After graduating from university, Sharlene Gandhi began working as a technology consultant. But a love of words and a burning desire to uncover and communicate the links between business and climate change led Sharlene to transition to journalism.

“When it came to applying to university, I went down the more practical route that I thought would guarantee me a job at the end. I suppose we need role models in colour, so journalism was a bit of a pipe dream for me. But I started studying the links between business and sustainability at university. After that, I couldn’t unsee it. After graduating, by day, I worked in consulting. But by night, I wrote about climate, climate justice and business and sustainability. About 15 months ago, I decided to become a full-time journalist.”

A central theme of Sharlene’s work has been highlighting the interconnections between the climate crisis and social injustice.

“People from marginalised backgrounds, people of colour and black people around the world are more likely to be at the forefront of the impacts of the climate crisis, more so than those of us in western economies.

“I am relatively new to the world of environmentalism and I really, really feel like I have a lot to learn. But you don’t have to be in climate policy or energy for your job to be green. I think there's space for a lot more everyday heroes to accompany me.”