Trustee Alexander joins board of biotechnology concern

Ralph C. Alexander ‘77 ‘78, deputy chairman of the Polytechnic Board of Trustees, has joined the board of directors of Amyris Biotechnologies of Emeryville, Calif.

Alexander, who holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in nuclear engineering from Poly, has had a long career in the energy industry. Most recently, he served as chief executive officer of Innovene, British Petroleum’s olefins and derivatives subsidiary. In that capacity, he oversaw Innovene’s $9 billion sale to the INEOS Group in 2005. Previously, he held various executive positions at BP in a career spanning more than two decades.

Founded in 2003 by a chemical engineering professor at the University of California at Berkeley, Amyris is dedicated to improving the world by leveraging breakthroughs in synthetic biology.