Jonathan Hollander

Jonathan Hollander has more than 15 years of experience as a technological innovator and science communicator focused on topics such as semiconductor materials, nanoscience and engineering, polymer chemistry, and energy efficiency policy. He has advised numerous for-profit startups delivering high social impact with a particular interest in companies that focus on sustainability and empower local communities through economic development opportunities. Dr. Hollander’s most recent work was commercializing innovations developed at Applied Biorefinery Sciences which are aimed at displacing crude oil with wood and other non-food plants as the raw material to produce a range of everyday products, such as gasoline and plastic bottles. Prior to that, Dr. Hollander taught at the State University of New York College of Environmental Sciences & Forestry and was a science policy advisor for the UK Government. 

Twice awarded prestigious scholarships for graduate study at the University of Cambridge, the Gates Scholarship, and the Churchill Scholarship, Dr. Hollander completed his PhD in materials science and MPhil in physics. His research significantly improved our understanding of the quantum effects occurring inside of semiconductor light-emitting devices (LEDs) and resulted in fifteen peer-reviewed publications and dozens of speaking engagements. Dr. Hollander earned his BS in materials science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

TEACHING

• The Technology of Renewable Energy

• Capstone Workshop in Sustainable Science 

• Sustainable Entrepreneurship