Charles Damianides

As the executive director of the Center for Sustainable Fuels and Chemicals, Charles Damianides works with American industries to support their decarbonization efforts in support of the country’s climate change agenda. Prior to joining the Department of Energy, he was the senior vice president for sustainability, technology, and licensing at bp Petrochemicals. He retired from bp in 2021, where he spent 35 years. Among his accomplishments, he commercialized a Purified Terephthalic Acid (PTA) technology plant in China, which at the time was the world’s largest and most cost-efficient. Charles lives in Naperville with his wife, Kathy, and his three children and two grandchildren. He enjoys spending time with family and traveling. He is an advisory board member for the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Illinois Chicago. He earned his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering at the University of Natal
in Durban South Africa.