New operations director brings depth of experience to growing campus Institute
February 10, 2014 (Evanston, IL): Demetria Giannisis, a seasoned sustainability professional with extensive executive management experience, has accepted the position of Director of Operations and Outreach of the Institute for Sustainability and Energy at Northwestern (ISEN), effective February 10, 2014. As ISEN’s Director of Operations and Outreach, Giannisis will work with ISEN’s Executive Director Michael R. Wasielewski and ISEN co-directors David Dunand, Mark Ratner and Bradley Sageman to build on the momentum and achievements of ISEN’s foundational years as a pilot initiative.
Wasielewski is the Clare Hamilton Hall Professor of Chemistry and Director of the Argonne-Northwestern Solar Energy Research Center and Solar Fuels Institute; Dunand is James and Margie Krebs Professor of Materials Science and Engineering; Ratner is Lawrence B. Dumas Distinguished University Professor in Chemistry; and Sageman serves as Department Chair and Professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences.
Giannisis’ hire follows ISEN’s designation as an Institute on October 1, 2013. ISEN now provides integrated leadership and operations support for all University Research Centers focused on energy and sustainability. Northwestern’s dedication to sustainability and energy innovation also includes ongoing construction of an 8,000 square foot “flex” lab space to expand ISEN’s global collaborative research capacity, scheduled for completion in early 2015.
As ISEN’s Director of Operations and Outreach, Giannisis will lead business management and operations of the Institute’s current initiatives and strategic planning for ISEN’s global research, education and outreach mission. Giannisis brings ISEN’s team more than ten years of experience leading sustainability strategy, operations and innovation services for global business and public sector clients. From 1997-2010, she served as Chief Executive Officer of the Chicago Manufacturing Center, a social enterprise consultancy that generated shared economic, environmental and social value in collaboration with industry, government and national laboratories. In the past three years, Giannisis has worked with local and international teams of sustainability executives serving biotech, industrial and non-profit organizations. Giannisis has also worked directly in academia as Associate Director of the Technology Commercialization Center at University of Chicago, from 1987-1991.
“Most of my career has been devoted to advancing sustainability-driven innovation and economic policy,” said Giannisis. “I am honored to join ISEN’s distinguished team to accelerate the pace of solutions for all global communities contending with structural economic challenges and profound ecosystem changes.”
Giannisis received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Northwestern University, and Master of Arts in Public Policy from the University of Chicago Irving Harris School Of Public Policy.