Gwen Ruta

Gwen Ruta directs Environmental Defense Fund’s Corporate Partnerships program. She spearheads its work with leading multinational companies to develop innovative, business-based solutions to environmental challenges and to drive change through the corporate value chain. Ranked #1 among environmental organizations for credible and effective partnerships by the Financial Times, Gwen’s group has kicked off transformations in market sectors from catalogs to shipping to retail to food service. Partner companies have included Wal-Mart; Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts; UPS; FedEx; DuPont; McDonalds; and Citigroup.

Prior to joining Environmental Defense Fund, Gwen was Vice President at Metcalf & Eddy, an international environmental engineering firm. She has also held senior management positions at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. Gwen has authored numerous articles on environmental issues and is a frequent speaker at business conferences. She is a member of the Henderson Global Investors SRI Advisory Committee, the Board of Directors of the Environmental League of Massachusetts, and the Advisory Board of the Erb Institute at the University of Michigan. She was recently named one of the 100 Most Influential People in Finance by Treasury and Risk magazine.

M.P.A., Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government

B.S., Chemical Engineering, University of Virginia