My Career in International Clean Energy Development Began at EESI | Article

Yi Xu

I knew from a young age that I wanted to work in international development to help people live a better life, so I majored in political sciences and economics. However, during college, I was fascinated by how northern European countries had developed renewable energy to combat climate change and continue economic growth. After that, I decided to build my career around promoting clean energy development in the United States and around the world. Of course, the ideal place to start such a career is in Washington, D.C.—the policy center of the country.

Landing a good job in Washington, D.C., is challenging—everyone is ambitious, competitive, and passionate about their career. As a foreigner, I had even fewer options to choose from, which made me more anxious. Luckily, in the summer of 2014, just after graduating from college, I landed an internship at EESI, which started my career in the energy sector.

As an EESI policy intern, I was absorbing knowledge on energy- and climate-related policies. Helping develop a weekly newsletter on climate change issues helped me stay on top of what was happening, and drafting articles enriched my knowledge on certain policy topics—including the polarized political views on the 2014 Clean Power Plan, the positive impacts of President Obama’s Climate Change Initiative on the resilience of local communities, and the critical discussions among world leaders at the 2014 U.N. Climate Summit in New York.

Furthermore, the staff and other interns at EESI were very nice to work with. I have a lot of great memories helping organize Congressional briefings and the Clean Energy EXPO. We also shared laughter at happy hours, lunches, and holiday parties. It made my transition from college life to Washington, D.C., go more smoothly.

Meanwhile, the internship also made me recognize my limited knowledge about the energy sector. How can we mobilize financing for clean energy? What are the best ways to promote energy efficiency? As I continued to ponder these questions, I decided to pursue a Master’s degree at Johns Hopkins University, which helped me land my current job at the Energy Global Practice of the World Bank.

The World Bank's Energy Global Practice divides units by region, and I am part of the Southern and East Africa operations team, focusing on policy development and investments that enable renewable energy expansion in the region. Some example projects include directly financing solar generation projects in the Central African Republic, providing payment guarantees to privately-financed solar farms in Zambia, supporting the development of renewable energy strategies for Tanzania, and investing in transmission line infrastructure across the Southern African Power Pool and Eastern African Power Pool (two interconnected regional grids) to unlock more renewable energy potential.

My favorite parts of the job are working with officials and engineers from utilities, ministries of energy, and rural energy agencies to tackle project development and implementation challenges and working with brilliant colleagues around the world to develop creative solutions. The job has brought me to villages in Zambia, Tanzania, and the Central African Republic, allowing me to see how solar plants are expanding in these countries, and how people benefit from having affordable electricity. It is truly a dream come true.

Much of my current work can be linked back to my EESI internship experience. For example, in 2019, I was part of the team developing the World Bank’s Sustainable Renewables Risk Mitigation Initiative, which aims to unlock renewable energy potential in developing countries by mitigating investment risks. For developing countries, one benefit of renewable energy is increased local job opportunities. This reminded me of my experience drafting the EESI fact sheet Jobs in Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency in 2014, when I first learned about the renewable energy employment opportunities around the world. I was able to use that EESI fact sheet, along with other reports on solar and wind jobs worldwide, to complete my analysis for the World Bank.

Looking back, interning at EESI was an invaluable experience. The EESI internship provided me with a great introduction to my career both in Washington, D.C., and in the energy sector.

Author: Yi Xu