Smita Rakesh

Smita Rakesh is a Partner at Social Alpha, an initiative to drive economic growth, social justice, and climate action through the power of entrepreneurship and market-creating innovations. As the head of Climate and Sustainability practice, she is also responsible for building and deploying a portfolio of science and technology innovations across sectors in climate change mitigation, adaptation, and ecosystem restoration for a socially and ecologically just transition. Smita has been deeply engaged with the global climate and clean energy ecosystem for the last 15 years, designing and implementing institutional programs in public, private, and development sectors. Smita is passionate about catalyzing large-scale and inclusive social change through responsible investments and market-based solutions. She has conceptualized and built a full-stack innovation curation and venture development platform in India to accelerate the transition of high-impact innovations from lab-to-market-to-communities, redefining the investment playbook for early-stage start-ups. Smita has a Master’s degree in Environmental Sciences and was a Rockefeller Foundation Global Fellow on Social Innovation in 2016. She also serves on the board of Sustain Plus Energy Foundation, a non-profit driving sustainable energy access and development programs in rural India.