Joyashree Roy
Distinguished Professor
Joyashree Roy is currently the Distinguished Professor at the Asian Institute of Technology. She is also the Founder Director of the Centre on South and South East Asia Multidisciplinary Applied Research Network on Transforming Societies of Global South and the Inaugural Bangabandhu Chair Professor (2018-2022, July) at the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand. She is also currently the Honorary Professor at Centre for Disaster Management and Research (CDMR) at IIT, Guwahati, India. She is the Founding advisor of the two multi-year projects at Jadavpur University: Global Change Programme and SYLFF-JU programme. She is the former Professor of Economics in Jadavpur University, India. She is a national fellow of the Indian Council of Social Sciences Research (ICSSR). She was a Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow at LBNL, Berkeley, USA. She is the recipient of the 2021 Paradigm award of The Breakthrough Institute, USA. She was in IPCC-2007 Nobel Peace Prize winning panel and continues as Coordinating Lead Author in Fifth and Sixth assessment cycles of WGIII of IPCC. In Sixth Assessment Cycle IPCC is also the co sharer of Gulbenkian Prize 2022. She has been a chapter author of Global Energy Assessment, has been associated with the Stern Review Report and many other global and National, Subnational Reports. She is in the winning team of 2012 Prince Sultan Bin Aziz creativity award for water. She has published more than 176 peer reviewed journal articles, authored and edited books. She is in the Steering/advisory committee of several national and International science-policy interactive platforms and in editorial boards of many international journals. Her research interests are: Resource and Environmental Economics, Economics of Pollution and Climate Change, Modeling industrial and other sectoral energy demand, Economy-wide modeling exercises for deriving policy implications, Water quality demand modeling, Water, Energy, Carbon pricing, Sustainable development, Natural resource accounting, Valuing environmental services, Developmental and environmental issues relevant for informal sectors, Coastal Ecosystem service evaluation. She features in the documentary Juice: How Electricity Explains the World which explains among other things how developing countries are trying to bring people out of the dark and to the lights and transforming lives. She is listed among the world’s top 2% of influential scientists in the field of Energy as per rankings published by Stanford University on 4th October 2023.
Dr. Firuz Ahamed Nahid
Dr. Firuz Ahamed Nahid is an electrical engineer obtained his Ph.D. in Sustainable Energy Transition from the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand. During his doctoral studies, he delved into the realm of artificial intelligence (AI) applications within energy management, particularly focusing on low carbon microgrids. He has a Bachelor's degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from IUBAT University in Bangladesh followed by a Master's in Electric Power System Management, again from the Asian Institute of Technology, in 2019. He served as a Lecturer at IUBAT University in Bangladesh for a period of 3 years and. He gained invaluable insights from engagements with both national and multinational entities within the power sector. Dr. Nahid's research expertise encompasses AI application in power systems, energy management, energy modeling, and the seamless integration of renewable energy sources. His overarching goal is to contribute significantly to the advancement of zero-carbon energy solutions that will ultimately benefit society, the environment, and future generations.
Post-doctoral researcher
Research associates
Sirayuth Thongprasert is a Research Associate at the SMARTS Center. His current research at SMARTS relates to demand-side solutions, sufficiency, wellbeing and GESI from the Global South. His research interest and personal commitment is understanding and resolving intersectional social inequities that cross-cut various dimensions, sectors, and actors with a special interest in communication media and design, and how it interacts and affects GESI. He is skilled in graphical programmes, basic web design and maintenance; with intrigues in psychology and Eastern spirituality.
He has a Bachelor's degree in International Relations and Development in 2017 from Rangsit University, Master’s Degree in Gender Studies and Development from AIT in 2019.
Prathana Panwar possesses a Master’s degree in Development Studies from the Indian Institute of Technology Mandi, India, as well as dual Bachelor’s degrees in Healthcare Management from the University of Delhi, India, and Zoology (Honors) from Indira Gandhi National Open University, India. Through her interdisciplinary master's program, she has gained proficiency in both qualitative and quantitative methodologies pertinent to the social sciences, thereby enhancing her multifaceted understanding of complex issues. Her research interests are primarily focused on environmental concerns, encompassing ecology, conservation, and climate change. Presently, she is engaged in the establishment of a knowledge network addressing plastic pollution, alongside developing a systematic approach to plastic pollution.
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Website link: www.linkedin.com/in/prathana-panwar-3a915a184
Ninaad Desai is currently employed as a Research Associate at SMARTS Centre at the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand. At SMARTS – AIT, he is contributing to formulating the cross-sector implications of demand-side mitigation interventions, particularly for the Transport and Industry sectors. His role also includes working on Service Provision Imagined with No Emission (SPINE) model to build scenarios for countries from the global south.
He has completed his postgraduate degree in Physics from St. Xavier’s College, Ahmedabad, India and a postgraduate degree in Economics from Ahmedabad University, India. His interests lie in the field of energy, economics and climate policy.
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During his free time, which is sparse, he likes to read books, listen to good music, and play football.
Guest researchers
2023-
Nandini works in the area of energy transition, with particular focus in power sector in the developing part of Asia. She has conducted modelling and policy analysis on the issues related to high-penetration renewable electricity scenarios particularly and its alignment with the growth objectives of the developing countries, grid stability and energy security. She has also worked in the broad area of issues related to energy transition encompassing, demand-side mitigation by sectoral intervention, behaviour and lifestyle choice as mitigation measure, multi-level climate governance. Nandini is currently working as an Climate and Energy Economist with Climate Analytics at Perth, Australia and holds her PhD from Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India.
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2024-
Shyamasree is an economist by training and is currently working as an Associate Professor at Indian Institute of Technology Mandi, India. Her research interest remains in the area of energy, environment, and climate change. She has investigated the energy demand behaviours of industry and household sectors based on microeconomic models. She is interested in issues such as the role of energy price and technology shaping the energy demand, energy and sustainable development, societal embedding of technology, nexus between household energy demand, indoor air pollution and respiratory health, to name a few. She also works in the area of climate change vulnerability and adaptation planning in the developing countries. She has been a member of the Working Group constituted by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, related to Himalayan Ecosystem for preparation of India’s Adaptation Communication to UNFCCC and a Contributing Author in Working Group III to IPCC AR5. As a SYLFF fellow, Shyamasree received her M.Phil. and Ph.D. degree from Jadavpur University, Kolkata India. ​
Student assistant
Angga Hendi Prabowo
June 16, 2023 -
Angga Hendi Prabowo is currently a master’s student in Gender and Development Studies at the Asian Institute of Technology. Prior to his enrollment, Angga had more than six years of professional experience as a brand and communication consultant and consumer researcher in an advertising agency. Furthermore, Angga actively participated in Non-Government Organizations that focus on women, feminists, and care work. He was appointedto be Indonesia's representative for the regional discussion entitled ‘The Future of Care Work; Youth In Developing Countries’ organized by International Labor Organization (ILO). As part of his academic trajectory, Angga earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Science majoring in Public Relations from Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia in 2016.
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Website: https://www.linkedin.com/in/angga-prabowo-27031993/
SMARTS supported student
Avrojyoti Barua
2023-2024
Avrojyoti Barua is currently pursuing a Master's degree with partial scholarship from SMARTS in Sustainable Energy Transition under the Department of Energy, Environment & Climate Change from Asian Institute of Technology. He has a bachelors in Electrical Engineering and holds a MBA degree in Operation & Production. Furthermore being an energy professional has 10 years of industrial exposure in the power distribution domain. He was certified by Chief Engineer, to complete the project entitled “Application of GIC & GPS transformer-wise consumer mapping for better management and improving consumer satisfaction of rural consumers'' under Revenue & Energy Management Cell, Vidyut Bhawan, West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited in 2017.
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Website: https://www.linkedin.com/in/avrojyoti-barua-36551935/