Roger Martella is chief sustainability officer and head of government affairs at GE Vernova. In this role, Roger engages the world’s top public and private sector leaders to solve of the energy trilemma of reliability, affordability, and sustainability.
Roger joined GE in 2017 and has held roles in environmental, health and safety and sustainability, driving a comprehensive and cohesive approach to sustainability for the company. Prior to GE, Roger served as general counsel of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, where he was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate, and as principal counsel for complex litigation for the Department of Justice’s Natural Resources Section. Roger also co-led Sidley Austin LLP's global environmental and climate change practices and was recognized among the top lawyers in the field globally.
Roger teaches a first of its kind course on international environmental law and justice at Howard University Law School and serves on the Advisory Board to Harvard University’s Environmental and Energy Law Program. In 2022, the Racial Justice Institute recognized Roger with a Racial Justice Champion Award. Roger is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations and serves on the boards of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES), the ClearPath Foundation, the Environmental Law Institute, and several environmental and energy NGOs.
Roger has co-authored and edited four books on the intersection of ESG, climate change law, international environmental law, and human rights, including Corporate Social Responsibility—Sustainable Business: Environmental, Social and Governance Frameworks for the 21st Century (Wolters Kluwer 2020).
Roger holds a Bachelor of Science from Cornell University and a Juris Doctor. from Vanderbilt Law School.