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Ajay Banga leads TIME’s 2024 list of influential climate leaders
Other Indian Americans in the list include Sandeep Nijhawan, CEO of Electra and Gaurav Sant, founder of Equatic and director of UCLA’s Institute for Carbon Management, who have been both recognised in the Innovators category.
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Sandeep Nijhawan, Ajay Banga and Gaurav Sant / Image- CeraWeek/ Wikipedia/ UCLA
Indian American president of the World Bank, Ajay Banga leads TIME's 2024 list of the Most Influential Climate Leaders, which highlights individuals at the nexus of finance and climate action, driving innovation and sustainable solutions to address the climate crisis.
Banga was chosen as the leader for weaving climate priorities into the mission of the World Bank. Since taking charge in 2023, he has focused on reforming international financial institutions to enhance their role in combating climate change.
His strategy emphasizes mobilizing private-sector investments, particularly for emerging economies, and scaling financial resources for climate resilience and mitigation. Under his leadership, the World Bank has significantly increased its capacity for climate-related lending, with a focus on decarbonizing and building climate resilience in vulnerable nations.
"We need to make the financials work in favor of climate solutions," Banga stated, highlighting the importance of aligning financial markets with global climate goals. He has advocated for innovative financing models, leveraging technology and private investments to make clean energy projects more appealing to investors.
Other Indian Americans in the list include Sandeep Nijhawan, CEO of Electra and Gaurav Sant, founder of Equatic and director of UCLA’s Institute for Carbon Management, who have been both recognised in the Innovators category.
Nijhawan has been featured for his contributions in decarbonizing the iron and steel industry, one of the largest contributors to global carbon emissions. He co-founded Colorado-based Electra in 2020 to transform the sector through a groundbreaking electrochemical process powered by renewable energy.
Electra's technology reduces emissions from iron production by up to 80 percent while halving production costs. In March 2024, the company unveiled a pilot plant capable of producing iron at a temperature as low as 60°C, a milestone in sustainable steelmaking. Nijhawan has also called for a global carbon price to encourage clean technology adoption, citing Europe's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) as a successful model.
"We need a global price on carbon to accelerate industrial decarbonization," he said, emphasizing the role of market-based solutions in driving climate action.
Sant has been recognized for his work in ocean-based carbon removal. He is developing technologies that capture carbon dioxide from seawater while producing green hydrogen, addressing both emissions reduction and clean energy needs.
Equatic’s upcoming facility in North America aims to capture 109,500 metric tons of CO2 annually while generating 3,600 metric tons of hydrogen. Sant advocates for scalable, market-driven climate solutions, describing climate mitigation as "vital, immediate, and not optional."
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