Francisco Barnés is a chemical engineer from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). He received his master degree in Chemical Engineer from the University of California at Berkeley in 1997 and his PhD in Environmental and Energy Policy from Imperial College at London University in 2001.

He was a partner in Mckinsey & Company since 2001 until February 2011. Through his career at McKinsey, he became part of the global leadership in Energy and Sustainability Practices advising governments, NGO’s, private companies and public sector institutions.

Throughout his consultancy work, he specialized in the creation of low-carbon growth strategies, adaptation to climate change, energy and other topics related to sustainable development like water, environmental pollution and solid wastes.

He has published several peer-reviewed articles in leading journals and has participated in a number of international fora related to environmental and energy policy.

In March 1st 2011, he was designated by the President of Mexico as a the head of the National Institute of Ecology.