Climate action, for Rajvi Sapre, began with a hands-on sustainability project that turned food waste into compost. She was 17 then, serving as vice-president of the Eco-Sustainability Leadership Academy, a co-curricular activity at River Valley High School (Junior College).
That experience taught her that responsibility begins with action, and sparked broader questions about how sustainability efforts can scale beyond small, local initiatives.
“Growing up, sustainability was something our generation always talked about – at school and with friends,” says Rajvi, now 19. “We were exposed to sustainability issues quite early on, and those conversations about climate change and social responsibility stayed with me.”
When she began considering her next steps after completing her A levels, Rajvi initially thought about studying environmental science. However, conversations with her father opened her eyes to how businesses, with their vast reach and resources, can be powerful drivers of large-scale social and environmental change.
That insight led her to pursue a double degree in accountancy, and data science and artificial intelligence at Nanyang Technological University (NTU).
Accountancy, she explains, provides a clear window into how businesses operate, make decisions and allocate resources. Meanwhile, data science and artificial intelligence are increasingly critical in a world that is driven by scale, complexity and vast amounts of data.
“Together, these skills will allow me to understand how decisions are made, and how sustainability can be embedded into them in an impactful way,” she says.
For Rajvi, academic training alone was not enough. She wanted global exposure, strong networks and real-world perspectives alongside her studies.
Her goals drew her to the Nanyang Business School (NBS) Global Leaders programme (NGL), a signature scholars’ programme under the NTU Honours College. It is available to students enrolled in a four-year degree course at NBS.
Rajvi is among the inaugural group of 35 students in the newly introduced programme.
“I chose NGL because it allows me to differentiate myself in the job market, as well as for its comprehensive student development initiatives,” she says.
Explains programme director Matthew Dearth: “This new programme is tailored for high-achieving scholars who seek customised mentoring, training and experiences that will prepare them for the challenges of the global business landscape.”
Key to the scholarship are opportunities to build relevant skills, including a one-year overseas immersion at a leading US business school such as the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.
Scholars will also receive mentorship from senior business leaders, participate in industry workshops and engage in networking sessions while also working on community impact projects. “Being mentored by top business leaders while getting trained in leadership and communication skills can help me develop the know-how needed to thrive in today’s business world,” adds Rajvi.
“Being mentored by top business leaders while getting trained in leadership and communication skills can help me develop the know-how needed to thrive in today’s business world.”
– Rajvi Sapre, NBS Global Leaders programme scholar
Rajvi has just completed her first semester at NTU. As part of the curriculum, she and her coursemates visited the Bank of Singapore to learn more about wealth management, an area Rajvi found particularly useful as she had no prior experience in it.
Explains Dr Dearth: “By stepping beyond the classroom into immersive, real-world experiences, our students learn to think critically, lead with a global perspective and create meaningful impact.”
Adds Rajvi: “Our professor told us that some of the skills we will learn are things that senior executives wished they knew at the start of their careers.”
Rajvi is looking forward to continue tapping into the programme’s mentorship and overseas opportunities to better understand how sustainability plays out across industries, markets and cultural contexts.
In her second year, she and other scholars will embark on a one-week overseas trip to either China, India or a South-east Asian country to participate in a sustainability project.
“We will work directly with a company on real sustainability challenges,” says Rajvi. “It is a chance for me to learn how corporate sustainability actually works on the ground and to collaborate with people from different backgrounds, so I am really excited about it.”
