Advisory Board: John Sheehan

John Sheehan coordinates research on biofuels at the University of Minnesota’s Institute on the Environment. In addition, he consults to clients in biotechnology and renewable energy under the auspices of Sheehan Boyce, LLC. His work focuses on the multifaceted question of biofuels and their sustainability as a future energy source. He is studying the direct and indirect consequences of biofuels production on land use around the world, along with other social, political and environmental aspects of biofuels.

Sheehan has spent nearly two decades working on biofuels. For 17 years, he worked as a project manager and analyst at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colo. His published works include groundbreaking studies on the impacts of biodiesel and cellulosic ethanol technology. While at NREL, Sheehan also led research on the production and conversion of algae to biofuels, a technology now receiving a great deal of attention. In 2007 and 2008, Sheehan was the vice president of strategic planning and sustainable development at LiveFuels, Inc., an algae startup company in Menlo Park, Calif. Prior to NREL, Sheehan worked as a biochemical engineer at Merck Pharmaceutical, W.R. Grace & Co, and Radian Corporation.