Dr. Ella Mueller joined the Foundation’s team in 2021 to head its Democracy Program, which aims to bring Americans and Europeans together to tackle challenges to democracy. She brings a strong focus on the political history of both nations and past as well as current challenges to society by anti-democratic forces.

Prior to joining the Foundation, Ella worked as a research assistant at the University of Freiburg, Germany and wrote her doctoral dissertation on the history of American Anti-Environmentalism since the 1960s. She is an expert on the history of U.S. conservatism, the radicalization of the far right, and the rise of environmentalism in the United States and Germany. She holds a PhD in History from the University of Freiburg.

For many years, Ella has worked closely with environmental activists and a new generation of leaders within the German Green Party on the local, state, and federal levels. She lives with her husband and two sons in Washington, DC.