Impact from within
One of the reasons I applied to the Oxford MBA is due to its strong emphasis on nurturing future leaders who are purpose-driven and intent on making a meaningful impact. When I was accepted into the programme, I knew that I wanted to broaden my knowledge across various business sectors and industries, enhance my leadership skills, and develop a systems thinking approach to better understand and address complex global challenges.
The Oxford MBA’s commitment to developing future leaders is reflected in its rigorous academic curriculum and impact-oriented co-curricular activities, supported by world class faculty and resources.
One of the highlights of the MBA for me was the opportunity to represent Saïd Business School alongside my classmates, Hanifah A Nanda (pictured centre), Anica Sarmiento (who presented alongside us virtually), and Bhagya (Bobby) Raj (pictured right), at the final of the 2024 Climate Investment Challenge in London. This competition, organised by Imperial College Business School, invites students from around the world to develop and pitch innovative financial solutions to tackle climate-related challenges.
The climate opportunity
Climate finance plays a crucial role in securing a sustainable future for our planet. The development of innovative financial instruments is key to mobilising public and private capital to meet the large financing needs for climate risk mitigation and adaptation.
The competition, which ran throughout Hilary and Trinity terms, was an opportunity to brainstorm solutions to tackle this complex issue. After a series of discussions within our team, we decided to focus on accelerating the deployment of solar and battery energy storage projects in remote islands in Indonesia using asset-backed securities as an alternative funding mechanism.
While Indonesia’s energy transition journey was on a positive trajectory, we recognised that there were still challenges that hindered the country’s transition from coal to renewable energy. For example, scaling renewable energy projects in Indonesia’s remote islands proved to be a challenge due to a primary focus on urban areas, geographical constraints, and a high reliance on cheap diesel power.
Our team, GreenGrid Finance, proposed to tackle these challenges by working together with stakeholders, including Indonesia’s state-owned electric utility company, to develop an asset-backed securities model that would attract domestic and foreign capital by overcoming existing constraints. In developing our solution, we prioritised implementation feasibility, climate impact and the scalability of the proposal to the broader region.
Importantly, we were able to leverage each other’s strengths and expertise throughout the process. I shared perspectives from my experience as a central banker in Malaysia, while learning about battery storage systems from Bobby, the Indonesian energy transition from Nanda, and financing clean power projects from Anica.
After several months of hard work, we were thrilled to find out that we had been selected to advance to the final round of the Competition. Along with nine other finalists shortlisted from 128 proposals across 28 universities worldwide, we presented our solution to a panel of expert judges at the Royal Institution in London.
Reflections
Although we did not clinch the main prize, the process and experience of being a finalist in the competition was invaluable. As a team, we were able to take our idea further than we had initially expected and gained important feedback and skills in the process.
I found immense value in the holistic Oxford MBA curriculum, which served to prepare us well to take on this challenge. Classes such as Global Opportunities and Threats Oxford (GOTO) encouraged us to apply a systems-thinking approach to address complex problems such as climate change and generate effective interventions, while the Entrepreneurship Project provided strong fundamentals on developing new business models and sharpening our pitching skills.
I am grateful for my amazing teammates whom I was able to learn so much from. The journey throughout, including the many late evenings, was intellectually enriching and truly enjoyable, and is a testament to the high calibre of our Oxford MBA cohort.
The Climate Investment Challenge has been a memorable highlight (among many others in the Oxford MBA) for me. The skills and insight gained from this experience and from the Oxford MBA will be invaluable as I continue to pursue my goals to make a positive impact in my future endeavours.
