Southface Policy Programs Manager Shan Arora earned a spot on Georgia Trend‘s 2014 40 Under 40 List for his dedication to making cities more livable and efficient. He was recognized for his leadership in the construction of GeorgiaEnergyData.org as well as the creation of the first Southeast Clean Energy Industry Census.
Read the excerpt on Shan from Georgia Trend below, or click here to view the full 40 Under 40 list.
Originally a tax attorney, Arora joined Southface, an Atlanta nonprofit promoting sustainable communities, in 2010 after realizing that his passion was to make cities more livable and efficient.
Arora helped Southface launch GeorgiaEnergyData.org, in partnership with Georgia State University, in 2012. The interactive site offers comprehensive energy data and maps depicting nearly 1,000 solar installations and firms. He also finds time to be active in the city’s sustainability community, including the Equitable Transit-Oriented Development Collaborative, and guest lectures on energy issues at Emory, Georgia State and the University of Georgia.
Arora and Southface participated in the first Southeast Clean Energy Industry Census (CleanEnergyIndustry.org) and are now working to provide the Department of Energy a roadmap for growing the sector’s tax base and employment.
“We can address the challenges that we have with our relationship with the environment, and do it in a way that is economically beneficial,” he says.
