Janet Ranganathan is the Vice President for Science and Research at the World Resources Institute, an action-oriented global research organization that works in more than 50 countries, with offices in the United States, China, India, Brazil, DRC, Indonesia, and Europe. She plays a lead role in ensuring that WRI's research is robust and informs the Institute’s influence strategies. She works closely with the Managing Director to strengthen the impact of research across WRI’s six programs: Food, Forest, Water, Climate, Energy, and Cities. Janet leads WRI’s Information into Action strategy, which combines open data platforms, information and communication technologies, transparency, and human networks to drive more sustainable management of the planet’s resources. She is also an architect and co-author of the current World Resources Report, Creating a Sustainable Food Future and lead author of Shifting Diets for a Sustainable Food Future.
During her tenure, Janet has held diverse positions across WRI’s programs. She has rolled out numerous initiatives to address the root causes of poverty and environmental degradation. Janet founded and directed WRI's People and Ecosystems Program, where she launched two major initiatives on Ecosystem Services and Forest Landscapes. She founded and directed the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Initiative, an international multi-stakeholder partnership convened by WRI and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development to develop international greenhouse gas accounting and reporting standards. The Greenhouse Gas Protocol is now the international accounting and reporting standard for business and numerous national and state greenhouse gas programs. Janet also served in WRI’s Business and Climate programs.