Program: Master's in Energy Transition and Sustainability
Home Country: Uzbekistan
Universities: Gubkin Russian State Oil and Gas University
Languages: Russian, English

Ildar Yunusov is a Fulbright scholar currently pursuing the Master of Energy Transition & Sustainability at Rice University.

Before coming to Rice, he managed UNDP’s “Promoting Just Energy Transition in Uzbekistan” and served as Project Manager/Technical Analyst for the UNDP-GEF “Market Transformation for Sustainable Rural Housing” project. He oversaw the delivery of Uzbekistan’s first nearly zero-energy building; the modernization of six national building codes; the country’s first photovoltaic and passive-house standards; a national energy-audit methodology; and the launch of SolarCity Simulator, an online tool that has optimized rooftop-PV design for more than 10,000 buildings in Tashkent.

Before UNDP, Ildar was Chief Process Specialist at UzLITI Engineering, leading process- and flare-system design for the Boysun Gas Processing Plant and seven booster-compressor stations now in operation. Earlier, as a Lead Specialist at Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Economy, he drafted presidential decrees advancing renewable-energy and energy-efficiency programs. As the national coordinator for the Private Financing Advisory Network (PFAN), he also mentored cleantech startups on investment readiness.

At Rice, Ildar focuses on carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), low-carbon hydrogen, geothermal systems, and process-industry decarbonization—connecting his hands-on design experience with policy to accelerate low-carbon transitions worldwide. He holds an honors degree in Reservoir Engineering from the Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas.

What I like about Rice/Houston

I like Rice’s research opportunities and Houston’s role as an energy hub.

What I like about Fulbright

I like Fulbright’s strong support and networking opportunities.

Fun fact about me

I love singing karaoke.