeiner and Michael Miersch.
All rights reserved.
