Our Team

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    Ajaya Biswal, PhD

    Dr. Ajaya K. Biswal is a seasoned sustainability consultant with over 15 years in plant biotechnology, bioenergy feedstocks, and renewable biomaterials, specializing in plant cell wall chemistry and molecular biology for biofuels from lignocellulosic biomass. He led DOE-funded projects at the BioEnergy Science Center and Center for Bioenergy Innovation, pioneering recalcitrance reduction strategies, with Nature Biotechnology publications, patents, and LCA-TEA integration at the University of Georgia’s Complex Carbohydrate Research Center. As co-founder of a sustainability firm, he advances decarbonization and circular bioeconomy with data-driven low-carbon strategies for clients.

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    Jaya Sundaram, PhD

    Dr. Jaya Sundaram, PhD in Food Engineering, is a seasoned R&D scientist with over 20 years in biobased materials, food safety, and nanotechnology, specializing in cellulose nanofibrils, antimicrobial packaging, and biopolymer composites for sustainability. She has led grants on tissue engineering and pathogen detection, authored 47 peer-reviewed articles, 6 patents, and 3 book chapters (h-index 30, citations >3300), including chitosan-cellulose films and nitric oxide membranes at the University of Georgia and USDA. As co-founder of a sustainability consulting firm, Dr. Sundaram integrates life cycle assessment (LCA) to evaluate biobased materials' environmental impacts, such as cradle-to-gate assessments of nanocellulose composites for packaging, reducing global warming potential versus fossil-based options and advancing circular bioeconomy strategies for clients.

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    Sunandita Sahoo, Msc

    Sunandita Sahoo is a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) consultant with 5 years of experience in sustainability analysis, product carbon foot-printing, and design for sustainability and the environment. She has conducted ISO-compliant LCA and cradle-to-gate PCF studies using SimaPro, GREET, and OpenLCA across food, fuels, and biomaterials. Sunandita brings strong expertise in corporate GHG accounting (Scope 1, 2 & 3), techno-economic analysis, and supply chain modeling and optimization. Her work supports compliance with LCFS, RFS, and IRA programs. She enables data-driven decisions to reduce environmental impact, advance circularity, and help organizations meet their net-zero and sustainability targets.

Advisors

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    Troy Runge, PhD

    Dr. Troy Runge is an accomplished innovator and sustainability strategist with over 30 years experience in bioenergy, bioproducts, and renewable materials including 15 years in industry where he held leadership roles in developing and commercialization product improvements in the pulp and paper sector. Currently Professor and Associate Dean for Research and Extension at the University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, Dr. Runge leads initiatives that bridge research and industry, accelerating technology transfer and economic impact. As a researcher he has led projects on biomass utilization, biorefinery optimization, and economic and sustainability analysis that has resulted in over 30 patents and 100 peer-reviewed publications. Dr. Runge actively advises companies that work in the sustainability space such as CSA, leveraging his combined academic and industry expertise to foster partnerships that strengthen bio-based economies and circular supply chains.