Franz Lehner, born 1946 in Zurich, Switzerland, is a social scientist. From 1981 to 2011, he was professor of political science and applied social research at the Ruhr University in Bochum. From 1990 to 2006, he was president of the Institute of Work and Technology at the Science Center North Rhine-Westphalia. Franz Lehner was, among other things, German Kennedy Memorial Fellow at Harvard University and Visiting Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Public Choice at Virginia Polytechnic Institute. He has taught at the Universities of Mannheim, Zurich, Heidelberg, Münster, the State University of New York at Buffalo, and the Ruhr-Universität Bochum.

Franz Lehner's research focuses on structural change in modern industrial societies, sustainable development, environmental policy, the political economy of modern democratic societies,  the governance of modern democracies, the innovation and competitiveness of firms and economies, the organization of work and production, the organization of education, and He has written numerous essays and several books and monographs on these topics. His books include: Sozialwissenschaft. Wiesbaden: VS Verlag, 2011; The Growth Machine. The Economic Charm of Ecology (with Friedrich Schmidt-Bleek), Munich, Droemer Knaur, 1999; New Markets, New Structures and New Strategies: The Future of Industry in Europe, (with S. v. Bandemer, et al.), Bruxelles: Commission of the European Communities, 1993.

His most recent book, Deliberative Governance for Sustainable Development: An Innovative Solution for Environment, Economy and Society. London-New York, Routledge, 2022.