Pranesh Nellyadi

Pranesh Nellyadi is an Innovation Fellow at Project DEFY and Changeloom Fellow,  specializing in policy design and grassroots governance. He has contributed to the Karnataka and National Youth Manifestos, bridging grassroots voices with policymakers. 

As an NYCC Climate Champion from Karnataka, he has pioneered the first-ever Yuva-Panchayat model, enabling youth to engage directly in climate governance and local decision-making with his project - Voice of the Western Ghats. Leading workshops with over 100 youth across rural Karnataka, Pranesh has translated awareness into action, supporting campaigns with Gram Panchayats and farmers to address human-elephant Interactions.

His work is now scaling through the Becoming Earth Foundation, with initiatives like P.E.A.C.E. (People and Elephant Action for Coexistence and Ecology). Focused on climate governance, biodiversity, and sustainable livelihoods, Pranesh is building a youth-led movement across the Western Ghats, with NYCC serving as a key platform to catalyze this momentum.