Petra Laux

Petra Laux is Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) at Syngenta Group, one of the world’s biggest agricultural technology companies. With more than 59,000 employees in over 100 countries, the company strives to transform agriculture with science-driven, technological innovations to deliver high productivity and high-quality food while fighting climate change and restoring nature. As CSO, Petra leads a global team that identifies and implements sustainability priorities across the Syngenta Group organization. This encompasses both minimizing the environmental impact of Syngenta operations as well as driving the focus on technologies that help farmers to use existing farmland productively while restoring climate and nature. Petra holds a dual responsibility: As Head of Sustainability and Corporate Affairs for Syngenta Crop Protection (CP), she drives the implementation of sustainability priorities in Syngenta’s CP business unit, together with the safe and responsible use of crop protection products. Her team is also responsible for public affairs and public policy for CP. Petra joined Syngenta Crop Protection in 2019 as Head of EAME Business Sustainability. During the first half of 2021, she stepped in as acting CSO for Syngenta Group. She then continued as Head of Business Sustainability for Syngenta CP on a global level – including the CP regulatory function – until the end of 2023. Petra is an enterprise leader with over 30 years of experience in life science industry. Prior to joining Syngenta, she had led the Global Public Affairs function at Novartis for over a decade. Acting as a highly respected link between business, society and the public sector, she was responsible for government relations, public policy, advocacy and reputation management, delivering impactful government affairs strategies for sustainable win-win solutions. As a trained pharmacist, Petra holds a PhD in Pharmaceutical Chemistry from Kiel University as well as a master’s in public health from Hannover Medical School in Germany. Her working experience spans Germany and Europe, and, on a global level, programs in Washington, D.C., Brussels, São Paulo, Beijing and Tokyo. She has been serving as a board member in several organizations, including Novartis Holding Germany.