Ayesha Sarfraz

Dedicated environmental scientist with extensive experience in data analysis and community engagement. Bringing over a year of hands-on experience in climate modeling, grassroots initiatives, and environmental policy advocacy. Achievements include contributing to significant climate modeling projects with the USGS and leading community sustainability efforts.

Midwood Chapter Member at DRUM - Desis Rising Up and Moving, DRUM Beats (2023-07 – Present)

• Organizing grassroots initiatives & sustainability actions such as UN climate protests, citywide marches, & Climate Week.
• Supporting community mobilization and civic engagement efforts tied to social justice campaigns by conducting outreach calls, distributing materials, and promoting community participation.
• Community-building events to promote collective empowerment amongst diverse populations.

Physical Scientist Fellow at USGS Fellows Program | Pacific Coastal & Marine Science Center (2024-06 – 2024-12)

Physical scientist on USGS Coastal Storm Modeling System (CoSMoS) team on global climate model projects.

• Reviewed CoSMoS model outputs for Humboldt County & Flosup area flood duration and hazard projections in ArcGIS Pro; conducted QA/QC checks for model inconsistencies; documented and prepared findings in detailed reports.
• Helped finalize Humboldt County's coastal flood and hazard projections dataset.

Summer Data Science Intern at Rhodium Group (2023-06 – 2023-08)

Data science intern on Climate Impacts team on wildfire literature research and climate modeling software projects

• Contributed to wildfire damage research on Social Cost of Carbon through detailed literature review.
• Modified wrapper code flexibility and executability for Finite Amplitude Impulse Response climate model.

Climate Policy Fellow at Colin Powell School's Climate Policy Fellows Program (2022-08 – 2023-08)

• Participated in intensive policy-related workshops led by a range of national and international climate policy leaders.
• Attended climate-related events and practiced writing professional business memos.
• Worked with co-fellows on a group project about a proposed policy solution for an industrial environmental problem.

Summer Research Mentor at Hudson River Park Trust (2022-07 – 2022-08)

Undergrad research mentor for high school students in the Science Leadership Program at Hudson River Park.

• Collaborated on microplastic pollution research; prepared research materials; organized and supervised trips, activities, and discussions; documented and maintained summary reports.
• Managed student scheduling and communications via email; coordinated meetings, reminders, and feedback/progress reports. Regular outreach to external partners via Zoom, phone calls, and emails.
• Aggregated and analyzed student data via Excel; produced scientific research report and presentation poster detailing the impact of microplastic pollution on wildlife health and ecosystem sustainability.

Bachelor of Science in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences – City College of New York (2024-06)