Dr. Ioulia (Julia) Valla is an Associate Professor at the Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering Department at the University of Connecticut (UConn). Prior to joining UConn, she held a leadership position at Rive Technology, Inc., for the development and commercialization of mesoporous zeolites for refinery applications. She received her BS and PhD in Chemical Engineering from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece. Dr Valla’s research is focused on the production of clean and renewable energy and fuels. She has been studying the thermochemical conversion and upgrading of lignocellulosic biomass to energy and fuels, the development of mesoporous zeolites for various catalytic and adsorption applications and the removal of sulfur from liquid and gas fuels. Recently, Dr Valla is working on the transformation of food waste into energy and valuable products. She has numerous peer-reviewed journal publications, 2 granted patents and 1 book chapter. Dr. Valla is the recipient of the National Science Foundation CAREER Award, the American Chemical Society - Petroleum Research Foundation Young Investigator Award and the European “Recovery & Utilization of Carbon Dioxide” Young Investigator Award.