Vilas Annavarapu is going to China to learn how to alleviate poverty and build a clean-energy economy.
Annavarapu, a 2020 politics honors graduate from the University of Virginia, is now the University’s latest Schwarzman Scholar. He joins 150 scholars from 105 universities in 38 countries in attending a one-year, fully funded master’s degree program in global affairs at Schwarzman College, part of Tsinghua University in Beijing.
“My interests lie at the intersection of grassroots economic development and climate,” Annavarapu said. “As a Schwarzman Scholar, I plan to deepen my knowledge of business and energy policy so we can transition away from fossil fuels while moving people out of poverty. I’m passionate about building a clean-energy economy that works for all people and will pursue those goals through public office.”
Annavarapu, a Delaware native now living in Jackson, Mississippi, said China offers two case studies – widespread alleviation of extreme poverty and massive deployment of clean energy technologies.
“When I was in the classroom, I saw the way poverty prevents extraordinary young people from reaching their full potential,” Annavarapu said, “I’ve also seen how autonomy and ownership activate their passions. I want to understand what made China successful and translate relevant lessons to the United States.”
After graduating from UVA, Annavarapu taught at Blackburn Middle School in Jackson, Mississippi where he co-founded the nonprofit Riverside Collective. He received a master’s degree in teaching from the University of Mississippi in 2022 and then began a career in climate and environmental justice at the Great Plains Institute while growing Riverside.
“Three years later, Riverside is an after-school social entrepreneurship program designed to show middle and high school students how to use their power to impact immediate change in South Jackson,” he said. “We’re launching a worker-owned coffeehouse where student and community workers make decisions democratically, distribute profits equitably, and generate wealth locally.”
The co-founder of the Riverside Collective, Annavarapu works with middle and high school students in Jackson, Mississippi, on social entrepreneurship. From left are Provine High School students Niyona Braxton, Antonio Ramirez, Annavarapu, D’Nickolas Perry and J’Amber Griffin. (Photo contributed by Riverside Collective)
Lawrie Balfour, UVA’s James Hart Professor of Politics, first met Annavarapu when he was a second-year student. She was impressed enough that she admitted him to a graduate seminar.
“Vilas was a star,” Balfour said, “Vilas is one of the most intellectually and politically astute students I have known in more than 20 years at UVA. It was a delight to teach and to learn from him, and I was thrilled to advise his politics honors thesis.”
Ben Skipper, vice president of the Jefferson Scholars Foundation and director of the Jefferson Scholars program and alumni relations, said Annavarapu’s strongest character trait is commitment.
“Vilas’ willingness to lead from the front is testament to the strength of his convictions, especially when dealing with issues that directly impact the communities in which he resides,” Skipper said.
“Vilas is among the humblest students with whom I have interacted during my time at UVA,” Andrus G. Ashoo, director of the Office of Citizen Scholar Development, said. “Unafraid of challenging circumstances or critical feedback, he navigates life with his curiosity and desire to get to know people, especially those with whom he might have very little in common. He is a great addition to any community.”
While at UVA, Annavarapu was a Jefferson Scholar, an Echols Scholar, a Lawn resident, a Raven Society member, a Center for Global Health Scholar, a senior resident of Brown Residential College, chair of the Asian Leaders Council and a member of the Jefferson Literary and Debate Society
