For students
World-class training
Impact Lab Fellows receive training from Oxford Faculty, experienced guest speakers, and industry mentors. An interactive 17-week programme helps students to develop a deeper understanding of the SDGs and the skills needed to work collaboratively to advance them. It covers values-based leadership, research for impact, and essential practical skills needed to turn academic insight into real-world change in partnership with business.
Field Lab placement
The programme culminates in a four-week research project at a partner-specific Field Lab at the start of the summer vacation. Students work in teams, engaging with stakeholders and applying research methods to develop project proposals.
Pathway to impact
Students engage with business partners throughout the programme, receiving industry insight and business knowledge that will help to shape their proposals. Successful projects have a direct pathway to impact, leading to real change through partner organisations.
What’s involved
Fellows commit 4 hours per week during Hilary and Trinity terms, three full-day events, and usually five weeks at the start of the summer vacation. Fellows receive a stipend and significant investment in their education.
- Weekly 2.5-hour Lab workshops during Hilary and Trinity terms
- Leadership development centring on values, character, and purpose
- Seminars from industry leaders and sustainable development experts
- Individual mentoring
- 4-week summer placement, or equivalent, at a partner-specific Field Lab
2022/23 Fellows
BMW Programme

Abhishek Gupta
Abhishek Gupta
Abhishek is from New Delhi India. After working for McKinsey & Company for five and a half years he came to Oxford to pursue his MBA. Abhishek is passionate about the intersection of sustainability, technology and consumer preferences. Abhishek co-founded his NGO We Clothe Them in 2017, the NGO has operated in 5 cities in India and has helped 7000+ people with clothing. He is also the author of the first photo-poetry book in India called Iridescence.

Artie (Tak) Lam
Artie (Tak) Lam
Artie is an Oxford PPE graduate and a Rhodes Scholar from Hong Kong currently pursuing an MSc in Migration Studies. He previously led an education non-profit for underprivileged students in Hong Kong and is interested in UK-China relations. He is interested in how vocational training and immigration policies can improve communities’ prospects. He is also passionate about the Hong Kong diaspora in the UK and runs a community group for Hong Kong BN(O) immigrants in Oxfordshire.

Aurona Sarker
Aurona Sarker
Aurona is a young sustainability professional from Bangladesh, currently studying for an MSc in Sustainability, Enterprise and the Environment. Before joining the MSc programme, she worked as Business Strategy Analyst at Ralph Lauren, where she worked on corporate and supply chain environmental sustainability strategy and managed several projects in Bangladesh and India. She also worked with a mental health organisation in Bangladesh and developed intervention projects to provide mental healthcare to underprivileged and marginalised groups. After Oxford, she intends to work in the private sector and leverage the power of businesses to accelerate the transition to a net-zero future.

Denise Kohlhepp
Denise Kohlhepp
Denise is currently pursuing a DPhil in Experimental Psychology. Founded on her passion for SDGs, especially health, wellbeing and quality education, she investigates the causal mechanisms of physical activity on cognition and brain health. As ambassador for the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, she follows her interests in public engagement and policy. Denise previously obtained a Master’s in Psychology and Education and the BPS accreditation at the University of Cambridge. She has also gained experience as a trained teacher, head of department and athletics coach in a boarding school and tutor for Continuing Education at the University of Oxford.

Emmanuel Uzim
Emmanuel Uzim
Emmanuel is a currently studying an MSc in Energy Systems at the Department of Engineering Science. He is an energy expert with more than three years of experience working for major energy firms in Africa. He was recently the Head of Digital Tools and Innovation at Bisedge Limited, a green logistics firm. At Bisedge, he coordinated with the management team to deploy electric vehicles (forklifts) successfully and enable a sustainable transition to clean intra-logistics solutions for extensive networks of manufacturing firms in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Farida Tukur
Farida Tukur
Farida is currently pursuing a Master of Public Policy at the University of Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government. She has 16 years of work experience as a pharmacist at the Federal Ministry of Health in Nigeria. Before coming to Oxford, she was the Ministry’s Head of Narcotics and Drug Abuse and was responsible for promoting medical access to narcotic medicines while preventing their diversion to illicit use. She has worked with several national and international agencies to develop and implement policies and guidelines to improve healthcare delivery in Nigeria.

Jeevun Grewal
Jeevun Grewal
Jeevun is currently reading for a DPhil in Clinical Neurosciences, within the Sir Jules Thorn Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute (SCNi), at the University of Oxford. He recently completed an MSc within the Department of Experimental Psychology where he developed an interest in digitally delivered sleep/circadian behavioural interventions. His DPhil is an extension of this interest, investigating behaviour-based interventions for insomnia. He is passionate about improving health and wellbeing, and he is therefore particularly excited about working towards the UN’s third Sustainable Development Goal “Good Health and Well-being”, as part of the Oxford SDG Impact Lab BMW Fellowship.

Joanna (Jo Jo) Yi Su
Joanna (Jo Jo) Yi Su
Joanna is passionate about sustainable development and hopes to bridge the gap between government and the private sector in the future. She is from mainland China, and is currently pursuing a Master of Public Policy at the Blavatnik School of Government. She has previously worked with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) where she was responsible for launching its inaugural AI Governance Agenda for Youth. She also worked extensively on SDG 12: Responsible Production and Consumption with United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Paris, France

Justin Hayden
Justin Hayden
Justin is a DPhil Student in the Chemistry department under the SCG centre for excellent scholarship. His project is focused on the synthesis of renewable and biodegradable polymers furthering the development towards a circular plastics economy. He is passionate about applying new technologies to tackle sustainability issues and the scale-up of academic research into industrially relevant contexts. Outside of his work, Justin is President of the Oxford University Triathlon Club and promotes being active to facilitate health and wellbeing within the community.

Marcel Seger
Marcel Seger
As a DPhil student in Geography and the Environment, Marcel is researching how digital technologies can support individuals in making sustainable consumption choices. In particular, he is interested in developing digital solutions that facilitate the transition to a circular economy among consumers and businesses. Before coming to Oxford, Marcel studied Industrial Engineering at the Technical University of Munich, Germany, in addition to earning an honours degree in Technology Management from the CDTM. Professionally, Marcel gained relevant work experience at Siemens Technology Accelerator, Frischepost, an early-stage e-Commerce start-up and Acton Capital, an early-growth Venture Capital Fund.

Priya Sajjad
Priya Sajjad
Priya is a third-year DPhil student reading Anthropology. For her doctoral research, she is exploring Covid-19 policies and state-led responses and their impact on existing inequities in Pakistan’s context. Prior to this she completed her MPhil in Social Anthropology. During her time in Oxford, Priya worked as a research assistant at the Oxford Martin School and Saïd Business School on projects related to planetary health and climate change. The research experience contributed to her interest in how corporate decisions can be embedded in SDGs.

Rafi Ahmed
Rafi Ahmed
Rafi is currently doing an MPhil in Development Studies at the University of Oxford. Prior to this, Rafi studied for an undergraduate degree in Psychological and Behavioural Science at the London School of Economics. Apart from his studies, Rafi has worked in NGOs, start-ups and pro-bono organisations to champion sustainability causes and deepen community engagement.

Renee Pereyra-Elias
Renee Pereyra-Elias
Reneé Pereyra-Elías graduated in Medicine from Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas (Academic excellence award). Due to his interest in studying and reducing social inequalities in health, he completed an MSc in Epidemiologic Research (Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia) and an MSc in Social Epidemiology (University College London), both with distinction. He has worked as a clinician, as a lecturer in medical statistics and epidemiology, and as a healthcare and public health consultant for the Pan American Health Organization (WHO Office in the Americas) and the Peruvian government. He is currently in the final year of a DPhil in Population Health at the University of Oxford.

Simone Moriconi
Simone Moriconi
Simone is a DPhil candidate in Engineering Science at the University of Oxford, driving advancements in super precise and accurate metrology instruments for X-ray mirrors used in particle accelerators. He holds a BSc(hons) degree in Electronic Engineering and he is proficient in data analysis, problem-solving, project management, and Python programming. He is passionate about motorsport, automotives, politics, entrepreneurship and the application of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Tilmann Herchenröder
Tilmann Herchenröder
Originally from Germany, Tilmann is currently an MSc student in Sustainability, Enterprise and the Environment at the Smith School where he is applying his background in empirical economics to questions around decarbonisation and green jobs. Before Oxford, Tilmann worked on environmental sustainability in industry for a global consultancy, where he got passionate about supply-chain decarbonisation: a huge challenge that will need to be resolved to reach net-zero.

William Wallock
William Wallock
William is a Water Science & Policy MSc student from the United States. He previously worked with the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the Center for Water Security and Cooperation (CWSC) on issues related to climate adaptation and water affordability. His research is now focused on the use of novel financial tools to fund water infrastructure. He holds degrees in Finance (BA) and Plan II Honors (BBA) from the University of Texas at Austin. At Oxford, he is involved with his college’s boat club, Oxford Net Zero, and The Oxford Union.
eJh Programme

Alexander Brunner
Alexander Brunner
Alexander is an MPhil Candidate in Development Studies. Previously, he worked at Dentons Global Advisors (DGA), a strategic consultancy formerly under U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. In Fall 2020, Alexander organised President-elect Joe Biden’s campaign outreach and fundraising in the UK. Alexander previously served as an advisor to Delta Airlines on their governance and sustainability issues. Alexander is a MA Honours graduate from the University of St Andrews and studied abroad at the National University of Singapore (NUS). Outside of school, Alex is a trustee at Uniformed, a nonprofit promoting school uniform recycling.

Allison Osterberg
Allison Osterberg
Ally is an MSc student in the Latin American Studies program. She previously graduated from the University of Richmond where she studied Leadership and Latin American Studies. Her research focuses on hunger inequalities in Guatemala. She has experience studying the role of sustainability regulations in accounting standards and leading wilderness trips worldwide.

Alp Katalan
Alp Katalan
Alp is currently studying an MSc in Sustainability, Enterprise and the Environment at the Oxford Smith School. He has over 5 years of experience working in climate and sustainability projects, having previously worked at the Carbon Trust, a London-based climate consultancy, where he conducted corporate carbon footprints and supported climate tech start-ups to scale. Prior to that he had short stints at a climate policy think tank and financial data research firm.

Amy Booth
Amy Booth
Amy is a qualified medical doctor, currently doing a DPhil at Oxford on a Rhodes Scholarship. Her research is focused on bringing industry and policy stakeholders together to reduce the climate change impact of the pharmaceutical supply chain. She previously worked with the World Health Organisation looking at the relationship between the environment and anti-microbial resistance. Amy sits on the board of trustees and runs a scholarship programme for high-school students in South Africa. She is an associate fellow of the Royal Commonwealth Society and part of the first cohort of the UK Young Academy.

Anvita Ramachandran
Anvita Ramachandran
Anvita is an MPhil candidate in Development Studies at the Oxford Department of International Development. In her master’s research, she studies why migrant households might experience decreases in subjective well-being despite being materially better-off than non-migrants. Before joining Oxford, Anvita studied at the University of Chicago for a BA in Economics and a BSc in Statistics. Alongside her education, she has worked as a research assistant with the Young Lives study in Oxford and the Centre for the Economics of Human Development in Chicago, studying the link between childhood skill development and various forms of inequality.

Auraine Swannell
Auraine Swannell
Auriane is a master’s student in the Interdisciplinary Centre for Conservation Science, where she researches the impacts of agricultural policy on biodiversity, climate and health, focusing on Sri Lanka as a case study. Prior to her master’s, Auriane studied Biology at undergraduate level at Oxford, with her outstanding academic results culminating in the award of the prestigious Gibbs Proxime Prize. Aside from academia, Auriane is a co-founder of OxPods, a new Oxford University podcast in which students interview their professors. She is also treasurer of the Oxford Sustainable Business and Entrepreneurship Society. Auriane intends to pursue a career in consulting after a successful internship last summer with Oliver Wyman, where she contributed to a climate project for a major bank.

Emma Schneck
Emma Schneck
Emma is currently studying the MSc in Nature, Society, and Environmental Governance at Oxford’s School of Geography and the Environment. Growing up on the small island of Kaua’i, Hawai’i inspired Emma’s passion for sustainability and opened her eyes to the negative and positive effects tourism can have on society and the natural world. Her desire to further explore the interactions of travel, culture, and the environment led her to work at a culturally-oriented travel start-up based in Casablanca, Morocco as last year’s MENAR fellow. As an avid traveler, Emma is particularly interested creating meaningful policy solutions that mitigate the extractive nature of tourism and promotes a more equitable relationship between the industry and local communities.

Emma Wiggins
Emma Wiggins
Emma is studying a Masters of Philosophy in Law at Oxford. Her research considers law and public policy governing the dissemination of public information on digital platforms, in light of its ability to shape political opinion in democracies. Prior to commencing her graduate studies Emma worked as a law graduate at King & Wood Mallesons global law firm and at the Australian Parliament. Emma has also worked in tourism in the Great Barrier Reef.

Hannah Zamor
Hannah Zamor
Hannah is in her final year of the MPhil Development Studies program. Her academic areas of interest include technology and industrialization, agriculture, and empowerment. She has had experience working in the public, nonprofit, and NGO sectors. Hannah’s spent time working in the US Congress, advocacy and lobbying groups for international development, development for defense organizations, philanthropy, and various consultation groups. She brings with her a thoughtfulness in engaging with communities, and a pragmatic approach to collaborating with peers and clients to find sustainable solutions.

Jill Gardener
Jill Gardener
Jill is an MSc Refugee and Forced Migration Studies candidate. Her research explores the concepts of truth, believability and storytelling within asylum interviews. Jill holds a BA in International Relations and Development from the University of Sussex and has studied abroad in Beijing. Her professional experience includes working in refugee camps across Europe, establishing and directing a language school, working for several grassroots and national NGOs, working as a programme manager and as a social researcher. Jill is passionate about the power of local communities in fostering sustainable change and has assisted projects including local bicycle repair workshops and permaculture/eco-building courses.

Mia Arnold
Mia Arnold
Mia is a current MBA student at Oxford Saïd Business School. Prior to pursuing her MBA, Mia worked as a fundraiser at the United Nations Foundation in Washington, DC. In her role, Mia worked with high-net-worth individuals and corporations to strategize and execute partnerships with the United Nations. Mia is passionate about corporate sustainability and using public-private partnerships to advance climate work.

Pranav Baskar
Pranav Baskar
Pranav is a Clarendon Scholar at the University of Oxford pursuing an MPhil in Development Studies. Before coming to Oxford, Pranav worked as a journalist at National Public Radio, covering global health and development. Later, at The Boston Globe, he reported on Congress. Pranav holds a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Political Science from Northwestern University.

Sia Kwimbere
Sia Kwimbere
Sia is studying for the Master of Business Administration at Saïd Business School as an AfOx scholar. She is passionate about the economic growth and development of her country, Tanzania, and her continent. She has contributed to this through strategy and development consulting with Dalberg Advisors, supporting clients in government, development institutions, and the private sector to achieve their development objectives. Her consulting project experience has employed a gender and climate lens throughout, and she had the opportunity to work on a project that sought to leverage the hospitality and tourism industry for human and economic development in an East African country. In the future, she hopes to launch and run successful social enterprises in Tanzania’s hospitality and tourism sector.

Stella Elgood Field
Stella Elgood Field
Stella is an MPhil candidate in Development Studies at Oxford’s Department of International Development. Currently, her research focuses on the intersection of gender discourse, women’s empowerment, and development interventions in the fishing and aquaculture sector in Zambia. Previously, Stella has contributed to a variety of research projects addressing gender and economic inequalities across informal settlements and fishing communities in Kenya, Tanzania, Madagascar, Indonesia, and Namibia. Before coming to Oxford, Stella studied Human Geography and the Environment at the University of York, where her studies guided her towards feminist development thought.

Tarana Ranjan
Tarana Ranjan
Tarana is a MSc Global Governance and Diplomacy Student with the International Development Department at the University of Oxford. Accordingly, Tarana is deeply interested in how international organizations and businesses can collaborate toward implementing more sustainable practices globally. Before coming to Oxford, Tarana briefly worked for the National Democratic Institute as a project assistant on the institute’s Southern and East Africa team in Washington, D.C. Prior to that, Tarana attended the George Washington University and received a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Affairs with concentrations in conflict resolution and security policy, and a minor in public health.

Tassilo von Mueller
Tassilo von Mueller
Tassilo is a PhD student in aerospace engineering working closely with Rolls Royce to improve the efficiency of gas turbines. Prior to Oxford, Tassilo received his BSc in mechanical engineering from Princeton University. Tassilo is passionate about developing clean energy for the future. He intends to use his engineering skills to contribute to solving the climate crisis with technological solutions. The SDG is an exciting opportunity to apply those skills as well as to learn how to cooperate with other teams to apply solutions at different scales.

Tyler Pugh
Tyler Pugh
Tyler is a current MPhil student in Evidence-Based Social Intervention and Policy Evaluation. His work within the department has specifically centered around sexual violence survivors and policy optimization to ensure support in collegiate spaces. Previously, Tyler studied Industrial and Systems Engineering, working to understand how simulation modeling and data could impact systems that perpetuate racism, homophobia, and sexism in fields such as healthcare or engineering.

Zubin Deyal
Zubin Deyal
Zubin is interested in sustainability, especially in the tourism industry as it is the main economic driver of his small island developing home in the Caribbean. He has tried to facilitate sustainable development through his work as an economist at the IDB in Barbados, a data analyst at the Ministry of Tourism in Trinidad, and a consultant at the disruptive incubator, FUTUREBarbados. He hopes to employ his current Masters in Development Economics and his MBA to help improve sustainability, especially in his home and tourist-reliant states.
Rosberg Programme

John Chua
John Chua
John is a Master of Public Policy student at the Blavatnik School of Government. He is interested in how frontier technologies can be equitably adapted, deployed and scaled for sustainable urban development and climate resilience. He gained exposure to the challenges and opportunities in this space through previous internships at the United Nations and within government. He is excited to participate in the SDG Impact Lab Fellowship, working with Climeworks to understand the policy frameworks, standards and market incentives that underpin the green transition.

Nishant Chauhan
Nishant Chauhan
Nishant is reading for a DPhil at the Department of Earth Sciences, and he’s a Clarendon Scholar at St. John’s College. His research focuses on the biogeochemistry of a marine plankton species called Coccolithophores. He aims to understand the effect of ocean acidification on these organisms. Nishant is passionate about understanding how humans impact the natural ecosystem. He is interested in driving real-world changes to stop further pollution and move towards a sustainable society. Nishant is immensely excited to be working with The Ocean Cleanup and Rosberg Philanthropies. Environmental protection and ecology lie at the heart of a sustainable future, and cleaning plastic from the oceans is a huge step forward in driving positive change and inspiring the world to do better.

Varun Shankar
Varun Shankar
Varun is passionate about enabling the transition to equitable low-carbon mobility and sustainable energy. He is reading for a DPhil in Engineering Science on a Rhodes Scholarship from Zambia. His work reviews the impact of renewable biofuel uptake on emissions legislation. Previously, he worked on battery supply chain analysis and the design and development of net zero pathways. He is excited to be a Fellow at the Oxford Impact Lab and focus on the implementation of the SDGs through working with an industry partner. He is keen to use the life cycle assessment approach to ensure any implementable action is sustainable in the short- and long-term. He is looking forward to being part of this fellowship and contributing to the transport industry’s efforts to reduce its GHG emissions.
2021/22 Fellows

Bessie O'Dell
Bessie O'Dell
Bessie is a DPhil student in the Oxford Precision Psychiatry Lab (OxPPL) and Neuroscience, Ethics and Society group (NEUROSEC), where her research examines the bioethics of using Artificial Intelligence for the treatment of mental health disorders. As well as neuroscience, she has studied degrees in law and criminology at UCL, Yale, and the University of Cambridge.
She also has a particular interest in policy, and works as a Seminar Leader for the Master of Public Policy (MPP) programme at the Blavatnik School of Government.

Beto (Albert) Wetter
Beto (Albert) Wetter
Beto is from San Mateo, California and is pursuing an MPhil in History. Beto’s academic interests and professional aspirations stemmed from a longheld interest in environmental sustainability. After graduating from Bowdoin College with a BA in History with Honors, he witnessed the power of cross-collaboration between businesses and governments while helping with San Mateo County’s COVID19 testing and mass vaccination programs.
As an aspiring environmental policy professional interested in corporate-governmental relations, Beto anticipates the opportunities the Oxford SDG Impact Lab offers and cannot wait to collaborate with the other trailblazing Sustainability Leadership & Research Fellows in the inaugural cohort.

Christine Cavallo
Christine Cavallo
Christine is a masters student in the new Sustainability, Enterprise and the Environment program. Prior to Oxford, her work experience included think tank research on ecological security and fast-paced start ups, which has inspired her to find an intersection between the two by advancing environmental and ecological innovations in the private sector.
Originally from Orlando, Florida, Christine has also competed for the U.S. National Rowing Team and pursued the 2020 Olympic team before attending Oxford

Desmond Okumbor
Desmond Okumbor
Desmond is an MSc student in Politics Research at Trinity College, Oxford. Funded by the Economic and Social Science Research Council (ESRC), Desmond examines how corruption undermines citizens support and satisfaction with democracy and elites’ interaction.
His previous research on corruption was presented at the 2021 PSA Annual Conference. Before joining the University of Oxford, Desmond studied at the University of Glasgow where he graduated with First-Class Honours in Politics.
Along with his studies, he worked as an analyst at Blackbaud, was a member of the European Youth Parliament and interned at the UK Civil Service

Diego Arancibia
Diego Arancibia
Diego was born in Bolivia. He studied engineering at Universidad Catolica Boliviana and energy systems at Northeastern University as a Fulbright Scholar. Diego is the cofounder and CEO of Tu Beca Bolivia (TBB), an NGO focused education and entrepreneurship. TBB has tutored over 4,500 young Bolivians, incubated over 100 ideas, and accelerated 20 startups.
Diego is also Investment Analyst at SC Ángeles, the first Angel Investment firm in Bolivia; and CEO of PasanaQ, a fintech focused on collaborative savings. Diego is studying a double degree (MPP+MBA) at Oxford as a Pershing Square Scholar.

Irene Mackie
Irene Mackie
Irene holds an undergraduate degree in Art History and English from the University of St Andrews and is currently undertaking an MSt in World Literatures. She is especially passionate about using interdisciplinarity to find creative and impactful responses to the challenges set out by the SDGs and is excited by the opportunity to work from a variety of perspectives at the Lab. She has extensive experience taking part in community-based projects intended to tackle social inequalities and believes in the power of stories and interpersonal connection in the pursuit of a more equitable, peaceful, and climate conscious world.

Jasmine Bacchus
Jasmine Bacchus
Jasmine is an MSc student at the Oxford Internet Institute pursuing a degree in Social Science of the Internet. Her research interests include luxury fashion, esports, and game theory.
Before Oxford, Jasmine received national recognition for her work diversifying the fashion industry, being named an inaugural Virgil Abloh “Post-Modern” Scholar and Gucci Changemaker. She is excited to bring her experiences from the fashion world to the travel industry! Outside of the classroom, you can find Jasmine working with Oxford Entrepreneurs on creating programming for female founders at Oxford. Jasmine also holds a bachelor’s degree in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics from Brown University.

Laura Ballerini
Laura Ballerini
Laura holds a BSc in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) from the Vrije Universiteit
Amsterdam. She is currently reading for the MPhil in Development Studies at the University of Oxford and she is a Dahrendorf Scholar at St Antony’s College. Her research focuses on entrepreneurship models of healthcare delivery in resource-constrained areas in Kenya.
Aside from her academic career, Laura has also worked as a business consultant, data analyst, teaching assistant, and journalist. Her dream is to become a foreign correspondent and researcher specialized in global health and conflicts in subSaharan Africa.

Mona Murad
Mona Murad
Mona is currently studying for a masters in Public Policy at Oxford University. Before coming to Oxford Mona spent five years working as a British civil servant, most recently in the Cabinet Office. Mona co-founded the Cabinet Office Operation Blackbird, a social justice transition taskforce to embed public sector equality into governmental decision making. Mona holds an undergraduate degree in International Relations & History from the University of Leicester and has a level 6 in British Sign Language.

Puninda Thind
Puninda Thind
Puninda is deeply committed to building a sustainable, prosperous, and equitable future. Currently, she is a graduate student in the MSc Sustainability, Enterprise, and Environment program at the University of Oxford. Puninda brings over seven years of experience working across the real estate investment, NGO, and sustainability consulting spaces. She has supported numerous organisations across various sectors with the development of sustainability programming and ESG disclosures.
Puninda is active in her local community as a Global Shaper, an initiative of the World Economic Forum. She is also a member of the board of directors of youth-led environmental organizations, Threading Change and Leading Change Canada.

Rachel Wibberley
Rachel Wibberley
Rachel is an MSc candidate in Global Governance and Diplomacy at the University of Oxford and a youth advocate for gender equality, working on issues of climate change and digital diplomacy. She serves as a Trustee of the National Council of Women and has worked as a Policy Analyst and as a Communications Officer in the Cabinet Office and the Ministry of Defence.
Rachel also serves as a Youth Delegate to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, where she prioritises the empowerment of women and girls in global environmental governance. Rachel holds a first class degree from King’s College London, where she produced the best overall undergraduate dissertation (2020), focussing on how surveillance practices impact real-word, behavioural change.

Rafael Suchy
Rafael Suchy
Rafael is a DPhil student in Economics, researching topics within Behavioural Economics. He is particularly interested in the psychological foundations of individual decision-making and experimental methods, blending theoretical modelling with empirical validation.
Before joining the University of Oxford, Rafael studied at the University of Bonn and at the University of California, Berkeley. He is passionate about the interplay of behavioural change and technological innovation to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, promoting a sustainable future, empowering society, and ensuring a prosperous, self-determined life for everyone.

Rosaria
Rosaria
Rosaria is an interdisciplinary biologist passionate about achieving Zero Hunger SDG through research, development, and enterprise. She is trained in biotechnology and molecular medicine and is pursuing a doctoral degree at the Biology Department of the University of Oxford. Her thesis investigates the role of biodiversity in underpinning ecosystem services vital for human well-being to accomplish conservation alongside food security.
Her professional experiences include being an entrepreneurial fellow of Oxford Foundry, a business analyst of Oxford Cancer Analytics, a research assistant for Oxford SoGE’s project that equips academia to engage in biodiversity policy, and leading a multi-year partnership between the UK and Indonesia for a sustainable economy in Wallacea.

Ruby-Anne Birin
Ruby-Anne Birin
Ruby-Anne Birin is a DPhil Archaeological Science student interested in how people move across space through time. Prior to Oxford, Ruby-Anne completed her Undergraduate degree in Geography and Archaeology at the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa. Ruby-Anne’s experiences in university, on archaeological excavations and international travel have given her a unique perspective of how people
interact with heritage.
Ruby-Anne believes that it is through understanding the deep time and heritage associated with landscapes that we can develop an appreciation for a sustainable future. Ruby-Anne hopes to bring this appreciation, along with enthusiasm for experiential learning, to the SDG Impact Lab.

Ryleen Balawanth
Ryleen Balawanth
Ryleen has an academic background in business and supply chain management and an interest in addressing complex social challenges through creative problem solving. Ryleen has managed various projects including improving rail-to-port supply chain efficiency in the private sector to implementing the national malaria elimination plan in South Africa.. Improving health, environment, and socio-economic challenges through system-wide efficiencies are career focuses, specifically in the global development sector which seeks to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Ryleen is currently pursuing a MSc in Sustainability, Enterprise and the Environment at Oxford University and wishes to focus the next phase of her career addressing climate and environmental challenges facing the world today.

Sekoah Kwon-Salkin
Sekoah Kwon-Salkin
Sekoah is an MPhil Candidate in Development Studies at the Oxford Department of International Development. Her thesis concerns the development of the tourism economy in the renowned travel destination of Bali, Indonesia. Utilizing the pandemic as a temporal moment that has placed the tourism-based economy of Bali at an almost complete standstill, Sekoah investigates how Bali became so deeply reliant on tourism and presents a diversity of stakeholder perspectives on the Balinese tourism industry. In her spare time, Sekoah is a passionate surfer, yoga facilitator, and enjoys traveling to new destinations.

Stephanie Cheung
Stephanie Cheung
Stephanie believes in the power of community and has focused her career on community engagement and development in the urban environment. She joined the social enterprise Urban Discovery upon graduation and later co-founded the NGO iDiscover Asia. She facilitated community-led cultural mapping and storytelling projects in South East Asia, building stronger communities by boosting their cultural capital, amplifying local voice, and creating dialogues. Stephanie also worked on wider urban projects related to design thinking, social innovation, community engagement, public space, and age-friendly
community. Stephanie is pursuing the Master of Public Policy at the Blavatnik School of Government.

Varun Shankar
Varun Shankar
Varun is passionate about enabling the transition to a low carbon economy in the transportation sector. He is a Rhodes Scholar from Zambia and currently a DPhil candidate in the Department of Engineering Science. His work reviews the emissions legislation with a focus on the uptake of renewable fuels. He is excited to be a Fellow at the Impact Lab and focus on the implementation of the SDGs through working with an industry partner. He is keen to use the life cycle analysis approach to ensure any implementable action is sustainable in the short- and long-term. He is looking forward to being part of this fellowship and collectively work on showing the importance of sustainable tourism.

Victoria Shi
Victoria Shi
Vicky began her career in New York at a brand strategy consultancy. After taking every opportunity to travel while working, she gave into her craving to experience the world beyond vacation days and left her job to backpack across Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand. Learning to travel slowly and observing the double-edged effects of tourism sparked her interest in ethical travel. Since then, Vicky has freelanced in brand and innovation consulting, including for travel clients that range from early-stage start-ups to Airbnb. She’s pursuing her MBA at Oxford to build a career at the intersection of social impact, tourism, and business – and turn her passion for travel into purposeful action.

Zoe Woods
Zoe Woods
Zoe is a Brit born in Hong Kong, brought up in Bermuda, and currently calling Canada home. Her global adventures have cultivated a deep love for the amazing diversity on this planet and a determination to play a role in solving some of our biggest, shared challenges. Zoe believes that solutions cannot be found without collaboration between sectors and has come to Oxford to hopefully cultivate that bridge-building. Zoe spent the last seven years connecting the dots at Deloitte in a career that has spanned consulting, research, policy, and brand positioning.
Away from her laptop, you can find her adventuring outdoors, planning her next DIY project, or making another cup of tea.
Apply to be a Fellow
Applications for 2022/23 will open in October 2023. Fellows must be postgraduate students at the University of Oxford. Information about events and the application process will be available on Lab social media and the website.
Seminars this term
Our seminar series is open to all current students, but follow our events page and social media for events that are open to all.