About Us

Rooted in science

Co-founders, Stevan Albers and Scott Fulbright

Living Ink stems from our co-founders’ early interest in environmental stewardship. As a former HS science teacher and university academic researcher in sustainable innovations, Steve has long invested in science-based solutions. From childhood, Scott wanted a career in marine biology after seeing distressing photos of the environmental degradation from tar sands in an issue of National Geographic.

The two met in their Molecular Biology PhD program at Colorado State University, researching algae. While there, a chance errand to buy his grandmother a greeting card led Scott to question the use of petroleum in printing inks. Curiosity sparked insight and the two soon realized that the algae they studied could replace the harmful chemical inputs found in pigments and inks. 

Today, Living Ink turns biomass waste into value and is globally recognized as a leading provider of carbon-negative pigments and bio-based inks.

Meet the team

Driven by technical expertise and a passion for sustainable solutions, the Living Ink team is a robust and adaptable group proficient in various disciplines, including science, engineering, product development, manufacturing, sales, and marketing. Our team members bring decades of experience from renowned organizations, now dedicated to advancing biomass waste-to-value innovations for our customers.

SCOTT FULBRIGHT

  • Scott spent his career building early stage biotechnology companies. This includes venture backed Valcent Products Inc, Global Green Solutions and Solix Biosystems. At these startups he developed experience in product development, technology deployment and business development. At Living Ink, Scott drives strategic planning, fundraising and partnerships. He earned his B.S. from Michigan State University and his Ph.D from Colorado State University, where he as an NSF-GRFP Fellow and NSF-IGERT Bioenergy Fellow. During these bioenergy fellowships he implemented multidisciplinary approaches in policy, economics and environmental assessment.

STEVAN ALBERS

  • Dr. Stevan Albers holds a B.S. and Ph.D. from Colorado State University and an M.S. from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. His Ph.D. research focused on engineering cyanobacteria for commercial products. With expertise in biological engineering, intellectual property, and early-stage company development, he led the faculty startup support program at CSU Strata from 2016-2021. Dr. Albers now heads Living Ink’s IP portfolio and collaborates with the US Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory. He became CTO of Living Ink in 2021 and lives in Fort Collins, Colorado with his wife and two children.

JACOB ROODMAN

  • Jacob has spent his career operating at the intersection of innovation, sales, and manufacturing in multiple corporate settings. He brings extensive experience developing and commercializing new products in consumer good and nutraceutical industries with global brands including Armstrong World Industries, Newell Brands Rubbermaid, and ChromaDex Inc. Jacob leads Living Ink operations, supply chain, and business strategy efforts.

FIONA DAVIES

  • Fiona is a molecular biologist by training and earned a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Otago in New Zealand. She moved to the US to pursue postdoctoral studies at the University of California, Berkeley and Colorado School of Mines. Fiona has been a proud member of the Living Ink team since 2017, where she is now Director of Customer Success and also Administrator for Living Ink’s grant program. She is passionate about driving the commercialization of novel bio-based sustainable materials and helping customers to achieve their sustainability goals and initiatives.

TOM VAN KUREN

  • Tom is a veteran of the paint, inks and coatings industry, beginning as a formulator and advancing through various R&D leadership roles at PPG, AkzoNobel, Sherwin Williams, Valspar, Watson Standard and Michelman. His experience spans Architectural to Automotive applications with significant experience in Metal, Film and Paper Packaging. His commercial role at Dar-Tech provided additional insights into sales, new market development and distribution. In each role he has built high performing teams and contributed significant revenue from new products and raw material cost savings. Tom leads the Living Ink R&D efforts for inks and dispersions.

ZACK UMSTEAD

  • Zack is a newcomer to the ink world but brings with him a background in polymer chemistry and materials science and a passion for green innovation. He received his B.S in Chemistry from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute where he worked on hydrogen fuel cell membranes with a focus on utilizing existing processes that could be scaled to large production quickly. At Colorado State University, he received his M.S. in Chemistry for work on mechanically tough hydrogel systems, with targeted applications such as CO2 separation and biomedical devices and implants. At Living Ink, Zack is part of the R&D team focused on inks and dispersions and aids in the scientific understanding of our pigments.

LUCAS QUINTANA

  • Lucas has extensive experience in chemistry, with a focus on environmental issues. His background includes regulatory work with the Department of Transportation, where he monitored heavy metal leaching into the water table, and recent research on biofuel production from waste feedstock at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Lucas is a graduate from Colorado State University, where he earned his Analytical Chemistry degree, focusing on plasma-assisted catalysis and analyzing intricate gas phase interactions along with extensive materials analysis. Although the pigment and ink industry presents a new challenge, Lucas leverages his broad background in analytical techniques to lead pigment R&D efforts at Living Ink, advancing our understanding of sustainable biochar.

ROBERT MOELLER

  • As Production Manager, Robert brings with him over ten years of combined experience in mineral processing, renewable energy and fiberglass manufacturing. With forethought and organizational effort, Robert ensures Living Ink Technologies meets its goals of safely and efficiently supplying high quality products to customers all over the world.

DAVID BOYER

  • David brings a diverse range of experience to the Living Ink production team. His background spans landscaping, vehicle and machinery maintenance, and industrial manufacturing. This varied experience allows him to approach issues from multiple perspectives, both in terms of process and personnel. At Living Ink, David is responsible for manufacturing, quality control, and shipping products to customers worldwide. He excels at streamlining production, ensuring smooth operations, and maintaining equipment.

DEVON MURRIE

  • Devon’s experience at both raw materials manufacturers and fashion brands equips her to understand the needs of all project stakeholders to ensure successful partnerships. During her tenure at pioneering bio-based indigo dye supplier, Stony Creek Colors, she spearheaded initiatives with leading global denim brands. Her diverse background includes leadership roles with Teach For America and sustainable leather goods company, Nisolo. Devon, holds a BA in Political Science and Spanish, an M.Ed., and a Corporate Sustainability certificate from NYU Stern. She sees potential for collective impact in every connection and is committed to helping partners integrate sustainable practices into their value chains.

Strategic advisors

We are deeply grateful to have a distinguished group of strategic advisors comprised of experts and former team members who support and champion our company's growth. Their invaluable insights and guidance are instrumental in driving our mission forward and achieving our vision for a sustainable future.

  • Peter Bradley has 25 years of global business leadership with extensive experience in the food ingredients, specialty chemicals and consumer foods industries. He was Chief Executive Officer of Warwick Chemicals, a private-equity owned specialty chemical manufacturer. Other previous positions include President, Color Group based in the USA and President, Asia Pacific based in Singapore for Sensient Technologies Corporation, the NYSE listed flavor, fragrance and color business. He is now focused on supporting businesses take their company to the next level of success. Proven track record in developing and implementing growth strategies to deliver significant shareholder value through business performance enhancement, entry into new markets and strategic M+A activity.

  • Dr. Clayton is an expert in the development and commercialization of Smart Materials, Microencapsulation, Inks, Coatings Pharmaceuticals, and Nutraceuticals. He has a Ph.D. in chemistry and 20 years of commercial experience. Dr. Clayton is a Director at EFI working with scientists, engineers, and software developers, inventing technology for digital manufacturing. He was a Vice President at Chromatic Technologies where he led an explosion of innovation and product development. He was responsible for the new product pipeline, project management, and intellectual property. Dr. Clayton's team worked closely with Sales, Marketing, key clients (CPG and government agencies), Operations and global contract manufacturing organizations to invent, develop and produce smart materials to help business partners grow their business.

  • Ben Walker has more than 30 years of direct business planning & execution experience, marketing management including product development, market development, and technical marketing for new market categories/products as well as established product lines in the commercial and consumer space. Ben also worked for the HP corporate strategy group within the Merger and Acquisitions office. Currently he is chief marketing officer at Advanced Regenerative Therapies.

  • Evan Kraut is a seasoned revenue leader with extensive expertise in B2B sales and marketing strategies. Currently at Boardstream.ai, he partners with B2B enterprise companies to build Customer & Strategic Advisory Boards. Previously, he led Sales & Partnerships at Suzy, a market research SaaS company, and drove growth at Grey AdVentures, part of Grey Advertising. Evan is also the co-founder of Milkbox Partners, an investment firm focused on early-stage investing and advisory services. With a strong background in Software/SaaS, MarTech, and Enterprise solutions, Evan is a trusted advisor known for elevating B2B organizations through innovative strategies.

  • Mike Trapanese is a partner at Behrens Investment Group, a New York middle market private equity fund, where he focuses on value creation. In that capacity, he served as CEO of a venture-stage fintech, oversees a $40mm manufacturing company, and is helping to reposition a $250mm reverse logistics platform. He is an experienced leader with deep experience in complex commercial negotiations, business planning, operational improvement, go-to-market strategy, talent development, and financial management.

    Prior to PE, Mike was COO at VantageScore, a JV between Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. During his five years there, VantageScore successfully challenged FICO's 50-year monopoly in the credit scoring market and grew usage nearly 80x. VantageScore is currently used over 14 billion times each year across the consumer credit ecosystem.

    Mike began his career as a management consultant and went on to run corporate development at a $100 billion wholesale bank. He holds an MBA from Wharton and a BA from Boston College. He currently serves on the boards of Intelligo Group, White Mountain Paper Company, and The Water Trust (nonprofit) and is an observer at Channel Control Merchants.

  • James Sapanski serves as the Chief Investment Officer at Imua T Capital Investments, a family office, and is also a Senior Analyst at Cinctive Capital Management. Since 2009, he has held various buy-side positions at Scoria Capital, Behrens Investment Group, and Diamondback Capital Management. He began his career at Bear Stearns & Co. and holds a B.A. in Economics and Mathematics from Kenyon College.

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