Paul Alexander Lejas

The Yale School of the Environment’s class of 2025 will have its commencement on May 19.

According to a YSE class profile, these 156 master’s students come from 31 countries and 29 U.S. states and territories. 

More than half of the class, 112 out of the 156 students, enrolled as part of the Master of Environmental Management program, while 19 students intended to pursue degrees in the research-oriented Master of Environmental Science program. Thirteen students enrolled in the Master of Forestry program, and five students were pursuing Master of Forest Science degrees.

“YSE is such a special place,” said Kemi Kakonge-Ruyondo ENV  ’25, a graduating student at the School of the Environment. “I’ve probably learned just as much — if not more — outside the classroom as I have inside. Go to the talks, show up for the events and, most importantly, talk to people.”

The class of 2025 is graduating as careers in environmentalism are under attack by the Trump administration, and many environmental grads’ future hangs in uncertainty.

To see what the class has been up to, the News spoke with several graduating YSE students to inquire about their future plans. 

Kemi Kakonge-Ruyondo,  Kampala, Uganda

Kemi Kakonge-Ruyondo earned her bachelor’s degree in environmental science and policy from the University of California, Davis in 2019, then worked as a Government Relations Analyst at the Santa Clara Valley Water District in California and, later, at a Water Supply and Sanitation for Refugees Programme in her home of Uganda.

Kakonge-Ruyondo enjoyed the interdisciplinary spirit YSE promotes. Her class on global social entrepreneurship in Kenya at the School of Management reminded her to “not to work in silos” when it comes to collaborative problem solving. 

“I don’t have a firm plan yet—no job lined up—but I’m looking forward to taking a bit of time to rest, go on more hikes, read for pleasure and reconnect with the parts of myself that get sidelined during busy semesters,” Kakonge-Ruyondo said. “While my exact path may shift, I feel calm and grounded in the uncertainty.”

She’s exploring careers within environmental conservation, sustainable development and nature finance. 

“Never before have I been surrounded by so many like-minded, passionate people, many of whom have become close friends and chosen family,” Kakonge-Ruyondo said. “The biggest lesson? Community matters just as much as content. Lean into both.”

Felipe Storch de Oliveira, Rio Branco, Brazil

A native of western Brazil, Felipe Storch de Oliveira ENV ’25 calls Rio Branco, Acre, his home.

Before coming to YSE, Storch de Oliveira worked across various public, nonprofit and consulting sectors in Brazil, including roles at the Instituto Socioambiental, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Palladium Group. 

One of Storch de Oliveira’s favorite YSE classes was “Sustainable Tropical Landscapes” with Professor Paulo Brando, which allowed him to travel to the southeastern Amazon to visit the “arc of deforestation.” 

“Visiting communities grappling with deforestation and economic pressure profoundly impacted me,” Storch de Oliveira told the News. “Despite being from the Western Amazon, the stark differences across the region underscored the need for tailored, place-based solutions.”

 After this May, Storch de Oliveira will return to Brazil to support Amazon-based organizations in preparing for COP30, in Belém, Brazil. His first job will be a consulting role at the World Bank, where he hopes to advance inclusive, evidence-based solutions for environmental governance in Latin America and beyond. 

“Let your mission drive your path—not the other way around,” said Storch de Oliveira. “Yale can give you incredible tools and networks, but staying grounded in purpose is what ensures that your work creates real impact where it’s needed most.”

Srishti Singh, Delhi, India

Before moving to New Haven, Srishti Singh ENV ’25 worked in Delhi, India as an economist at the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change for the Government of India.

Through a YSE partnership, Singh travelled to Brazil, the Philippines and India with the United Nations Development Programme Adaptation Fund internship, which she described as “an incredible experience.”

“The past few months have been challenging, especially with market uncertainty, but a recent series of events I organised with the Water Learning Community gave me a renewed sense of joy and hope,” said Singh. “Speaking with practitioners in the field is always helpful.”

While Singh’s post-graduation plans aren’t entirely finalized yet, she hopes to find work in corporate sustainability and sustainable finance, with a focus on adaptation and resilience finance. 

Singh described YSE as “a great connector.” The people she has met and spoken with have been essential in guiding her trajectory. 

“It is okay to be lost in the process,” Singh told the News. “I think YSE also made me truly internalise what Ursula LeGuin said in Left Hand of Darkness: ‘To learn which questions are unanswerable, and not to answer them: this skill is most needful in times of stress and darkness.’”

Aqsa Mengal, Quetta, Pakistan

Aqsa Mengal ENV ’25 was born in Pakistan but moved to the U.S. when she was young and considers both places her home. Her concentration at YSE is in people, equity, and environment climate change solutions. 

Mengal’s favorite part of YSE has been the hands-on and immersive experiences the program has provided. In her first year, Mengal traveled to collect climate data for communities in the Himalayas. This past fall, she was again in Germany for a UN disaster risk conference. 

“I’m definitely still figuring things out. I am looking forward to continuing my work to focus on my own community back in South Pakistan and try to find a job that helps make international climate policy at a global level,” Mengal told the News. 

Her goal is to work at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change or at the UN Human Rights Office. She is also contemplating teaching higher education courses in Pakistan on environmental history of the region or environmental anthropology.

“I was speaking to friends about this and how fast the time is here. It feels like we just got here yesterday,” said Mengal. “I would say make the best and most of the time you have here. Make opportunities at New Haven or beyond. Engage with New Haven.” 

Fiacro Jimenez, Mexico City, Mexico

Fiacro Jimenez ENV ’25 is from Mexico City, Mexico. Before coming to YSE, he worked several years in local, national and international levels of government. He began his career working for the ministry of transportation of Mexico City in the division of clean transportation. 

He was “determined to dedicate [his] professional life to fighting climate change.” His career path has taken him through Mexico City’s ministry of the environment, ministry of finance, the World Bank ProBlue program and, recently, handling the country’s global environment facility project portfolio.

“Without a doubt, the most formative class I had at Yale was ‘Renewable Energy Project Finance,’ a cross-school course taught by Dan Gross, director of Amazon’s climate pledge fund,” said Jimenez.

Jimenez specializes in the field of clean energy deployment via financing mechanisms. He says there are “significant hurdles” to bring and test these mechanisms in the Global South, where most of projected energy demand growth lies in the coming decades. 

His current plans after graduation are to get into the field of clean energy project finance, either through a developer or on the financing side. 

“Before coming to grad school I kept hearing that it would be a grueling and lonely experience,” said Jimenez. “This could not be farther from the truth.”

Jimenez describes his YSE experience as “exceptionally social,” and he is confident he has formed life-long friendships. 

Having failed to get into a master’s program immediately after his undergraduate studies, he recommends prospective students take their time after graduating.  

“With so many shiny things to pursue at Yale, you must be able to decide what is really of interest to you, and that might not always be grades or that super important coffee chat, know what is best for you and enjoy your time in New Haven,” said Jimenez. “It’s not like you’ll be back here anytime soon.”

The School of the Environment is located at 195 Prospect St.

Correction, April 27: This article has been corrected to reflect that Aqsa Mengal is from Quetta, Pakistan. A previous version of this article said that Mengal was from Bistan, Pakistan.