PhD Spotlight: Dipa Desai

Challenging corporate obstruction

My doctoral research examines corporate obstruction of climate action and explores how communities can disrupt corporate power to phase out fossil fuels in favor of clean energy. My journey to the Policy School began in my past life as a paleoclimate scientist, where I helped uncover trends in Earth’s past climate changes and inform future climate models. These future climate scenarios predict irreversible, global climate destabilization without science-supported climate policy. My research on the obstruction of climate policies and community actions to reclaim clean power has been inspired by the works of Dr. Jennie Stephens and Dr. Shalanda Baker on climate, energy, and environmental justice movements, Dr. Dan Danielsen’s research on corporate governance, Dr. Kaitlyn Alvarez-Nolí’s community action research to support agricultural workers.

“I am motivated to see the end of the fossil fuel industry and its interconnected violences, and interested in realizing a just clean energy transition.”

Seeking accountability

My research interests are shaped by my connections to the fossil fuel industry and past research in paleoclimate science. Members of my family were undocumented workers in the oil and gas industry throughout my childhood, so I see and embody the long-term health impacts of unmitigated fossil fuel exposure on Brown bodies. In addition, I have seen multiple petro-wars initiated and supported by the U.S. regime and fossil fuel industry against historically-marginalized communities. Finally, through my past career as a paleoclimate scientist, I have learned our planet has never before experienced the current rate of warming, and our global society is extremely unprepared to deal with climate destabilization. As a result, I am motivated to see the end of the fossil fuel industry and its interconnected violences, and interested in realizing a just clean energy transition.

Growing clean community power

I dream of a world where the fossil fuel industry itself becomes a fossil, extinct. I aim to use my degree to help communities disrupt the colonialist and capitalist structures underpinning the fossil fuel industry, and grow clean, community power.