Gabriel Azevedo is a recipient of the Mosonyi Award for Excellence in Hydropower, an award that recognises individuals within IHA's membership for outstanding contributions to the sector. In this interview, he talks about his career in sustainable hydropower, his values and motivations, and what the award means to him.

Gabriel was a recipient of the award in 2015, recognising his work as an active advocate for sustainable hydropower for over two decades. His contributions to advancing sustainable hydropower range from influencing public policy improvements in different countries, to pioneering sustainable solutions for hydropower on the ground.

Gabriel is currently division chief for environment, social and corporate governance at the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC). At the time of the award, he worked for Odebrecht Engineering and Construction, and has also worked for international organisations such as the World Bank and WWF.

Throughout his career, he has consistently promoted hydropower as a key driver for sustainable development. He has been able to influence policies and strategies to promote sustainable hydropower in a wide range of institutions at key grounds of modern society – governments and multilateral agencies through his work at the World Bank, international NGO network, as a senior leader at WWF, and in the private sector as corporate sustainability director at a major international hydropower developer.

The Mosonyi Award for Excellence in Hydropower is open for 2017 candidate proposals until the end of December 2016. You can find out how to propose a candidate here.