Yashika Agarwalla M.S.

in Energy, Civil Infrastructure and Climate Engineering, Fall 2013

The whole idea that scarcity of primary natural resources, i.e. air, water & earth would stir up the Third
World War itself speaks volumes of environments need to be preserved. My interest to pursue masters
in Sustainable Engineering first took shape in my third semester while working on my seminar on Green
Buildings. As an undergraduate at the Civil Engineering Department of Nirma University, I was
introduced to a wide gamut of subjects but it was environmental engineering that enraptured me the most!
What encourages me the most to take up this field is that in the face of todays deteriorating environment,
relentless efforts are to be made to preserve its tranquility. With the increasing awareness of the
importance of environmental protection, environmental control is developing into a new industry with a
promising prospect. But, it is only through masters would I be able to specialize into this field. With the
desire to delve deeper into this timely important subject, I took up Sustainable Building Technologies
as an elective during my 7th semester which only continued to strengthen my passion to take up this field.
This course brought me in close association with the available & other evolving green technologies.
Talking in civil diction, a good technical career can only be built upon a firm academic foundation
fostered by world class education, pragmatic and comprehensive learning and enriching peer
collaboration. The environmental engineering course at Nirma University touched upon various aspects.
But now while entering into a graduate program I wish to streamline into the field of Energy, Civil
Infrastructure and Climate Engineering. The Environmental Energy, Civil Infrastructure and Climate
Engineering graduate program offered at University of California, Berkeley would provide me with the
ample resources and conducive environment to hone myself and acquire the knowledge, tools and
fundamentals necessary to be a successful environmental academician and consultant. An MS Degree
from UCBs premiere setup could be a key step towards my aim to be a successful environmental
consultant in my country India. Marred by a rapid development spree over the last decade, India faces
serious environmental issues, the aspect am interested the most is sustainable development with energy
efficient infrastructure & mitigating climate change. Due to lack of awareness, people here easily give up
local, greener resources in exchange of other superficially appealing materials which otherwise deplete
the environment . I aspire to bring a positive difference in the lives of my people through my knowledge
and remove this misconception that use of traditional & locally available materials is not a healthy
practice!
Articulating about my research work, my paper on Impact of the changing Urban Meteorology on
Human Thermal Comfort in Ahmedabad in association with Indian Meteorological Department ,
Ahmedabad under my professor, Mr. Anurag Kandya was presented at the International Conference on
Urban Climate 8 , Dublin , Ireland in August 2012. This task helped me improve my analyzing skills &
got me to the grassroots of environment phenomenon influencing climatic conditions & also helped me
build on Excel skills. As a part of my undergraduate thesis, Ive taken up the topic of A Time Series
Comparative Analysis of Human Thermal Comfort of the Megacities of India Using Bio-meteorological
Indices in the context of emerging urbanization trends. On the basis of former paper, this study has been
extended to Indian megacities all four having undergone massive urbanization in the past. I have
established the changing trends in temperature using Man Kendall Test and have used trends in Thom and
Sipel & Passel Indices to associate effect of relative humidity and wind speed respectively on
temperature. The trends observed were then linked with the urbanization trends of the city. Another
achievement came my way when another module of my former work on The Changing Climate of
Ahmedabad City: A Scientific Perspective Based on Multivariate Analysis bagged the Best Poster
Award at the Third National Conference on Climate Change 3-4 November, 2012 organized by the
Indian Climate Research Network (ICRN).
During my third year of under-graduation, my work on Air Pollution Management through Innovations
in Construction Technology- A Case Study of Using Semiconductors (TiO2) in Cement for Reducing
Tropospheric NOx Concentration was one the very few potential projects to receive extensive funding

Yashika Agarwalla M.S. in Energy, Civil Infrastructure and Climate Engineering, Fall 2013
from the university. Through this project we aimed to devise a self-cleaning mechanism in cement to
reduce NOx in the environment. Added on, my inspiration to take up environment engineering as an
educational goal was further strengthened when my idea on Innovations in White Cement was awarded
amongst Ten Best Concept Notes in India by Birla White Cement.
With due interest in building energy consumption which account to almost 40% of energy consumptions ,
another aspect of my research was on Simulating the Impact of Various Constructional Schemes on the
Air-Conditioning Load of a Building which has received acceptance at the 5th International Congress on
Environmental Research. As a part of this research I got my hands on a building energy simulation
software, e-Quest. This project was based on reducing the energy loads of a building by inculcating
sustainable technologies within it.
At Berkeley, Prof. Arpad Horvaths works on Environmental analysis of civil infrastructure systems and
environmentally-conscious construction seem insightful to me & it would help me discover new levels
under his aegis.
Having embarked upon as a novice researcher, I then decided to gain exposure into the industry & thus
took up a months internship at Oil & Natural Gas Corporation under the aegis of Mr. Arun Kumar
Mittal, Deputy General Manager, Civil Department, Nazira, Assam Asset. During this tenure, I learnt
about its organizational structure and for the first time came to terms with the actual world of tendering.
As a trainee, I had taken up the job of planning out the activities of Resurfacing & strengthening of roads
within the colony. To get a glimpse of the environmental scenario, I studied the water supply system
there. My morale was further boosted by the personalized certificate from my mentor on account of my
diligence & soft skills.
I have always had an inclination towards serving the society, a testimony to this was Medibeep, a cofounded initiative to provide free vaccination alerts through SMS. As the Vision & Strategy Head, I
helped Medibeep spread through its partnered organization Lioness Club of Brahmaputra Valley in the
north-eastern states of India. This project had received appreciation from Gujarats Honble Chief
Minister Mr. Narendra Modi. Moreover, this initiative was also internationally appreciated at the Global
Initiatives Symposium, 2012, Taiwan.
Apart from building a portfolio in research at an undergraduate level, I continued achieving distinction in
academics and thus maintained a record of being amongst the top five students in my batch. Also, I did
not just restrict myself to this geek side, while at Nirma University; I received several accolades in public
speaking, folk & western dance. Another aspect that I have always kept improving is my interest for
sketching in which I have received formal training of four years.
Having stated my purpose to seek admission & enlisted the efforts made in the same direction , I will
make full use of the education imparted by experienced faculty at your esteemed university, advanced
research facilities and an inspiring academic climate. I would take it as a matter of extreme pride, if
granted a financial assistance of any sort; either in the form of a Teaching or Research Assistant at the
university. While continuing to deepen my theoretical knowledge, I will endeavor to acquire latest
information on environmental science and technology. In addition, I will continue to improve my
experimental skills, including the skills of operating new instruments. All those efforts are designed for
just one purpose to develop myself into a leading environmental specialist who can make important
contributions to the countrys fledgling cause of environmental engineering as a researcher or a
consultant.
Sincerely
Yashika Agarwalla