R.K. Pachauri
R.K. Pachauri to receive Brandeis honorary degree
May 7, 2009
R.K. Pachauri, Director General of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) in New Delhi and chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, has been selected to receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Brandeis University during Commencement ceremonies on May 17, 2009.
Dr. Pachauri will also be giving the commencement address of the Heller School for Social Policy and Management, also on May 17.
TERI is an organization in New Delhi, India dedicated to research and the promotion of environmental sustainability. Pachauri holds a master’s degree in industrial engineering and PhDs in industrial engineering and economics from North Carolina State University, where he also served as a member of the faculty. In 1981–82, he was a visiting professor of resource economics at West Virginia University and a senior visiting fellow at the Resource Systems Institute, East-West Center, in Washington, D.C. The author of some twenty-three books, he has also written more than 100 articles for academic journals. Since he joined TERI in 1982, it has become one of the best-known research institutes in the world. Since 2002, Pachauri has chaired the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, where he spearheaded the production of its fourth and most challenging assessment report. He has also served the government of India as a member of the prime minister’s Economic Advisory Council, Advisory Board on Energy, and Council on Climate Change, a scientific intergovernmental body that provides policymakers an objective analysis of climate change. The recipient of many global honors, he was awarded India’s Padma Bhushan for his service to the environment and received the country’s second-highest civilian award, the Padma Vibhushan. In 2006, the Government of France awarded him the Legion of Honor medal, and in 2007 he was co-recipient with Al Gore of the Nobel Peace Prize.
Brandeis recently launched an India Initiative, created to strengthen university ties to the world's largest democracy. For more information on the Brandeis-India Initiative, please visit the web site. For more information on Brandeis Commencement activities, click here.