About me

My parents fled Sri Lanka during the Civil War and came to a small town in rural Italy, just south of Rome, where I was born and raised. They worked hard to give me the chance to be the first in my family to graduate from high school and college. I owe everything I’ve accomplished to them.

Over the past five years, I have had the incredible opportunity to work and study across the world — from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, and Australia to South Korea, Denmark, and Italy — focusing on how I can help build a more sustainable future for our planet, and for the places like where my parents grew up.

Work Experience

  • As an Associate on RMI’s Climate-Aligned Industries team, I perform techno-economic, market, and business analyses to further green hydrogen and green ammonia expansion in the US and the Global South. I also conduct research to guide client decarbonization strategy and enable development of Clean Industrial Hubs.

    Much of my work centers on scoping out and shaping opportunities for green hydrogen investment and deployment – with the long-term objective of de-risking global adoption, thereby accelerating decarbonization.

  • As a Graduate Student Consultant, I analyzed four US markets (Texas, PJM, California, and New York) to understand the feasibility of a green hydrogen project for our client.

    This involved designing a detailed scorecard with 40+ KPIs to rank markets based on future and current assessments on hydrogen, as well as developing a sector-by-sector analysis and financial model to identify the strongest business model.

  • As a Project Development Intern, I produced a 25+ page report and financial model on the potential of e-methanol in Brazil, supported by a market and regulatory analysis. I presented the outcome of the study and relevant recommendations to the senior management team.

  • As a Research Assistant, I examined the nexus of climate change and conflict in Sri Lanka for the British High Commission. I led to my work producing a policy paper on climate-induced migration among Sri Lankan smallholders.

  • As a Parliamentary Assistant, I produced policy papers, briefs and reports on topics ranging from low-income affordable housing and sustainable development to anti-torture legislation and more.

Education

  • • Master of Arts, Graduated May 2022

    • Concentration: International Economics and Energy, Resources and Environment (ERE)

    • Marco and Maria Carla Dell’Aquila Fellowship

    • Selected Coursework: Green New Deals, Renewable Energy Project Finance and Markets, Global Electricity Markets, Energy Economics, Energy and Climate Change, Sustainable Finance and Impact Investing

  • • Bachelor of Arts, Graduated May 2019

    • Concentration: International Affairs and Philosophy

    • Summa Cum Laude

    • Italian Merit Scholarship

    • Yonsei University, South Korea (June 2017 – August 2017)

    • University of Melbourne, Australia (February 2018 – June 2018)