Valerie Sarisky-Reed

Acting Director, Bioenergy Technologies Office

Dr. Sarisky-Reed is the Acting Director of the Bioenergy Technologies Office in the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) at the U.S. Department of Energy.

Most recently, she held the position of Team Leader for Platforms Research and Development within the Bioenergy Technologies Office, where her areas of responsibilities included research and development for algal biofuels and for conversion technologies that include biochemical and thermochemical pathways to produce biofuels and bioproducts.

Dr. Sarisky-Reed has led efforts on utilization of biomass for fuels and chemicals for more than 18 years, resulting in significant cost reductions in cellulosic ethanol from above $7/gallon to current projected cost of approximately $2.15/gallon. She has helped initiate research pathways that now include technologies that are projected to reduce the cost of diesel and jet fuel to less than $3/gallon by 2017. Dr. Sarisky-Reed has twice been named to Biofuels Digest's "Top 100 People in Bioenergy" for her roles to date.

In addition to her programmatic activities, Dr. Sarisky-Reed is a founding member of the Metabolic Engineering Working Group, which is an interagency effort to advance metabolic engineering technologies for industrial, agricultural, and human needs, and she co-chairs the Interagency Working Group on Conversion Technologies established through the Biomass R&D Board to coordinate the federal effort on bioenergy.

Dr. Sarisky-Reed holds a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Georgetown University.