Currently serving as the International Biochar Initiative Executive Director, Wendy Lu’s professional background and personal passion are centered on advancing climate change solutions. She has focused for the decade on regenerative, climate smart agriculture and clean energy. Previously, Wendy Lu led the North American Coalition for Insect Agriculture as it transitioned from a volunteer-led organization into a professional industry association with over 250 members based in 12 countries. Prior to that, Wendy Lu founded and ran an insect agriculture company with products distributed online and in 12 US states.

A returned US Peace Corps Volunteer (Ukraine), Wendy Lu also spent more than a decade in international development, working with UN agencies, including WHO, UNICEF, UNDP, UNODC, and IOM, as well as international development organizations such as Habitat for Humanity International. Focusing on multiple sectors, including water and sanitation, anti-human trafficking, rural infrastructure, and climate-smart agriculture, she worked with distributed, multi-country teams in over a dozen countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America.

Wendy Lu has a Masters degree in international and intercultural communications from the University of Denver Josef Korbel School of International Studies. Based in Denver, Wendy Lu enjoys being outdoors as often as possible with her husband, Richard, two adult-sized children, Scout and Sage, and non-human family members, two large dogs and a three-legged cat.