Jeff Wooster

Global Sustainability Leader, Dow Packaging and Speciality Products

Jeff Wooster is the global sustainability director for Dow Packaging and Specialty Plastics. In this role, he collaborates with the entire value chain to promote and improve the sustainability value of plastic packaging. He is the past president of AMERIPEN, and is on the Board of Directors for GreenBlue. He serves on the steering team for the Ocean Conservancy’s Trash Free Seas Alliance signature initiative on marine debris and as Co-Chair of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development’s Roadmap to Curb Ocean Waste (ROW) initiative. Additionally, Wooster serves as chair for American Chemistry Council’s Plastics Division Packaging Team and is a member of the Flexible Packaging Association’s Sustainability Task Force.

Wooster joined Dow in 1988, where he spent five years in polyolefins product research. In this role he developed new polyethylene resins and worked to understand fundamental materials science and polymer processing. In 1993 he transferred to the Plastics Technical Service & Development team, where he has held technical responsibility for many of the Company’s key polyethylene customers. He has developed and implemented new technology for various application areas such as stretch film, heavy duty shipping sacks and fresh-cut produce packaging. In 2007 he moved to Marketing & Sales where he assumed responsibility for sustainability for Dow’s North American plastics business and was named to his present position in 2011.

Wooster holds 45 U.S. and foreign patents and has published more than 100 technical papers and presentations. He is a frequently invited guest speaker on the subjects of sustainability and sustainable packaging. Wooster has also been recognized for his many efforts to advance sustainability practices including the American Chemistry Council Responsible Care 2015 Employee of the Year and an inaugural SPC Innovator Award (Formerly known as the Trashies) from the Sustainable Packaging Coalition. He lives in Houston, Texas with his husband Randy and their dog Hercules, but enjoys traveling beyond Texas boundaries to enjoy his favorite hobbies, including snow skiing and contributing to the economic development of the world’s top tourist destinations.

Wooster received a Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering from Iowa State University of Science and Technology.