Monica Araya, Ph.D.

Monica has worked with leaders in government, business, philanthropy, and advocacy on accelerating climate action with a focus on Latin America, Europe, and the U.S. for over 25 years. Most recently, Monica was the executive director of the European Climate Foundation’s (ECF) international programs and a member of the organization’s Executive Management Team. She oversaw work and grant-making on trade, diplomacy, decarbonization plans, and global climate politics in that capacity. She has worked as a strategist for several initiatives, boards, and international campaigns and is a director on the Natural Resources Governance Institute (NRGI)’s Governing Board, and a member of the Advisory Board at the WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities.

She is a member of Drive Electric’s Steering Committee composed of key strategic philanthropies, helped develop Costa Rica’s national decarbonization plan, and was a Special Adviser to the High-Level Champion for Climate Action at COP26. Her TED talks on climate solutions have over five million views. Monica was a Distinguished Fellow at ClimateWorks Foundation and was included in the list of “BBC 100 Women” in 2021 for her work on electrification. Previously, Monica worked at the Ministry of Foreign Trade in Costa Rica, Climate Change Capital, the UN negotiations, and E3G.

In Costa Rica, she co-founded Costa Rica Limpia, a citizen group, which successfully advocated for a national fossil-free plan for 2018-2050. She holds a master’s degree in economic policy from the National University in Costa Rica and a master’s and a Ph.D. in environmental management from Yale University.