Pursuing Climate Action

Throughout its history the college has been home to students working towards a sustainable future.

For the 2024 issue of Observatory, Green Templeton asked eight alumni from a range of courses about their time in Oxford and their career journeys.

Catherine Ganzleben (DPhil Geography & the Environment, 1998)

I arrived at Oxford already trained as a zoologist, aiming to transition into the field of sustainability by undertaking a DPhil in economic geography. The Oxford experience was an intellectual baptism by fire, with exposure to exceptional academic minds across a mind-boggling range of fields. Top thinkers from science, the arts and politics were giving lectures accessible to all virtually every evening, while Green College provided a fantastic lecture series focused on the medical sciences right on my doorstep. It was a veritable sweetie jar of mental stimulation!

Green Templeton is a green oasis in north Oxford providing a peaceful setting for intellectual pursuit. The beauty is matched by the brilliance and energy of the student body and the kind commitment of college staff. Oxford exposed me to mentally agile individuals, able to dive into deeply technical material one minute and zoom out to the grand narrative the next, neatly exposing what the detail means for the big picture. I always envied that ability and hope that a tiny bit of the stardust brushed off on me.

In my role as Head of the Group on Enabling Systems Change at the European Environment Agency in Copenhagen, I manage a team assessing Europe’s progress towards sustainability. Our job as an agency is to provide evidence on the state of the European environment and climate as a basis for policy-making by the European Commission.

Part of my job that I particularly enjoy is translating evidence from the scientific community into materials that can be digested and used by policymakers – a bridge between science and policy. I was instrumental in carving out a role for the European Environment Agency in cross-European initiatives to monitor human exposure to chemicals and support chemical risk assessment, funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme.

Judy Omumbo (DPhil Zoology, 2000)

I joined then-Green College from Kenya and did not know very much about the college system at Oxford, but luckily my supervisor was an alumnus. He spoke very highly of the college and mentioned that many of the students there were pursuing degrees in various fields of medicine. I felt that I would feel at home with medical colleagues so I visited the college website and loved the photos of the Observatory!

I was looking for a small college as I was keen to make new friends and thought it would be easier if there were fewer fellow students to get to know. I received such a kind and warm welcome from everyone when I arrived, including the porter’s office, and knew immediately that Green College was the right choice.

My background is in global health, science and climate research, with a special focus on Africa.

I am proud to have been part of the team that set up the Science for Africa Foundation, a pan-African, non-profit, public charitable organisation created to support, strengthen and promote science and innovation in Africa. As a trusted partner of African scientists and innovators, we enable Africa’s science and innovation to achieve maximum impact.

As Head of Programmes, I am responsible for leading initiatives related to endemic, emerging and re-emerging diseases, as well as planetary health. My role involves applying strategic leadership to support African scientists in co-creating solutions for a healthier, sustainable future. During the pandemic, I was invited to co-chair the World Meteorological Organization’s (WMO) COVID-19 Task Team, giving advice and updates on how meteorological and air quality factors might influence the transmission of the virus. I am also a member of the WMO Research Board, where I contribute an African lens to advice in critical weather, climate and environmental research.

Tomoyuki Uno (MSc Nature, Society & Environmental Policy, 2004)

I am currently Senior Strategy and Planning Officer at FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) headquarters in Rome. I’m particularly focused on making FAO more innovative and helping the organisation address systemic issues rather than chase smaller, ad hoc projects. One of my most exciting projects is reviewing the FAO Strategic Framework incorporating foresight methodology. My career spans environmental technology, international development and diplomatic service, embodying a blend of technical expertise and international cooperation.

After graduating with a degree in mechanical engineering from Waseda University in Japan, I began my career at Isuzu’s Advanced Engineering Centre. There, I developed new hybrid vehicle technology and obtained multiple patents, helping Isuzu commercialise one of the world’s earliest hybrid vehicles. Although I found the technical challenges fascinating, I increasingly felt drawn to making a broader impact in environmental conservation on an international scale.

My time in Oxford offered exactly what I was looking for – a deep dive into environmental policy that considered both natural and social dimensions. Some of my fondest memories come from being part of the Boat Club and spending evenings at the college bar. After Oxford, I joined Nomura Research Institute Europe in London, where I focused on environmental finance and risk management. I developed business models including environmental finance, carbon assets and corporate social responsibility analytics, working with hedge funds, banks and banking regulators.

I then spent nine years in various roles with the UN Development Programme in Indonesia, including being Programme Manager for Climate Change and Asia Manager of the Green Commodities Programme. One of my proudest achievements was establishing the Indonesia Climate Change Trust Fund, the country’s first nationally owned and managed multi-donor trust fund. I later served as First Secretary at the Permanent Mission of Japan to the UN in New York.

Yuyun Ismawati (MSc Environmental Change & Management, 2010)

I have devoted more than 30 years to environmental health, actively advocating on chemicals and waste issues.

My journey began as an environmental consultant before I moved to the NGO sector in 1996. In 2020, I co-founded BaliFokus Foundation, which was later transformed and rebranded as the Nexus Foundation for Environmental, Health and Development.

My work has focused on mitigating the challenges of pollution, climate change and biodiversity loss.

My time at Green Templeton was a memorable one. The college is an excellent home for environmentalists, health experts and sustainable business scholars. I appreciated the conversation and the guidance of the late Professor Jeff Burley and Professor Gerry Bodeker to advance Project Southeast Asia at Oxford, an initiative to promote Southeast Asian multidisciplinary studies at Oxford.

In 2024, I was elected as one of the co-chairs of the International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN), a global network of over 600 public interest NGOs in 130 countries working together for a toxics-free future.

I am an Ashoka Fellow and a LEAD Fellow, a testament to my leadership on sustainable development. My bachelor’s degree was in environmental engineering from the Bandung Institute of Technology, Indonesia. My work and policy recommendations have contributed to changing narratives and policy on chemicals and waste.

Clémentine Stip (MSc Water Science, Policy & Management, 2012)

I am a Senior Water Specialist at the World Bank, West Africa region. My work focuses on the Sahel region, at the intersection of water resources management, innovative circular solutions for water service provision, and livelihoods development in a context of fragility and insecurity.

I joined Oxford and Green Templeton hoping to diversify my recently acquired skills as an environmental engineer, freshly graduated from Stanford University, and to take a deeper dive into the topic of water management. I loved the fact that the college focused on graduate students, allowing me to learn so much from my peers at casual run-ins over lunch, studying in the Observatory or library, or at the Stables Bar. Some of my fondest memories involve collecting apples in an orchard and making apple cider from scratch with some other students, and foraging for nettles to make (and eat) pesto while we worked on the apples.

Though my thesis at Oxford was entirely focused on Southern California water issues, my professors, peers and fellow GTC students encouraged me to look beyond this geographic area, and I wound up applying for a job to work on water issues in Latin America with the World Bank in 2013. This position launched my career in international development.

I have since had the opportunity to work across many geographies with the World Bank, such as water supply and sanitation services to rural indigenous communities in Latin America, promoting wastewater reuse for irrigation in Tunisia, and supporting improved water resources management planning and circular economy in Senegal. The multidisciplinary nature of the work I carried out at Oxford equipped me to contribute strategically to our portfolio in this complex context, and to support my counterparts with project management and technical expertise.

Hassan Sachedina (MSc Environmental Change & Management, 1998)

I grew up in Kenya and developed a passion for landscapes where people and wildlife lived together. From the age of 16, I volunteered during my holidays on rhino sanctuaries and with the Kenya Wildlife Service Rhino Unit. This cemented my aim to become a conservationist. At the time I came to Oxford, Green College was one of only three colleges welcoming students in the environmental space.

Two people in particular had a great impact on me at college. Head Gardener Michael Pirie taught me throughout the year about how he nurtured the wild and the tame into a stunning botanical microecosystem.

My master’s thesis supervisor and global expert in traditional medicine, Professor Gerry Bodeker, enabled me to visit South Africa to learn how wild aloes were commercially used and conserved, and to explore whether the same techniques could be used to protect and sustainably manage threatened aloes in Kenya. This taught me that people conserve what they value.

I spent the next half of my career in the conservation non-profit sector. Subsequently, I went on to found a forest carbon social enterprise called BCP (BioCarbon Partners). I served as CEO for ten years, and BCP went on to become Africa’s largest and most impactful forest carbon project developer, built by an African team in a sector dominated by European and US firms.

In 2022, I founded Sayari Earth to focus on new carbon methodologies and oceans beyond Africa. The scale of the planetary crisis is so large that our goals need to be ambitious. By 2034, we aim to impact 45 million hectares and 10 million people. Our mission is to help restore our planet by empowering people. We are doing this through large-scale, nature-based carbon removal projects fuelled by technology and innovation.

Santiago Izquierdo Tort (MPhil Development Studies, 2012)

I am currently Associate Professor at the Institute for Economics Research at Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and UNESCO Chair in Socioeconomic Evaluation of Biodiversity and Ecosystems. My main focus is evaluating and improving instruments designed to protect forests, particularly those that provide financial incentives to landholders in exchange for not converting forests to other uses.

Since my time as a student at Green Templeton, I have been documenting on-the-ground impacts of conservation payments in tropical forests and have aimed to provide tangible recommendations that help policy-makers to improve their design and implementation.

I still hold the fondest memories from my time in college – including living in various residences and playing on the basketball team, and winning the 2013 Cuppers Championship. I spent countless hours studying in the library, enjoying lunch at the Radcliffe Observatory, participating in potlucks, and even working at the Stables Bar. My time was filled with many unforgettable experiences. To this day, I remain close friends with wonderful people I met during my time at college. The staff too left a lasting impression – especially the late Accommodation Manager Nick Martin, who was always so kind, approachable and helpful.

Working in sustainability, and particularly on issues related to forest protection, demands a constant balancing act between hope and frustration. After more than a decade researching and working as a practitioner in tropical forest regions in Mexico and other Latin American countries, I have witnessed first-hand the harsh and concerning reality of deforestation and forest degradation. Yet I feel incredibly privileged to have been involved with agrarian and indigenous community members in Chiapas in Mexico and the Colombian Amazon, scholars and students worldwide, as well as dedicated professionals from NGOs, governments and other organisations.

Abrar Chaudhury (MBA, 2009; MSc Environmental Change & Management, 2010; DPhil Geography & the Environment, 2011)

I’m based at the Saïd Business School, and my work focuses on addressing one of the most pressing challenges of our time: climate crisis. I am dedicated to exploring how businesses can not only take ownership of but also actively drive solutions to the climate crisis.

I vividly recall my first steps into college on an autumn day in 2009. Fresh off a long flight from Lahore, Pakistan, weary-eyed and accompanied by a young family, I found myself stepping into an extraordinary world of learning and community. What began as a one-year master’s programme turned into a lifelong journey of personal and intellectual growth at Oxford. Our early years were spent on Observatory Street, where the backyard opened into the lush college gardens – a source of endless joy for my children. They still treasure memories of chasing each other through the garden sprinklers and revelling in the magic of those moments.

We connected with other families, celebrated countless birthdays and shared cherished moments. Beyond the personal, college shaped my professional aspirations. Having grown up in Pakistan, a country acutely vulnerable to climate change, the devastating floods of 2010 motivated me to deepen my understanding of this pressing global challenge. I pursued a DPhil in climate and sustainability at the Environmental Change Institute while remaining a student at college.

The journey was transformative, both academically and personally. Under the guidance of dedicated mentors, I explored climate vulnerability in remote villages in Kenya, Nepal, Ghana and Senegal, working with smallholder farmers, building their resilience. Although these field trips meant spending long periods away from my family, I knew they were supported by the vibrant college community.

Green Templeton also provided avenues to embrace Oxford traditions. I fulfilled a long-held dream of learning to row, represented Oxford in snooker matches and cherished every opportunity to engage in the rich cultural and academic life.