The International Solar Alliance (ISA) has named Dr. Ajay Mathur as its new director-general following his election at the first special assembly, held virtually. Mathur replaces Upendra Tripathy, who has served as director-general since the ISA was founded in 2015.
A coalition of 73 member countries, ISA was established at the end of 2015 to accelerate the demand for solar energy. It aims to mobilize over $1 trillion of investment into solar projects by 2030 through focused advocacy, policy and regulatory support, capacity building, and by overcoming perceived investment barriers.
Mathur’s leadership appointment to the ISA takes place in a year when addressing global climate change transition commitments will take center stage: 2021 started with the U.S.’s renewed climate focus through the Biden administration and will culminate with COP26, the UN’s Climate Change Conference in the U.K. in November. As the sole multilateral forum dedicated to solar energy transition and building upon existing milestones, including pooling resources across its members and creating economies of scale to reduce the cost for clean energy, ISA says it is poised to renew its commitment towards global solar transition through the new leadership.
“I am honored to lead the ISA and am hopeful about what we can achieve together with our members and partners to transition to a safer, sustainable, equitable and more prosperous future for all through solar energy,” says Mathur. “ISA has a vital role to help establish the infrastructure and ecosystem for a zero-carbon emission future. With strong foundations already in place, my immediate focus is to identify and mobilize the opportunities and capital to accelerate our solarization goals in the interim and long-term.”
Currently director-general of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), a driver of the energy transition to renewables and reduction in urban air pollution for the past five years, Mathur has held leadership appointments at the Bureau of Energy Efficiency and the Green Climate Fund.
Photo: Dr. Ajay Mathur
