A non-alkoxide sol-gel route to highly active and selective Cu-Cr catalysts for glycerol conversion is presented. The addition of propylene oxide to ethanol solutions of Cr(NO 3 ) 3 $9H 2 O and Cu(NO 3 ) 2 $3H 2 O resulted in the formation of transparent Cu-Cr gels. The resulting gels were converted to the Cu-Cr catalysts by atmospheric drying and calcination. The Cu-Cr catalysts are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), N 2 physisorption, temperature-programmed reduction (TPR), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show that the surface area of the Cu-Cr catalyst is adjusted by the hydrolysis conditions, Cu/Cr molar ratio, and treatment conditions (such as gas atmosphere and final temperature). For the sample with Cu/Cr ¼ 0.5, the surface area of Cu-Cr xerogel can reach 94 m 2 /g and decreased to only 31 m 2 /g after calcination at 500 C. The catalysts show significant catalytic activity and selectivity in glycerol conversion, i.e. above 52% conversion of glycerol and above 88% selectivity to 1,2-propanediol at 210 C and 4.15 MPa H 2 pressure. CuCr 2 O 4 supported Cu catalysts are much more active than Cr 2 O 3 supported Cu catalysts. This indicates a strong interaction between Cu and CuCr 2 O 4 that is significantly improving the effectiveness of the catalyst for glycerol conversion.