With ICLEI South Asia for more than 5 years, Ashish has a Master’s degree in Energy Management from the University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun. He is an integral part of the Energy and Climate team and  focuses primarily on projects related to renewable energy, energy efficiency and low carbon sustainable development. 

What has your contribution to city governments been through ICLEI?

ICLEI has provided me with the opportunity to work directly with local governments and to analyse the challenges they face daily. With the overall objective of sustainable development, I, together with my team at the South Asian office, have tried to address these issues through projects, trainings and formal discussions. Cities in India are at different stages of development based on their location, resources and facilities available to them; working so closely with them enables me to analyse these gaps and work towards filling them. 

How has your experience of working with ICLEI been so far?

The experience of working with ICLEI has been good:  lots of experience, learning and exploring new concepts and ideas. I started my professional journey with this organization and it has given me immense scope to work in diverse spheres of climate change. I have had the chance to meet various people from numerous cities, listen to their problems and help them move towards a better future! This I think is the best thing ICLEI could have given me. 

What, according to you, makes ICLEI a great place to work at?

The most exciting thing about working at ICLEI is the freedom to choose your area of work. There are a lot of opportunities provided to us to work in various disciplines and learn from each other. It is a privilege to be associated with an organization which works at the ground level, as you get to come across so many people from diverse backgrounds and cultures. ICLEI makes you love your work, which I believe is the essence of a productive work atmosphere.