Participants at the SETI 2025 Annual Workshop

I am a quantitative economic geographer by orientation who is interested in evaluating environmental policies (energy, plastic, pollution and climate change) in heterogeneous contexts to identify strategies to make sure the policies are effective and equitable. As a Researcher at the Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, University of Calgary, I contribute on issues related to nexus between plastic pollution, urban governance and energy poverty in the Global South.

Brigitte Castañeda is an environmental economist and petroleum engineer who earned her Ph.D. in Economics from Universidad de los Andes in 2025. Her research focuses on just energy transitions, carbon pricing (especially Article 6 of the Paris Agreement), and the fiscal impacts of natural-resource royalties in developing countries. She has worked for EDF and the World Bank, and contributed to climate-finance analysis with GGGI, UNEP, and CODS. She is fluent in Spanish, English, and Russian, and enjoys cycling and dancing.

Carlos Chávez is a Professor (Profesor Titular) in the Facultad de Economía y Negocios at Universidad de Talca, Chile. He is an associated researcher at the Interdisciplinary Center for Aquaculture Research (INCAR), and a senior research fellow at the Environment for Development Initiative (EfD). He has a Master’s (2000) from Georgetown University and holds a Ph.D. (2000) in Resource Economics from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Carlos’s research focuses on designing and evaluating environmental and natural resource policies. He is particularly interested in the use of economic tools for the analysis of enforcement and compliance of environmental policies, the links between pollution control and energy transitions and the proper management of natural resources in the developing world.

César Salazar is Associate Professor in the Faculty of Business Management at Universidad del Bio-Bio, Chile, Adjunct Researcher at the Interdisciplinary Center for Aquaculture Research (INCAR)-FONDAP-CONICYT, and a Senior Research fellow at the Environment for Development Initiative (EfD). He obtained his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. His research and teaching are focused on empirical applications of development microeconomic theory to diverse problems related to the exploitation and management of natural resources economics, particularly in the fisheries, aquaculture and agriculture sectors. He also has research interests in problems associated with social capital, electoral participation and subjective well-being. He has written on the impact of climatic events on crop allocation and agricultural market performance, and the interaction among technology-input adoption, risk and agriculture insurance. He has also done research in the economics and management implications of share contracts in artisanal fisheries and transition into small-scale aquaculture. Furthermore, he has served as an economist consultant for several private and public institutions, such as the Government of Biobío Region, Production Development Corporation (CORFO), the Undersecretary of Fisheries and Aquaculture (SUBPESCA), Undersecretary of Regional Development (SUBDERE), National Institute of Agricultural Development (INDAP), National Service of Training and Employment (SENCE), Endesa (ENEL Group) among others. The results of his research have been published in several scientific journals including, among others, American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Food Policy, Marine Resource Economics, The Journal of Development Studies, The Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resources Economics, Journal of Environmental Management, Environment and Development Economics, Aquaculture Economics & Management.

Chizoba Obianuju Oranu is a researcher at the Environment for Development (EfD), Nigeria and an EfD early career fellow. Her main research interest area is Environment and Development Economics with a focus on Forestry, Energy, Climate Change, welfare and Gender.

Cristóbal Vásquez has a BA in Business and Administration from the University of Concepción (Chile), and has a MA in Business Management from the University of the Bio-Bio (Chile). Currently, he is a PhD Student in Economics and Information Management from the University of the Bio-Bio (Chile). He also works as Project Coordinator at the Sustainable Energy Transitions Initiative (SETI) collaborative and for the NENRE EfD Chile center. His research interests are Environmental and Natural Resource Economics, Waste Management, Regional Studies, and Spatial Econometrics.

I am an Assistant Professor of Economics at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR), Mumbai. I hold a Ph.D. in Economics from the Department of Economics, Delhi School of Economics. My research interests lie in Agricultural Economics, and Resource and Environmental Economics. My research uses modern applied econometric methods and micro-level data to address questions relating to the linkages between farm power pricing policies and groundwater irrigation, crop diversification, solar irrigation, water-energy-food nexus and agricultural productivity in India.

I am an Assistant Professor at the Department of Economics, and the Centre for Decision Research at the Leeds University Business School. I am a behavioural economist and I investigate the relationship between risk and behaviour using a range of tools, including economic experiments (and valuation experiments), around topics related to climate change, environmental hazards and the impacts of these on health.

Lunyu Xie is WuYu-Zhang Professor at Renmin University of China (RUC). She is also the Executive Dean of the Academy of Peace and Development. She obtained Bachelor degree (in 2003) and Master degree in Economics (in 2005) from Peking University, and Master degree in Statistics (in 2010) and Philosophy degree in Economics (2013) from UC Berkeley. Her research areas are in Development Economics, Environmental and Resource Economics, Energy Economics, and Applied Econometrics, ranging from poverty alleviation, green development in less developed areas, industry migration and air quality, electricity market reform and climate change, household energy consumption survey and research, etc. Her papers have been published in top academic journals, including Journal of Development Economics, Environmental and Resource Economics, Energy Economics, etc. She is currently an associated editor of China Economic Review.

Shefali Khanna is a Research Fellow in Energy Economics and Policy in the Department of Geography and Environment at the London School of Economics. She is an environmental economist and her research focuses on evaluating the effectiveness of climate and pollution mitigation policies and understanding the role of behaviour change in the transition to a net zero carbon economy. She was previously a Research Associate in Energy and Environmental Economics in the Business School at Imperial College London. She earned a PhD in Public Policy from Harvard University and has worked as a consultant for Energy for Growth Hub, the World Bank and the International Institute for Sustainable Development.

Shaun McRae is an Associate Professor of Economics in the Centro de Investigación Económica at ITAM in Mexico City. His research fields are energy economics, environmental economics, and industrial organization. His work focuses on wholesale and retail electricity market design, particularly how retail tariffs can achieve development and environmental objectives. Several of his recent papers study the electricity sector in Colombia, including work on the capacity payment mechanism, retail tariff design, and air conditioning adoption. He has also studied the behavior of consumers and firms in retail gasoline markets in Mexico and the United States. Shaun has a Ph.D. in Economics from Stanford University.

Dr. Stephen Luke Kirama is a Senior Lecturer and Senior Consultant at the Department of Applied Economics, University of Dar es Salaam, School of Economics. He’s also a Research Fellow at the Environmental for Development Tanzania (EfDT) Centre. With over 15 years of experience, Dr. Kirama has expertise in ¹: – *Energy Economics*: Natural gas, oil, electricity, and renewable energy transitions – *Environmental and Natural Resources Economics*: Wildlife, forest, and marine conservation – *Public Sector Economics*: Budgeting, taxation, and public spending – *Health Economics*: Healthcare financing and economic evaluation – *Transport Economics*: Roadway pricing, logistics, and value for money analysis Dr. Kirama has worked with various organizations, including USAID, SIDA, DfID, and the World Bank, on projects such as: – *Optimal Park Pricing*: Conducted research on national parks in Tanzania, Kenya, and South Africa – *Biofuel Policy Framework*: Developed a policy framework for Tanzania’s biofuel industry – *Rural Electrification*: Evaluated the impact of rural electrification projects in Tanzania Notable achievements include ¹: – *Fellowship Award*: Recipient of the Brown University Fellowship Award in 2009 – *Panel Discussions*: Participated in panel discussions on renewable energy roll-out in Africa and energy transitions – *Research Publications*: Published research papers on energy economics, environmental economics, and health economics.

Sudatta Ray is an Assistant Professor at the Geography Department at National University of Singapore. She uses a range of methods to study the wide-ranging impacts of the clean energy transition unfurling across developing countries. While the clean energy transition is centered on the accelerated phase-out of carbon emissions, we have yet to unleash its capacity to counter climate risks and build resilience. Sudatta focus on identifying such opportunities, measuring their economic and environmental trade-offs, and maximizing their impacts for marginalized communities across the global south. Sudatta received her PhD from the Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources (E-IPER) at Stanford University in 2021.

Dr. Timothy King Avordeh Senior Education & Energy Policy Expert | UN Association Ghana SG | CEO, Madina Centre for Education Policy PhD sustainable energy engineer driving Ghana’s sustainable transition. As UPSA Research Fellow, pioneered compliance frameworks boosting research efficiency by 15%. Led PURC’s nationwide study on electricity tariff structures and consumer payment behavior, deploying IoT-enabled smart meters to improve billing accuracy by 18%, enhancing fairness for 2M+ Ghanaian households. Authored 20+ peer-reviewed publications bridging energy governance and financial engineering (MScFE, Certified Quantitative Risk Manager). Advises policymakers while empowering 300+ professionals through data analytics training. Merges technical rigor (MSc Mathematics) with grassroots leadership as educator and UN advocate for equitable development.

Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematical Engineering at Universidad de La Frontera in Temuco, Chile. I obtained my Ph. D. in Mathematics in the area of Optimization at the Humboldt University of Berlin. For several years, I have been participating in EfD as part of the Research Nucleus on Environmental and Natural Resource Economics in Chile. I have also been actively involved in the SETI-local team. My research has been focused on the areas of control of air pollution, including the adoption of efficient technologies for energy use at household levels.

Zin Nwe Win is the Country Manager for IPA Sierra Leone and Liberia. Since 2017, she supervised and implemented multiple research projects at IPA Myanmar, including an RCT study on equitable off-grid energy access and panel agriculture studies. She also led a grant project as the primary investigator, measuring women’s intrahousehold bargaining power and clean energy adoption. She joined IPA Sierra Leone in mid-2024 as an Associate Research Manager, overseeing multiple research projects. Prior to IPA, she interned with Plan International Myanmar on a nutrition assessment. She holds a Master’s in Migration and Development Studies from SOAS, University of London and a Bachelor’s in Social Sciences from Chiang Mai University, Thailand.