Beyond Energy Access: Understanding the Household Dynamics of Modernizing Cooking in Rural Karnataka, India (MA ’18) Bodie uses interdisciplinary approaches to investigate land-based solutions to climate change. He currently studies how policy and innovative technology can enable carbon-beneficial forest management. This work bridges industrial ecology, forest economics, and forest ecology. His modeling work has focused […]

Annelise’s research focus is the intersection of energy issues at the rural household level in East Africa. She is interested in how social infrastructure and outreach (e.g. training local workers) can help overcome barriers to adoption of technology. Annelise is also interested in the design and implementation of microgrids in remote areas. Prior to starting […]

Priyanka is a first-year Masters of Science Student with the Energy and Resources Group. At ERG, she plans to identify and quantify the economic benefits of just transition policies and explore issues at the nexus of international economic development and climate action. Prior to coming to ERG, she worked with the New Climate Economy (NCE), […]

Evaluation of Social Networks and Measures of Empowerment Among Adolescent Girls in Uttar Pradesh, India (MS ’19) Gauthami’s research interests focus on how social networks influence health behaviors and decisions around access and use of water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) infrastructures and its implications on the health and dignity of women and children in developing […]

Dipti got her Masters at ERG in 2008. Since then, she went back to India working with communities displaced by dams. She also fought for water justice in California, working with Native American tribes on access to water for traditional ceremonies and with Latino farmworkers across the California Central Coast on access to clean drinking […]

Zach’s research focuses on household water access, treatment and use. He draws on data collected in the field, utilizing both quantitative and qualitative sources. Zach is ultimately interested in the balance between sustainability, equity, health and livelihoods and he hopes his work will contribute to good water policies which reflect end-user preferences. His PhD will […]

Zubair is a Master’s student who researches water policy and management of international river basins, and is particularly focused on hydro-politics of the Indus basin. He has researched the relationship between water discharge and land use patterns in upper Jhelum watershed, international water agreements (especially the Indus Waters Treaty), and conflict over distribution of water […]

India’s Low Carbon Electricity Futures (PhD ’17) Ranjit’s research efforts largely focus on addressing the clean energy and energy access challenges in developing nations. As part of both the International Energy Studies group at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and ERG, Ranjit is developing models of the Indian national power system to analyze policies and […]

Commoditizing Carbon: Social and Environmental Implications of Trading Carbon Emissions Entitlements (MA 94) The Agrarian Question and the Institutionalization of Groundwater Exchange in Gujarat, India (PhD 98)

Lowering Energy Bills in American Indian Households: A Case Study of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe (’98 M.A.)

The System of Rice Intensification: Lessons from South India (MS ’07) Measuring and moderating the water resource impacts of biofuel production and trade (PhD ’12)

Water Access in a Changing City: Evaluating Reliance on and Value of Public Borewells in Hubli-Dharwad, India (MS, ’13)

Evaluation of World Bank Public Participation Policies-Lessons for the Clean Development Mechanism (’02 MS) Carbon Offsetting: An Efficient Way to Reduce Emissions or to Avoid Reducing Emissions? An Investigation and Analysis of Offsetting Design and Practice in India and China (’10 PhD)

With 10+ years of international field experience, 5+ in water and sanitation, as well as project management and professional development in higher ed, I aim to create a better society and environment for all.

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: ARNE JACOBSON Ph.D. 2004 Professor in the Department of Environmental Resources Engineering at Humboldt State University   From his post at Humboldt State University, Arne Jacobson passionately extends his PhD research addressing the real-world barriers to providing clean energy for poor people in developing countries.  In so doing, he plays a critical role […]

Ready-to-use? Bridging the Climate Science Usability Gap for Adaptation (PhD ’19) Kripa’s research interests are in the field of climate change adaptation and climate-resilient planning. Her PhD focuses on improving the ‘usability’ of climate science for adaptation decision-making, particularly for water resources management and agricultural planning. She uses qualitative and participatory research methods to understand […]

“FuelBelts”: Shelterbelts for Fuelwood Production on Small/Marginal Farms in India (87 M.S.)

"23% fewer women than men are online in developing countries. If no concerted effort is taken, that internet gap is going to grow. When women see role models—people doing things—it enables them and empowers them to think, 'Well, I can do that as well.' And, accessing the internet and using technologies exposes them to an entirely new world," says ERG Alum, Dr. Renee (Kuriyan) Wittemyer. She is Intel's Director of Social Impact.

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: SHARAD LÉLÉ Ph.D. 1993 Senior Fellow, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (Bangalore) Sharad Lele never intended to become an academic. And even though his resume is chock-full of scholarly publications, he still believes that applying the interdisciplinary academic knowledge gained at ERG defines ERG’s crucial role. After all, he says, […]

Local Governments and Solar Energy: The San Francisco Example (’83 M.A.) Organizing for Rural Energy Development: Improved Cookstoves, Local Organizations, and the State in Gujarat, India (’90 Ph.D.)

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT This ERG alumni spotlight features one of the first ERG graduate students, David Marcus (MA’77), and is written by ERG alumna, Sarita Sarvate (MS’78). The piece is the first of a series of stories on the achievements and journeys of alumni, showcasing their life after ERG. Small is Beautiful by Sarita Sarvate (MS’78) One summer […]

Wind Energy in Indian Country:  Turning to Wind for the Seventh Generation (MS ’06)

Resource Utilization and Degradation: An Integrated Analysis of Biomass Utilization Patterns in a Garhwal Hill Village, Northern Uttar Pradesh, India (’85 MS) From Forest to Agroforest: Land-Use Dynamics and Crop Successions in the Western Ghats of Kerala, South India (’90 PhD)

Health, Hygiene and Safe Drinking Water: A Process Documentation of an Education and Technology Intervention in the Behram Slum, Mumbai, India (06 MS) “Don’t Think of ‘Waste’ Water”: Evaluation and Planning Tools for Reuse-Oriented Sanitation Infrastructure (09 PhD)

Feasibility of Competition in a Developing Country Electricity Market: A Case Study of Maharashtra State (India) (’03 MS) Competition, regulation, and Energy Efficiency Options in the Electricy Sector: Opportunities and Challenges in Developing Countries (’06 PhD)

Can Co-ops become Energy Producers too? Challenges and Prospects for Efficient Co-Generation in India’s Co-Operative Sugar Sector (’05 MS) Fluid Hegemony: A Political Ecology of Water, Market Rule, and Insurgence at Bangalore’s Frontier (’10 PhD)

When the Pit Fills Up: Fecal Sludge “Management” in Urban India (PhD ’18) Sharada’s research is focused on recovery of nutrients, primarily Phosphorous, from human waste, particularly septage, and their reuse in Indian agriculture. His work focuses on under­stand­ing poli­cies and reg­u­la­tions that encourage businesses to facil­i­tate reuse of septage as fertilizer. He is interested […]

Monica obtained her Masters in 2015 from the Energy and Resources Group. She is interested in electric vehicle adoption, alternative energy policy, and sustainable energy development. Her research involves modeling the dollar value of grid services provided by electric vehicles and electric vehicle charging equipment infrastructure markets. Monica works part-time at the California Public Utilities […]

Organizational Approaches to Wasteland Development: Structural and Functional Aspects of Three Indian NGOs (’89 MA)

The Hands that will Build our Energy Future:  Administrative and Labor Capacity for Building Energy Efficiency Policies In China and India (MA ’11)