Resumé

Praval Sharma is a doctoral candidate at the Chair of Environmental and Climate Policy at TUM, where he is investigating the social justice dimensions of transitioning to decentralized solar energy in Germany, India, and Rwanda. His research examines how small-scale solar initiatives, such as rooftop solar systems in India, tenant electricity models in Germany, and off-grid solar programs in Rwanda, can be designed and implemented in ways that address questions of distributional and procedural justice. By integrating quantitative and qualitative research methods, he seeks to deepen the understanding of how transitions to small-scale solar power can be made more inclusive, with the eventual objective of framing policy recommendations that support a just energy transition. 

He has a broad interest in environmental and energy governance across different countries, comparative policy research, and the use of machine learning and GIS-based approaches in social science research. Before beginning his doctoral research, he completed a master's degree in Politics and Technology from TUM. Earlier, he had worked as an engineering consultant for public school infrastructure at the Ministry of Education, Government of India, and as a structural design engineer in the oil and gas industry.