Dr. James C. Liao

Dr. James C. Liao, Past President of Academia Sinica, Taiwan. He is a Member of the US National Academy of Engineering, US National Academy of Sciences, American Philosophical Society, Fellow of the World Academy of Sciences, and Academician of Academia Sinica in Taiwan. He is also an associate member of the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO).

After working as a research scientist at Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester, NY, he started his academic career at Texas A&M University in 1990 and moved to UCLA in 1997. He is a pioneer in Metabolic Engineering and Synthetic Biology. His research has focused on metabolism, including its biochemistry, regulation and redesign. Currently, his projects include design and engineering biochemical pathways for CO2 fixation and production of fuels and chemicals.

Dr. Liao received numerous awards and recognitions, including the US EPA Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award, the White House “Champion of Change” for innovations in renewable energy, the ENI Renewable Energy Prize bestowed by the President of Italy, the US National Academy of Sciences Award for the Industrial Application of Science, Novozyme Award for Excellence in Biochemical and Chemical Engineering, the Israeli Samson-Prime Minister's Prize for Innovation in Alternative Energy and Smart Mobility for Transportation, and the Greg Stephanopoulos Award, International Metabolic Engineering Society.