The Faculty of Management, Economics and Social Sciences mourns the passing of Professor Dr Götz Voppel, who died on 13 April 2025 at the age of 94. We have lost an outstanding scholar and long-serving Director of the Institute of Economic and Social Geography, whose influence extended far beyond Cologne, shaping generations of students and researchers.

After studying economics, economic geography and transport science, Götz Voppel earned his doctorate at the University of Cologne in 1958 and completed his habilitation in 1963 with the thesis “The Aachen Mining and Industrial Landscape: A Study in Economic Geography.”

Until 1970, he held positions as a private lecturer and associate professor of economic and social geography. He then took up the Chair of Economic Geography at the Technical University of Hanover, where he also served as Dean from 1972 to 1974. In 1976, Voppel returned to the University of Cologne, where he made significant contributions to teaching and research as Director of the Institute of Economic and Social Geography. The American Who’s Who lists him as a “noteworthy economics professor”.

We mourn the loss of a colleague, teacher and scholar who was deeply connected to the University of Cologne and who consistently bridged the regional and the international in his work. Our heartfelt condolences go to his family and loved ones.