Ipshita Nandi Banerjee fulfills the strategic storytelling, communications, and engendering needs of USEA’s Energy Utility Partnership Program (EUPP) and supports the AmpUp program both funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). In this role, Ipshita synergizes and amplifies key results and successes working closely with partners in South and Southeast Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Central Asia as they move towards self-sufficiency in the energy sector. Her work prioritizes drawing critical attention to renewable energy integration, smart meters and utility management, energy markets, regional cooperation, women in energy, climate action, and their intersectionality with the United Nations' sustainable developmental goals. 

Ipshita joined as USEA's first gender specialist and improved activity level gender focus and inclusion basis some key indicators for impact as her north star. She believes that increased participation of women trailblazers, diversity, and inclusion of leadership across all aspects of EUPP activities, can improve program-level results as well as influence diverse audiences initiating a domino of positive change for the people and the planet. In this role, Expanding the three Cs of collaborations, communication and capacity building through partnerships is her mantra. 

Over the past 17 years of her career, Ipshita's focus has remained public affairs and to positively shape the policy narrative in the development sector. Her past assignments included leading communications and outreach programming for USAID-funded South Asia Regional Energy Hub (SAREH) when she first consulted for the USEA, the implementor for the project. She has long-standing experience in working directly with, national and sub-national governments in India and overseas. She has served for over 6 six years as a media and digital media advisor for the U.S. Department of State's Consulate for East and Northeast India in the U.S. Consulate in Kolkata, India during the Obama administration and has supported high-level engagements including U.S. Presidential Envoy to Climate John Kerry's participation in UNFCCC COP22 in Marrakech Morocco, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's visit to India, and Deputy Secretary of State Management and Resources, Richard Verma (during his U.S. Ambassadorial tenure in India). She has served the Government of Andhra Pradesh, India during CM Chandrababu Naidu's regime at the sub-national level in India. She has written over 300 country and gender analyses, briefers, talking points, toolkits, and remarks for foreign service officers (Ambassadors, Ministers, secretaries, climate and energy advisors, and undersecretaries) and International multi-lateral organizational leadership including UN representatives, and muti-lateral organizations, and foundations. Early career Ipshita has served as a senior reporter who served at The Telegraph India, an English news daily, and as senior editor for Dorling Kindersley Pvt Ltd publishing with a cited published white paper, two travel guides, and over 150 bylined articles.  

Ipshita holds a Master’s in Journalism and Media Management, from the International Management Institute (IMI), New Delhi, India with a B.A. Honors in English Literature from St. Xavier's College Kolkata, India with sociology and political science as her electives. Ipshita has an additional graduate certificate in Public Affairs from the Takshashika School of Public Policy, Bangalore, India.