Yash Shah
Ph.D. Candidate in Environmental Engineering

Leadership & Service

Extra-curricular

India Conference at Duke
Founding Vice Chair, India Conference at Duke
Launched the inaugural conference to promote knowledge exchange on India. Recruited and supervised a team of 20, curated a multidisciplinary agenda with various Duke schools, secured sponsorships, and coordinated logistics for 150+ attendees and 12 speakers.
Apr 2024 — Apr 2025
Innovation Bootcamp
Team Lead, Duke Innovation & Entrepreneurship Bootcamp
Led a team of 5 evaluating market viability of a water disinfection technology through ideation, human-centered design, competitor analysis, customer discovery, and storytelling.
Jan 2025 — Feb 2025
Model United Nations
Director-General & Co-Founder, NITR International Model United Nations
Established the institute’s first Model United Nations (MUN) chapter, led the organizing team of 50, forged partnerships, and hosted 150+ delegates from India and neighboring countries.
Apr 2018 — Apr 2019
Cognizen Club
President, Cognizen, The Current Affairs Club
Spearheaded group discussions on current affairs, organized club events during technical festivals, launched social initiatives like “We The People of NITR,” appointed a student team to develop the club Android app, and supported the well-being of 60+ members.
Apr 2017 — Apr 2019

Mentorship

Research Mentorship

Mentored 3 M.S. and 2 B.S. students in materials synthesis and characterization, from experimental design through data analysis and reporting, and ISO 14044 LCA techniques.

Co-Lead, Project Polaris on LinkedIn

Launched and managed an 80+ member alumni mentorship network using LinkedIn, centralizing guidance on higher education in India and abroad for students of NIT Rourkela.

Teaching

Teaching Assistant: Material Design in a Circular Economy

Assisted with course administration, preparation of assignment and exam materials, and provided student support through weekly office hours.

Guest Lecturer: Carbon — An Element of Change and Life

Inspired M.S. students to tackle critical energy and environmental issues by demonstrating how the physicochemical properties of carbon materials can be tailored for sustainable solutions.