Turning the Impossible into the Possible at Johns Hopkins

Published May 2, 2025

For Dr. Venera N. Anderson, connecting the dots between her diverse professional experiences and her lifelong mission to solve global sustainability challenges was a dream she once considered “impossible.”

But today, as she prepares for the official graduation ceremony in May 2025 to obtain her Master of Science in Energy Policy and Climate degree from Johns Hopkins University’s Advanced Academic Programs division, that dream is becoming a reality.

“Uncertainty is the best time to pursue ‘impossible’ dreams,” Anderson said, reflecting on her decision to apply to JHU in 2021 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Anderson graduated in December 2024, with a perfect 4.0 GPA, and completed most of her coursework online. She said the program’s flexibility was critical as she navigated a global career shift.

“The passage of the U.S. Energy Act of 2020 reignited my goal to deeply understand energy transitions and solutions,” she said. “Hopkins gave me the tools to do just that.”

Anderson brought a rich portfolio to the program: a former Wall Street executive at Salomon Smith Barney, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and Credit Suisse; a Harvard MBA, and a PhD in Economic Theory from a Eurasian university. She is now an independent global strategy advisor, published author, and speaker on sustainability and climate issues. She creates and implements innovative solutions that address the world’s most pressing problems, such as climate change, economic development, and humanitarian challenges.

Anderson primarily focuses on international projects in the cleaner energy/tech sectors and proprietary analytical research. She is a Harvard Business Review Advisory Council member and an International Expert in “Women in Green Hydrogen.” Anderson is a co-author of the Touching Hydrogen Future book. She is also a co-author of five books, the author of The Fight Against Poverty in the BRICS Countries: Historical, Socio-Economic, and Political Aspects, and 25 scientific articles on poverty in transitional economies.

Anderson is also a Rotary International’s Paul Harris Fellow, a recipient of the USA President’s Volunteer Service Award for outstanding dedication to the mission of the American Red Cross, and a Global Ambassador for Savvitas, an influential and innovative think tank in the United Kingdom that seeks to boost women’s global economic power.

The Energy Policy and Climate graduate program at Johns Hopkins helped her synthesize those experiences into actionable impact.

“I was convinced that JHU’s innovative curriculum, renowned faculty, and global field studies would help me capitalize on the mosaic of my professional experiences and advance my career in the energy sector,” she said.

One of her academic journey highlights was an immersive field course in Europe in summer 2022, where she studied renewable energy and climate change projects in Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, and Sweden.

That hands-on learning, paired with mentorship from faculty such as Dr. Paul Sullivan and Dr. Daniel Zachary, propelled Anderson to publish her capstone thesis — “Green vs. Pink Hydrogen Production in Japan: A Partial Circular Economy Approach” — in a six-part series on illuminem, where she is a top-ranked global thought leader.

“The support from the JHU professors who encouraged me to apply the full range of my academic and professional experience was invaluable,” she said. “They helped me connect all the dots—economic, political, technical, social, and scientific—that make up the complex puzzle of energy transition.”

Her work has not gone unnoticed. Anderson has been recognized a Top Female Leader of 2025 by Mogul AI, illuminem’s Top 100 Global Female Sustainability Leader, #1 “Energy” Most-Read Global Thought Leader of the Year (2023), a Top 10 Most-Read Global Thought Leader of the Year in “Energy / Energy Transition / Hydrogen” (2022, 2023, and 2024), LinkedIn’s “Top Renewable Energy Voice” (2023-2024), and a 2024 Leadership Luminary Awardee by One Million Years of Joy.

Looking ahead, Anderson plans to continue building on her global sustainability work with what she calls her “ikigai”—the Japanese concept of finding purpose at the intersection of passion, talent, need, and livelihood.

“Sustainability is a multidimensional and nonlinear dilemma,” she said. “It requires multidimensional and nonlinear solutions. I plan to continue fostering international collaboration for sustainable value creation through the lens of the energy-water-food nexus, international security, and socioeconomic transformation.”

Her journey stands as a testament to resilience, vision, and the power of a well-connected education.

“It always seems impossible until it’s done,” Anderson said, quoting Nelson Mandela. “Hopkins helped me make it possible.”