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Multilingual water and sanitation professional with 5 years of experience seeking WatSan opportunities in design, planning, capacity building, and policy development. |
 Contact Mahua Bhattacharya
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Area of Expertise: |
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Capacity Building, Training, Advocacy
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Environment, Climate, Energy, Water, Sanitation
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Infrastructure, Technology, Engineering, Science
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Monitoring, Evaluation, Policy, Research, Analysis
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Professional Experience: |
My primary career interest is in international water and sanitation projects, particularly within areas such as design, planning, capacity building and policy. My professional and academic endeavors have therefore been focused on these areas.
I have about 4.5 years of consulting experience in municipal water and wastewater treatment projects. During this time, I have been in involved in project planning, design, and management. In one notable project, I developed a spreadsheet tool for the preliminary design of four wastewater treatment plants in the Municipality of Greater Mumbai (about CAD 350 million in capital cost). This significantly facilitated design practices and optimized the use of project team resources.
As part of the core project team for upgrades to the second largest treatment plant in the City of Toronto (about CAD 300 million in capital cost), I undertook key roles during the conceptual, preliminary, and detailed design. The conceptual design phase was a particularly unique experiencec as it involved developing the complete scope of the project; as part of this, I interviewed operational staff to assess priority needs, reviewed background documents and drawings, in addition to carrying out detailed site visits.
As the project manager of a groundwater treatment plant project (about CAD 25 million in capital cost), I took a lead role in the process design while coordinating external client meetings and internal multi-disciplinary project team efforts.
In addition to my consulting background, I have had valuable research experience with academic and non-governmental organizations. I undertook two research assistantships at the University of Guelph (Guelph, Canada) and the Asian Institute of Technology (Bangkok, Thailand). During my time in Bangkok, I researched advanced treatment methods for managing toxic industrial wastewater in a project funded by the Royal Thai government. At Guelph, I carried out statistical analyses of landfill waste data in order to determine suitable sample sizes for assessing waste composition.
I also completed a student internship with the United Nations Environment Programme in Bangkok. As part of the Assessment and Reporting Group, I researched regional environmental policies for the development of a knowledge base to strengthen monitoring of freshwater pollution in South Asia.
My professional and academic background have provided me with strong written and oral communication skills, in addition to the technical experience described above.
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Education: |
I obtained a Masters degree in Environmental and Water Quality Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). For my graduate thesis, I conducted research on wastewater sludge management options for municipalities in Honduras.
As part of this effort, I collaborated with national and municipal government agencies to assist them with sludge quality and quantities assessments. In addition, I investigated appropriate sludge treatment options (e.g., composting, anaerobic digestion, drying beds) for local municipalities and identified relevant markets for beneficial biosolids reuse, both on regional and community levels. The results of this research was used to assist municipal and federal agencies in developing domestic wastewater sludge management plans.
I obtained a Bachelor's degree in Environmental Engineering from the University of Guelph. As part of my final year team project, I helped design a prototype microbial fuel cell battery (based on cattle manure) to meet basic household lighting needs in a rural household in South Asia.
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Available for: |
- Consulting assignments
- Job opportunities
- Being headhunted – make me an offer
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Years of Experience:
2-5 years |
Highest Qualification:
Masters |
Languages:
English, French, Bengali, Hindi, Thai |
Nationality:
India
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