Paul Ruiz

Paul Ruiz

Degree: 2014, MAUAPP and 2011, B.A.

Job Title: Senior Director, Policy at SAFE

Paul Ruiz is the Senior Director of Policy at SAFE, where he helps lead the organization's work to advance U.S. critical mineral supply chains, transportation mobility, electrification, and European energy security. A policy strategist with over a decade of experience at the intersection of energy, transportation, and national security, Paul develops actionable solutions to enhance U.S. economic and energy resilience. His career has spanned government, industry, and the nonprofit sector. 

Paul began his career at SAFE, serving on its policy team from 2014 to 2019. Subsequently, he spent five years at the American Trucking Associations, leading the energy and environmental policy portfolio for the nation's largest freight and logistics trade association. There, he shaped federal regulations on vehicle emissions and zero-emission vehicle incentives, led research on infrastructure needs for heavy-duty electrification, and served as one of the industry's primary representatives to the EPA and USDOT on energy and environmental regulations.

Following his tenure at ATA, Paul served in the Biden-Harris Administration as Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Energy, Installations, and the Environment. In that role, he helped lead the Air and Space Force's efforts to invest in renewable energy and infrastructure, enhance energy resilience, and support space launch capability. In 2023, he was a Clean Energy Leadership Fellow. Paul returned to SAFE in 2025.

Paul represented Virginia at two Democratic National Conventions, including in 2020 for Joe Biden. He earned a B.A. with Distinction and an M.A. in Urban Affairs and Public Policy from the University of Delaware. As a student, he was Editor-in-Chief of the graduate student policy journal, a legislative fellow for the Delaware House Majority Caucus, and a graduate assistant at the Center for Community Research and Service.

Originally from Chicago, he lives with his partner, Amanda, in Arlington, Virginia. They're both Blue Hens.