From Disposable Culture to Circular Economy: UCLA Environmental Engineering Alumna’s Mission to Harness Collective Action

Isha Shah M.S. ’20 grew up near Dumas Beach in Surat, India, where conversations about the environment often echoed from her family’s dinner table. In her traditional Gujarati household, deeply involved in the environmental services industry, sustainability wasn’t just an idea — it was a way of life.

Shah, who earned her master’s degree in environmental engineering from the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering, traces her passion for sustainability back to her family’s roots in the western Indian state of Gujarat. Her father, an environmental engineer who runs a consulting services firm, introduced her early to the practical realities of ecological preservation. 

“I remember asking him about the disappearing water lines during our weekend visits to the beach,” Shah said. “He’d explain what was happening — how water depletion and poor practices were harming the planet. Those conversations stuck with me.” 

Her mother studied environmental law and now works for the family business alongside Shah’s older brother, who also completed his master’s in environmental engineering from the National University of Singapore. The close-knit family reinforced a shared environmental awareness that has been woven into everyday life. Surat is a coastal city known both for its diamond and textile industries, as well as its rising vulnerability to climate change, with tens of thousands of textile factories and manufacturing units — industries with significant environmental footprints  Growing up in Surat, Shah quickly learned about the intricate balance between economic growth and ecological responsibility.

Now, as an environmental engineer, Shah works at the intersection of environmental engineering, corporate responsibility and the circular economy. She is a contract engineer at the planning and environmental consulting firm UltraSystems Environmental in Irvine, California. She also works part-time for her family business and has recently set up her own company Shesh Net Carbon Solutions, where she helps businesses in both India and the U.S. develop comprehensive sustainability frameworks that support long-term environmental goals. She says she approaches her work with “seva” — the Gujarati principle of selfless service — and a deep reverence for nature.

“UCLA gave me a platform to explore ideas, challenge myself and meet people from diverse backgrounds,” Isha Shah said.

“In our culture, there’s an ingrained respect for Mother Earth and a belief in living in harmony with the environment,” Shah said. “It’s not just professional — it’s deeply personal.”

Shah’s professional journey began with a B.Tech in civil engineering from SRM University in India, where she developed strong technical foundations and published early research in environmental science. However, it was at UCLA where her academic interests came into focus.

“UCLA gave me a platform to explore ideas, challenge myself and meet people from diverse backgrounds,” Shah said. “Engineering professors like David Jassby, Michael Stenstrom and Jennifer Jay made the coursework engaging.” She was especially influenced by the Leaders in Sustainability Certificate Program, directed by Deepak Rajagopal, an associate professor at the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability. 

In the interdisciplinary certificate program, Shah joined a cohort of professionals and students tackling sustainability from multiple angles — law, policy, business and science. “This program helped me broaden my perspectives, and I met amazing professionals from various fields who further fueled my passion for sustainability,” she said.

One of the team’s research projects involved examining the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on consumer behavior and the environment — specifically within the fashion industry. Shah and her cohort found that consumer shopping declined due to quarantines and social distancing, leading to reductions in water and energy use. But another trend emerged: more frequent laundry loads, which partially offset those reductions.

The project offered the students valuable insights into how even a small change in consumer behavior can contribute to reducing environmental impact, reinforcing Shah’s belief in the power of collective action. It also deepened her commitment to building a circular economy, a model based on the principles of refuse, rethink, reduce, reuse, repair, refurbish, remanufacture, repurpose, recycle and recover.

“It’s never too late to start what you always envisioned,” Shah said. “Sustainability is a long-term commitment, but the impact we can make is lasting.”

“I’m passionate about the ‘10 Rs’ of the circular economy — from refuse to recover,” Shah said. “It’s the antidote to our current ‘use and throw’ culture, and I believe it’s the future.”

Her long-term goals include developing a comprehensive sustainability model for the automotive waste sector, a part of global waste management she sees as critically under-addressed. As electric vehicles and battery technologies evolve rapidly, end-of-life infrastructure lags far behind. Innovation, Shah says, is urgently needed to bridge the gap.

Shah also remains deeply engaged in broader industry conversations around environmental standards. She’s especially vocal about the need for stronger regulatory frameworks and greater transparency around corporate pledges. Many companies, according to Shah, commit to ambitious “net zero” goals while ignoring Scope 3 emissions — the indirect emissions associated with supply chains and product life cycles, which often represent the largest portion of a company’s carbon footprint.

“Until we hold businesses accountable for their full environmental impact, we won’t see real progress,” Shah said. “Transparency and action across the supply chain are key.”

Despite the challenges, Shah remains hopeful — and determined. 

“It’s never too late to start what you always envisioned,” she said. “Sustainability is a long-term commitment, but the impact we can make is lasting.”