Founder and CEO of Iora Ecological Solutions Pvt Ltd 

Mr Swapan Mehra is the Founder and CEO of Iora Ecological Solutions Pvt Ltd, one of India’s leading environmental advisory firms, dedicated to advancing climate action through integrated nature-based solutions. With expertise in environmental finance and climate policy, he is committed to mitigating the impact of climate change, enhancing the resilience of marginalized communities and advancing nature conservation and restoration in India.

An alumnus of IIFM Bhopal (MBA) and Harvard Kennedy School (Master’s in Public Administration), Swapan is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader (2020), Donella Meadows Fellow, LEAD India Fellow, and FICCI Young Business Leader. He has authored over 40 publications on REDD+, climate mitigation and adaptation, carbon finance, biodiversity offsets, forest fuelwood management, and ecosystem service valuation. Throughout his career, Swapan has been actively involved in conservation and policy interventions, at both national and international levels. His core areas of expertise include REDD+ and National Resource Management (NRM), Valuation of Ecosystem Services, Conservation Policy Design, Climate Finance, Biodiversity Finance and Conservation, Public Private Partnerships (PPP), Forest Management and Conservation, Project Financing and designing market-based mechanisms for conservation.

Under his leadership, IORA’s multi-disciplinary team of passionate professionals has significantly contributed to shaping key national policy documents, including the Long-Term Low Emission Development Strategy (LT-LEDS), the National REDD+ Strategy, the NDC Goal 5 Roadmap, and recommendations for India’s 14th and 15th Finance Commissions.

Swapan is well-established thought leader in the environmental sector, serving on several national and international forums, including the Green Credit Program Technical Committee for the Government of India, the Technology Selection Committee for the Jal Jeevan Mission, and the International Advisory Panel on Biodiversity Credit. He is also a member of the Expert Advisory Group for the Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI), the WEF Stakeholder Council, the Natural Capital Steering Group, and the NCS Investments Taskforce under 1t.org.

He has also led carbon finance and climate investment teams at Evolution Markets and AES India during the early Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) days.

Swapan has served as a technical reviewer for UNEP’s Green Economy Initiatives and as a jury member for the UNDP Equator Prize. Recently, he participated in the High-Level Convening on Mainstreaming Natural Capital at the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center, Italy, engaging with global leaders to integrate natural capital into economic and policy frameworks. He also completed the 2024 YGL-led Learning Journey on “Entrepreneurial Leadership: Founding a VCbacked Startup,” in collaboration with the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI), INSEAD, and the YGL-NTU Education Programme at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.

His visionary leadership continues to shape impactful, scalable and innovative nature finance initiatives and community resilience programs, empowering grassroots conservation.