Key People
We are a team of dedicated professionals, facilitating businesses achieve optimum levels of sustainability and climate change performance.
Manjari Chandra
PORTFOLIO MANAGER – CARBON OFFSET PROJECTS
Manjari Chandra
Portfolio Manager – Carbon Offset Projects
Manjari works as a technical expert and portfolio manager with VNV on carbon offset projects. Her work involves registration and issuance of CERs/ VERs under various standards. She has over 8 years’ experience in CDM, GS and VCS related activities. She has worked as a lead assessor for TUV NORD for CDM/VCS projects for 6 years before moving onto companies implementing carbon offset projects. She has extensive experience in assessment and validation of projects against modalities and procedures of the Kyoto Protocol, relevant UNFCCC and GS requirements including the sustainable development criteria.
Manjari has a Masters in Environmental Management from Griffith University, Australia as well as a Masters and Graduation in Environmental Science from Bangalore University, India.
Jibotosh Pandit
GIS MANAGER
Jibotosh Pandit
GIS Manager
Jibotosh works as a core team member of VNV Advisory looking after the implementation of Remote Sensing (RS) and GIS (Geographical Information System) application in the field of Forestry, Agriculture, Grasslands, Wetlands. He has more than six years of experience in the field of Natural Resource Management.
Jibotosh was previously associated with a project entitled “Ecosystem Services Improvement Project” funded by “The World Bank” and “Green India Mission” Project, at Madhya Pradesh Forest Department to map and monitor forest cover, forest density, forest type, natural regeneration using RS & GIS. He also worked for IORA Ecological Solutions, New Delhi, as a Research Associate-RS&GIS in Forest PLUS Program.
Jibotosh contributed to a Glaciology project in G.B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment and Sustainable Development Headquarters, Almora, Uttarakhand
His technical expertise lies in mapping of glaciers, snow Covers, forest type, forest canopy density, ANR and he is also trained in drone data analysis
Jibotosh completed his Masters in Remote Sensing and GIS from North Orissa University, Odisha and graduated with an Honours in Geography from Goalpara College, Guwahati University, Assam
Sreyashi Roy
MANAGER – HUMAN RESOURCES
Sreyashi Roy
MANAGER – HUMAN RESOURCES
Experienced Human Resources Professional with a demonstrated history of working in the information technology and services industry. Skilled in Team Building, Recruitment knowledge, link HR Functions with Organisational Goals, Participate in Strategic Initiatives, and Managing Talent for Organizational Success. A true believer of “None of us is more stronger than all of Us”.
Rashi Mehta
PORTFOLIO MANAGER & MARKETER
Rashi Mehta
Portfolio Manager & Marketer
Rashi works as a portfolio manager and marketer with VNV advisory.
Skilled in start-up ecosystems, sustainability strategy and planning, developing social impact strategies, multi-channel content creation, business ecosystem planning, market research coupled with a keen interest in design and brand communication she leads the communications and portfolio management of our company.
After working in brand communications and digital marketing at Please See and Triature, she felt the need to move to the field of sustainability. She was the cofounder of Ripple Effect, a marketplace for sustainable products and she has worked closely with NGOs, social enterprises and grassroots level artisans. She also co-founded Midoree, a sustainable fashion brand that makes bags and accessories from waste fabric, thus supporting a circular economy business model.
She has a degree in Fashion Clothing and Technology from National Institute of Fashion Technology as well as a Master’s degree in MSc. Marketing from Manchester Business School, UK. She is also a post graduate in Sustainable Environment Management from Indian Institute of Environment Management, SIES and has worked on a research paper on Indoor air pollution in residential spaces in South Mumbai.
She has also worked with Centre for Environment and Research (CERE) where she helped develop events and communication strategy for the NGO.
Chinmayee Patro
LEGAL SPECIALIST
Chinmayee Patro
LEGAL SPECIALIST
In charge of handling the legal core needs of VNV related to commercial contracts and advisory aspects. My work involves reviewing and redlining of contracts, research work, due diligence, contract negotiation and legal drafting.
A legal professional and experienced contract consultant with over 2.5 years of experience, skilled in business laws, due diligence, legal drafting, research, contract management and legal analytics. Prior to VNV, I have worked with various healthcare and software technology clients. I have also practised civil law litigation at District Courts, Debt Recovery tribunal and Consumer Forums.
Completed graduation (Integrated B.B.A LLB) with specialization in Business Law from KIIT School of Law, Bhubaneshwar and masters with specialization in Corporate Law & Commercial Law from National Law University Odisha.
Tara Sriram
TECHNICAL HEAD – FORESTRY AND LAND USE
Tara Sriram
Consultant – Land-Use Change and Forestry
Tara is involved with VNV’s Land Use Change and Forestry projects, working on Sustainable Agriculture, Agro-forestry and A/R projects. She has over four years of experience working on Climate Mitigation and Adaptation Projects with grassroots level organisations as a part of the Fair Climate Network, primarily working on Sustainable Agriculture across 5 states of southern and central India. She was involved with design, implementation and Monitoring and Evaluation of the projects, working closely with NGO field teams and technical experts at all stages.
Following this, as Project Lead in a Bangalore based NGO, she played a critical role in the conception and implementation of a first of its kind rural Waste Management programme in northern Karnataka. After the successful implementation of this project, she began work as an independent consultant, working on various Climate Change related projects.
Deboshmita Dey
MANAGER – TECHNICAL (NON-FORESTRY)
Deboshmita Dey
MANAGER – TECHNICAL (NON-FORESTRY)
Deboshmita Dey is a targeted environmental and climate change professional with more than two years of experience in Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), Gold Standard for Global Goals (GS4GG) and Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) projects. She has experience in performing validation and verification services of 70+ projects involving renewable energy (Hydro, solar, wind projects), biomass power production, co-generation, transportation, energy efficiency and energy demand, wastewater treatment, waste heat recovery, landfill (waste management) etc. and has also performed ISO14064 audits.
She has completed her master’s in Environmental Studies and Resource Management from TERI School of Advanced Studies.
Vijay Bhaskar
SENIOR MANAGER – ACCOUNTS AND FINANCE
Vijay Bhaskar
Senior manager – Accounts and Finance
Vijay has been working with VNV Advisory Services since 2011 and is responsible for budget planning, internal audit, preparation of financial reports, distribution of resources and also supports the executive management team by offering insights and financial advice.
Vijay has graduated with a degree in Commerce from Gulbarga University and is currently pursuing his Master’s in Business Administration in Finance. He has 24 years of experience in Accounts and Finance.
Nayan Jyoti Deka
TECHNICAL HEAD – CARBON PROJECTS
Nayan Jyoti Deka
Technical Head – Carbon Projects
Nayan Jyoti Deka, an environmental professional with more than 9 years of extensive experience in handling climate change projects (Biomass, wind, hydro, thermal, waste management, etc). In the past, he has worked with one of the leading inspection, testing & certification body in the world, as an active member of its climate change team based in Gurgaon, Haryana. He has been involved in the audit of more than 100 GHG projects (CDM/VCS/GS) across the world in Africa, South East Asia and Latin America while working for two DOEs.
Nayan did his Bachelor in Mechanical Engineering from Assam Engineering college and obtained his Master degree in Energy Tecnology from Tezpur Central University.
Ajay Mehra
SENIOR ASSOCIATE (TECHNICAL) IN CARBON OFFSET PROJECTS
Ajay Mehra
SENIOR ASSOCIATE (TECHNICAL) IN CARBON OFFSET PROJECTS
Ajay Mehra works as Senior Associate (Technical) in Carbon Offset Projects, non-forestry department at VNV Advisory.
He has a keen interest and knowledge of VCS, GS and CDM. He is handling carbon offset projects which includes solid waste management, renewable energy, Plastic projects, community based projects etc.
He is a subject matter expert in ISO 14001:2015 Environmental management system and ISO 50001:2018 energy management system and is a certified professional in LCA and ESG.
He has an extensive experience of almost 6+ years in ISO standards and has worked with leading certification bodies for auditing and training of management standards. Ajay also has more than 3+ years of ISO consulting experience with leading automotive and manufacturing industries.
Ajay is an engineering graduate in mechanical from Maharishi Dayanand University, Rohtak.
Kasturi Navalkar
MANAGER – PARTNERSHIPS
Kasturi Navalkar
MANAGER – PARTNERSHIPS
Kasturi currently manages Partnerships & Communications at VNV Advisory.
A graduate with honours in Environmental Science, Chemistry and Zoology, Kasturi has 3 years of experience in the consultation and management field. Prior to VNV her significant roles encompassed that of a Chief Administrative Officer of a Health & Wellness Organisation and a Consultant in the Health & Nutrition domain. She has gained experience as an intern under Wildlife Institute of India studying the migration pattern of Olive Ridley Turtles of the west coast of India, and also has several accolades and certifications in Environmental Journalism, Environmental Legislation, Solid Waste Management, Ecotourism and has been involved in a Green Revolution Global Certification Program on the education and initiation of action against climate change, supported by the UNFCCC.
Kasturi is a certified PADI Open Water Scuba Diver and is passionate about the conservation of the oceans and marine ecosystems.
Meghana G Ramaswamy
ASSOCIATE – PARTNERSHIPS
Meghana G Ramaswamy
ASSOCIATE – PARTNERSHIPS
Meghana G Ramaswamy works as an Associate in the Partnerships team. She holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Resource Management from Brandenburg Technical University, Germany, where she gained knowledge on various aspects on sustainability and climate action. She has previously interned with Frost and Sullivan in the manufacturing and process consulting department and gained experience in project execution and coordination, and project reporting. She was involved in the World Bank Project for energy efficiency of MSMEs. She was also involved in research and reporting of sustainability frameworks for different sectors in the market. She has previously interned with VNV under environmental sustainability department and was involved in sustainability reporting entailing EESG performance of the clients.
Ishita Vedamuthu
ASSOCIATE – PARTNERSHIPS
Ishita Vedamuthu
ASSOCIATE – PARTNERSHIPS
Currently working as an Associate with the Partnerships team at VNV whose ethos aligns perfectly with Ishita’s by facilitating equality of opportunity and access to the vulnerable and marginalized through their bottom-up, community-led programs. A systems thinker, intersectional environmentalist, and architect by profession, Ishita found her forte in academics which led her to pursue a research degree in Urban Management and Development with a focus on Sustainability, Climate change, Circular Economies, and the Built Environment. She formulated a Gynocentric (Woman-focused) Social Vulnerability Framework for Extreme Climatic Events in the context of Kannagi Nagar, Chennai for her master’s thesis; which explained the disproportionate influence of extreme climatic events on the socio-economic vulnerability and resilience of urban-resettled women. Ishita’s research was awarded 2nd place in the DAIDA Foundation’s Global Urban Thesis Awards 2020.
Ashiq Ahamed C
SENIOR ASSOCIATE – CARBON PROJECTS
Ashiq Ahamed C
SENIOR ASSOCIATE – CARBON PROJECTS
Ashiq was previously associated with research and development projects of dept. of science & technology, project management of CSR projects on biomass conservation and various energy-based technical projects with NGOs and consultancy groups.
He has more than 12 years of experience in energy conservation & utility projects
His technical expertise lies in designing projects for carbon mitigation (based on cookstoves, semi-gasifiers etc.), biochar, agro residue utilization, implementation of energy based livelihood projects and training & capacity building for NGOs.
Ashiq completed his Masters in Energy Engineering from College of Engineering Guindy and graduated with a bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering from RVS College of Engineering & Technology ,Anna University Chennai.
Dhruvil Brahmbhatt
CONSULTANT – FORESTRY & BIODIVERSITY
Dhruvil Brahmbhatt
Consultant – Forestry & Biodiversity
Dhruvil is a forestry expert and responsible for the development and execution of Carbon Emission Reduction projects in Forestry, Sustainable Agriculture and LULUCF. He has varied experience in Climate Sciences models and Biodiversity Conservation. He has a sound technical know-how of mainstream Forestry Carbon Accounting and Forestry Carbon Standards, Social and Environmental standards. Prior to joining VNV, he had worked for Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune on Convective Uplifting of Methane and its effects in Upper Troposphere and Lower Stratosphere (UTLS). He was also part of a National Ambient Air Monitoring Project (NAMP) organized by Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Vadodara.
Dhruvil holds a Master Degree in Environment Management form Forest Research Institute Dehradun and Bachelors Degree in Environmental Science from The M.S University of Baroda, Vadodara.
Brinda Kulkarni
LEAD CONSULTANT – CORPORATE GOVERNANCE & SUSTAINABILITY
Brinda Kulkarni
Consultant- Corporate Governance & Sustainability
Brinda is involved in VNV’s Corporate Governance and Sustainability services.
Skilled in developing sustainability strategy, aligning corporate vision with corporate responsibility, ESG analysis and in developing social impact strategies, she has experience in non-financial reporting and frameworks such as GRI and Business Responsibility Reporting. Having worked in KPMG’s Audit services for 2 years, she is also skilled in analysing financial reports and is familiar with corporate governance policies.
She was also involved in research analysis on topics such as sustainability reporting trends in India and the environmental impacts of meat and dairy industries in India.
A recent graduate of HEC Paris, she holds a Masters degree in Sustainability and Social Innovation, where she studied strategy and sustainability, the economics of climate change, socially responsible investing and supply chain sustainability.
Well-informed on sustainable fashion, she worked on a consulting project with Shiseido, in Paris, where she helped integrate sustainability and consumer experience for one of Shiseido’s leading perfume brands.
With a keen interest in sustainable food systems, she completed her Master’s thesis on Sustainable Diets in India, with research on the environmental and social impacts and challenges to widespread adoption of sustainable diets in India.
She holds a Certificate from HEC Paris in Inclusive and Social Business strategies, and a Certificate in Sustainability from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, which has equipped her with skills in social impact assessment, social return on investment analysis and in developing meaningful CSR strategies.
Ashvika Bhargava
ASSOCIATE CONSULTANT – SUSTAINABILITY
Ashvika Bhargava
ASSOCIATE CONSULTANT – SUSTAINABILITY
Ashvika works as an Associate Consultant – Sustainability at VNV Advisory. Her work involves assisting in Sustainability Reporting, ESG Analysis and developing Sustainability strategies for organisations.
Ashvika believes that the health of the planet is foundational to development and growth, and has recently commenced her professional journey in the field of Sustainability. In order to
contribute professionally she completed a postgraduate degree in Sustainable Environment
Management from the Indian Institute of Environment Management, SIES, and worked on a research paper where she performed a comparative analysis on FMCGs and analysed their approach to Sustainability. She also holds a degree in Travel and Tourism Management from St. Xavier’s College and has completed her Masters in Management from the National University of Singapore.
Her keen interest in language and culture led her to pursue a full-time course in the French language and has a DELF B1 certification. She enjoys travelling to understand people, their behaviour and understanding the impact of their actions on society and the environment.
Her motto for work is simple, “Do the right thing no matter what”.
Ajay Korpal
CONSULTANT – SUSTAINABILITY AND GHG SERVICES
Ajay Korpal
CONSULTANT – SUSTAINABILITY AND GHG SERVICES
Ajay works with Sustainability Reporting and Carbon Accounting at VNV. Apart from working with ESG and GHG reporting frameworks, he is skilled in conducting LCA and EIA related projects as well. He holds a master’s degree in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure from KTH Royal Institute of Technology (Stockholm, Sweden) and has previously worked with international think-tanks such as the Swedish Environmental Research Institute IVL and the Stockholm International Water Institute during his time as a student. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Manipal Institute of Technology.
Ajay is a published researcher, but also has experience working on-ground with grassroots NGOs. He likes to inculcate a design philosophy in all his projects, and is passionate about designing better strategies, products, and solutions to the challenges we face today. Some of his other technical expertise areas include: decarbonization strategies, circular economy, sustainable infrastructure development, and sustainable urban & rural development.
Pavithra Praveen Babu
LEAD GRAPHIC DESIGNER
Pavithra Praveen Babu
LEAD GRAPHIC DESIGNER
Pavithra works with VNV Advisory as a Lead Graphic Designer. She is primarily involved in content designing. As a graphic designer, she works on a variety of products and activities, such as advertising, banners, presentations, social media posts, reports, posters, websites and displays developing our diverse sustainability communications and marketing. She has 3 years of experience as a Graphic designer. She has previously worked with multiple companies as a freelancer, interned at MEX.-The Member Experience App by RMZ Eco world Infrastructure Private Limited and worked at Excelus Learning Solutions by Quess Corp Limited as a Graphic Designer.
She holds a B.Sc. (Biotechnology) degree from Jyoti Nivas College, Bangalore and M.Sc. (Forensic Science) degree from Jain University, Bangalore and a Diploma in Graphic Designing from Dreamz Designz, Bangalore.
Rene Post
MANAGER – SALES
Rene Post
MANAGER – SALES
René is based in the Netherlands and works as Sales Manager with VNV. He has a background in computer science and internet entrepreneurship, with a MSc in Psychology from the University of Leiden (NL) and more recently an MSc in Blockchain / Digital Currencies from the University of Nicosia(CY). He initiated the first ‘internet forest’ in the Netherlands as an experimental offsetting project for IT-companies back in 2008. René went on to co-found The Green Web Foundation in 2011, where he still works as support manager today.
Sandeep S.
MANAGER – FINANCE AND ACCOUNTS
Sandeep S.
Manager – Finance and Accounts
Sandeep is responsible for managing our financial portfolio and is involved with operations of the firm. He is handling accounting & taxation matters at the firm and is also involved in managing books of accounts, inward and outward remittance, indirect and direct taxes, maintaining of assets and providing financial advice.
Prior to this, he has had 1-year work experience in the field of accounting and finance and has worked as an Audit & Accounts Assistant at CA Suraj Singri & Co. And also he has done one year of internship in Indirect Taxes field at Swamy Associates, Bangalore.
He holds a Masters in Commerce (Finance and Accounting) from Bangalore University, Bangalore.
Sandeep Roy Choudhury
DIRECTOR
Sandeep Roy Choudhury
Director
Sandeep is a co-founder at VNV Advisory Services, a social enterprise working with communities & climate change. He heads VNV’s ownership on low carbon social development projects such as sustainable agriculture, social forestry, clean cooking, rural energy access and waste management. His work encompasses over 4 million rural households across the South Asia region (India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal & Myanmar) and over 40 NGOs and implementation partners. He is recently involved in spearheading VNVs efforts towards rural water access, crop storage, agri-linkages and working with models of innovative financing through existing climate finance mechanisms to achieve scalability. He is on the board of numerous non – profits working on climate-related projects including Worldview International Foundation, Bangladesh Bondhu Foundation & Environment Protection Center Nepal.
Sandeep has over 16 years of industry experience and is a Salzburg global fellow. He is also a director at “Carbon Initiative forum “, a non-profit working on climate change awareness and co-chair of ICROA ( International Carbon Reduction & Offset Alliance).
Sandeep is a co-founder at VNV Advisory Services, a social enterprise working with communities & climate change. He heads VNV’s ownership on low carbon social development projects such as sustainable agriculture, social forestry, clean cooking, rural energy access and waste management.
