Elena Schmidt

Elena Schmidt (M.A., M.Sc.) is the Executive Director of the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB). With a technical background in biomass, biofuel, and biomaterial sustainability standards, greenhouse gas assessments, and certification, Elena has more than 15 years of experience engaging policymakers, industry partners, and civil society stakeholders globally to develop sustainable solutions for the transformation of the economy.

Before becoming Executive Director, Elena was a technical leader at RSB, spearheading the standards and policy unit. She orchestrated the development of its sustainability standards in collaboration with more than 100 members from the aviation, shipping, and chemical sectors. Elena also steered the RSB Working Group for Advanced Fuels, which crafted a certification standard encompassing recycled carbon and renewable fuels of non-biological origin.

Prior to her tenure at the RSB, Elena honed her skills at TÜV SÜD, leading certification activities for Climate and Energy. She was at the helm of audit programmes related to biofuel sustainability certification, green electricity labels and carbon footprints. In this capacity, she pioneered the development of certification standards for renewable electricity and biomass attribution in complex chemical supply chains. Elena holds master’s degrees in both environmental and political sciences.

Elena has served as a technical expert at the ICAO Alternative Fuel Task Force and Fuel Task Group and on several advisory boards.