More About Me

Me and My DEER Friend

I define myself as a curious mind, a systems thinker, and an explorer of energy & sustainability. I’m fascinated by those spaces where ideas collide—where disciplines intersect, perspectives converge, and opposing forces find balance.

These tensions—between progress and sustainability, efficiency and resilience, and short-term gains and long-term impact—shape not only how I think but also how I act. They define the problems I work on and the questions I ask. And if you’ve ever tried to explain why a carbon tax matters at a dinner party, you already know that navigating these tensions isn’t just an intellectual exercise—it’s an endurance sport.

Before pursuing my master’s degree in the United States, I spent four years in Shanghai as a financial analyst at a solid waste disposal company. It was my job to analyze financial statements from hundreds of project companies, focusing especially on accounts receivable. Through wrestling with spreadsheets and risk assessments day in and day out, I gained a foundational understanding of subsidies and tariff mechanisms within the renewable energy sector. I realized this was a promising, constantly evolving market—and rather than remain in the comfort of a familiar role, I decided to take a risk, resign, and reinvent myself through further education. After all, I’ve never been one to wait around for the perfect answer; if the opportunity isn’t knocking, I’d rather build the door myself.

Once I arrived in the U.S., I found myself juggling a one-and-a-half-year master’s program with multiple projects that I either initiated or joined. (If you’re an HR professional reading this, yes, I can absolutely multitask.) I’ve always believed that failure isn’t a dead end—it’s the tuition we pay for insight. If you’re never wrong, you’re probably not learning fast enough. The more I explore, the more I realize that beneath every complex system lies a surprisingly similar logic: patterns repeat, constraints shape outcomes, and leverage points often hide in plain sight.

Somewhere along the way, I also ended up leading the organization of a high-level summit, bringing together senior government officials, industry stakeholders, and leading academics around a common table. (Turns out a few determined phone calls and emails can go a long way.) I didn’t wait for them to come to me; I actively sought them out, fueled by my conviction that genuine breakthroughs often occur at the intersection of policy, markets, and research. This experience not only sharpened my leadership and project management skills but also reminded me how crucial it is to bridge different perspectives if we want to create real impact.

Perhaps that’s why I gravitate toward non-fiction in my spare time. Books that seem unrelated to my work—from markets to technology to human behavior—often contain underlying principles that rhyme. Sometimes, the most powerful solutions come from unexpected places, and connecting ideas across disciplines is what turns problem-solving into an art.

That’s also why I consider myself a long-term thinker. The best short-term solution is rarely the best long-term one, and I’d rather build for endurance than optimize for immediacy. My journey—spanning energy, sustainability, and emerging technologies—reflects this philosophy. Whether co-authoring white papers or helping launch early-stage initiatives, I’ve worked at the edges of systems, learning how markets, grids, and networks evolve under pressure. I don’t have all the answers—maybe I never will—but if you, too, are drawn to asking the right questions, challenging assumptions, and building something that truly lasts, let’s connect. Together, we can navigate these tensions, turn risks into opportunities, and create meaningful impact over the long haul.

Just maybe don’t ask me to predict next year’s energy stock prices—I’m good, but not that good.