Joachim Ritter
General Manager
jritter@via-internet.com

Joachim Ritter is a free-lance journalist with 26 years' professional experience. Special topics: architecture, lighting design and lighting technology. Joachim is the owner of the VIA publishing company and editor-in-chief of the Professional Lighting Design magazine. He is a Founding Member and was a board member of the Professional Lighting Designers’ Association, PLDA for 13 years. He co-organises international workshops, conferences and other educational activities to promote the lighting design profession. He is the organiser and founder of the Professional Lighting Design Convention, PLDC, in London in 2007, in Berlin in 2009, in Madrid in 2011 and in Copenhagen in October 2013. Joachim Ritter also served as a Member of the Board of the IALD Education Trust Fund of the IALD, International Association of Lighting Designers from 2005 to 2006.
In 2008 he was appointed Advisor and Coordinator of the Alingsås Lighting Center, the international Arena of Light, Design and Technology in Alingsås, Sweden.
He is currently establishing a lighting design museum and exhibition location in Alingsås/S.

Louise Ritter
Event Manager and Local Coordinator
lritter@via-internet.com

Louise Ritter developed her interest in and ability to organise large-scale events at the age of 18 when she was part of the organisation team of the 10th anniversary of the Professional Lighting Designers’ Association (founded as the European Lighting Designers’ Association in 1994) in Winterthur/CH in 2004.
After gaining her Abitur (university-entrance diploma) Louise enjoyed a six-month working experience at VIA Publishing during which she assisted in the organisation of the annual practical lighting workshop in Alingsås/S.
In 2006 she studied two courses at the Hotel School Den Haag in The Hague/NL, successfully completing “The World of Hotel Management” and “People and Organisation” before going back to Germany to study Event Management, partly in college, partly working at VIA Publishing.
She graduated in 2009 and is now Head of the Educational Events Division of VIA Publishing in Gütersloh.

Selection of events Louise has worked on:
Louise was the Project Manager for large-scale events such as PLDC 2009 (Berlin/D) and PLDC 2011 (Madrid 2011), practical workshops including Alingsås/S (2007 – ongoing), Liverpool/UK (2008), Notodden/N (2009) and Goa/IND (2011), and social events such as the PLDA Celebration of Light (Frankfurt 2010).

Contact
VIA UK
Marienfelderstr 18
33330 Guetersloh
Germany

Phone: +49 5241 - 307 26 0