After studying system sciences and starting a career in ergonomics, Gudrun Mosler-Törnström entered politics and became a member of the Salzburg provincial parliament in Austria in 1999.
She joined the Austrian delegation to the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe in 2009, before going on to head it from 2011. In 2010, she was elected vice-chair of the Monitoring Committee.
As a member of the Congress, Gudrun Mosler-Törnström took part in several monitoring visits to Council of Europe member countries (Lithuania, Azerbaijan, Sweden, France and Greece) and in the observation of elections in Ukraine, Georgia and Azerbaijan.
Having been elected President of the Congress in October 2016, she worked to improve the quality of democracy at regional and local level and was very active in promoting better community relations characterised by mutual respect and acceptance of diversity. Gudrun Mosler-Törnström also strove to raise the profile of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities and sought to raise awareness in Austria of the lessons learnt from its work.
Her professional commitment to democracy, the rule of law and human rights is complemented by her personal commitment as a volunteer working to help disadvantaged young people in Salzburg and to preserve the environment.
The project “75 women in 75 years of Council of Europe history” is organised by the Delegation of the European Union to the Council of Europe with the Council of Europe and the Permanent Representations of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
