Trained as an economist, Pulkit Bajpai has spent his career working with local governments around the world in search of small initiatives that can add broader progress for the adaptation and financing of climate change.
Now, Bajpai hopes to combine this experience in climate economy and data science with new courses as a student at the EM of the Columbia Climate School in climatic finances, where he is one of the three recipients of the receptors of Stanley Park scholarship. (The title is a collaboration with Columbia Business School).
In the questions and answers below, Bajpai tells us about his inclination for problem solving, the importance of climatic adaptation and what he hopes to learn from the program this year.
What was his reaction when he heard about his Stanley Park award?
In many ways, I am first generation, and I was very excited when I received the offer for the program. I was excited to join, but realistically, without the very generous scholarship, I was not sure if it was possible to attend. I felt that in terms of my specific objectives, this program would unlock new ways in climate work in India and the Global South. I felt deeply happy and that this was a very significant trampoline for the work I want to do.
That It brought you to climate space and what has your trip until now?
I am trained as an economist. After university, I started working in economics and climate change, specifically climate adaptation in sub -Saharan Africa and then also in Nepal and India. I believe that, together with the fact that I have grown in a significantly prone to floods in India, I realized that there is a great gap in terms of understanding and construction of resistant systems to focus on very vulnerable communities that will be affected by climatic shocks and that have been for a long time; And this is likely to be exacerbated in the future.
I continued to investigate in the climate economic space in climatic adaptation, largely through the use of data and data science tools and applying them to solve climatic problems. More recently, I have worked on simulating how it would be seen and should be fair green taxes and it should be in the United Kingdom that my economy training has allowed me to use the technical skills I have obtained to try to solve problems related to the distinctive climate.
What made you decide to apply to EM in climatic finances and how do you think it will be added to your existing experience?
My training is largely in economic research and data science. Those are great skills to have, and I have collected climate science skills on the march, but I felt that formal training in climate science would be beneficial with the type of work I am doing in India for the moment. I work with local government agencies to try to build their financial systems so that they can expand their adaptation measures at a very hyperlocal level. The formal training in weather and finance would be greatly added to my existing data science skills for the work I imagine doing in the future, specifically in India and with the local government members.
Are there classes that you are waiting for?
I am a great believer in adaptation, so, of course, the class of adaptation to climate change. There is a lot of novelty in the courses of the Business School, since I have little or more experience in it, so I look forward to the business school classes. Mainly, I am quite excited to be in the rooms with a lot of discussion of climate adaptation and courses and also take the international climatic finance course of the climatic school.
How do you see these skills in the future?
My vision is to start by little, where I come, where I call home, work with local governments and then subocal and state or provincial to create a standardized taxonomy of how adaptation should be to deal with their needs. Then build and provide solutions to these government partners to restructure their finances so that they can feed money in adaptation measures.
I think this summer, for example, I have had the opportunity to live in northern India and live the heat phase. So I have realized the largest gap in terms of implementation and finance, especially in this part of the world or in the global south in general. I want to build local solutions and provide technical experience to unlock financial restrictions that face many local and regional government agencies with public sector funds.
Can you tell us more about your work this summer and what you have learned?
Climate change conversations are not taking place as much as they should be in places where people and lives are more affected. Therefore, a part of my trip this summer has been trying to make almost an informative session with government agencies, trying to inform the world of climate change in many ways. It sounds a bit paradoxical since in India, we see many news of floods, droughts and heat waves. Even so, I feel that there is a great gap in terms of these events being associated with this imminent crisis that hangs as a spectrum on our heads.
Our goal has been to mobilize funds from climatic bonds in a way that generates income to specifically address two areas: (1) Build modernized and resistant structures in urban cities and spaces for heat waves and (2) Create better flood response systems.
What keeps it motivated to continue working on these challenging and important issues?
This can be the economist in me speaking, but I feel that I tend to see the world as an exercise in problem solving and an optimization problem. However, at the same time, growing where I did, after having worked where I have worked, I realized that the human cost of problem solving is that the rewards are very high. And I think that keeps me motivated. In the world in which we live at this time, and for all the very heartbreaking projections of where we go as a planet and the type of impact it has on people in the part of the world from which I come, I think that problem solving is my only motivation and driver and why I want to continue building these solutions the best thing I can.
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