Dr. Shareen Yawanarajah leads the Environmental Defense Fund's (EDF) global efforts to reduce methane emissions in the oil and gas sector. She collaborates with government, industry, academic, and NGO stakeholders in Mexico, Canada, and Southeast Asia. Her work focuses on promoting best practices for methane reduction, building capacity, and highlighting the economic benefits of methane emission reduction. With extensive industry expertise, Dr. Yawanarajah fosters strategic dialogue and partnerships between environmental groups and the energy sector to advance sustainable solutions. Dr. Yawanarajah also spearheads EDF’s partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to provide methane reduction training to Global South countries, supporting the Global Methane Pledge’s implementation.

Before joining EDF, Dr. Yawanarajah was the Oil and Gas Vice Consul for the United Kingdom's Department for International Trade in Houston. She also served as Director of Oil and Gas Research at the U.S. Department of Energy, part of the Senior Executive Service, during the Obama Administration. With over 25 years of technical and leadership experience in companies like Shell and BP, as well as government and non-profit sectors, she has spent the last 8+ years specializing in clean energy.

Dr. Yawanarajah holds a Ph.D. in Organic Geochemistry from Southern Illinois University, an M.Sc. in Petroleum Geology from Imperial College London, and a B.Sc. in Earth Science from the National University of Malaysia.