CIERP Alumni Perspectives: A Conversation with Alfredo Ramirez
By Claudia Gago Ostos
Alfredo Ramirez, MALD ‘22
Alfredo was eight years old when he visited the Guri Dam in Bolivar, Venezuela, with his family. His grandfather, who had worked as a civil engineer at Corpoelec Venezuela, the country’s electricity provider, was the first to spark Alfredo’s interest in energy and the environment. The Guri Reservoir that supplies the dam is one of the largest on earth. And the hydroelectric power station was once the most significant worldwide in terms of installed capacity: the Guri Dam powers the adjacent hydroelectric power plant, one of the biggest in the world.
Alfredo Ramirez, a member of the Fletcher class of 2022, is an entrepreneur, digital strategist, and environmentalist. He is now co-founding his second company, Prosal, which helps nonprofits to create, share, and find partners for their RFPs (requests for proposals). In his free time, he plans to explore all of Colorado’s wonders and practice his snowboarding skills.
When Alfredo moved from Caracas to Miami, his family interchanged the mountains and countryside for the beaches and water springs around Florida. With each trip, his love for nature and the environment grew, and so did his understanding of the impact politics can have on one’s life. It is not hard to imagine that years later, we would find Alfredo finding a way to combine his passion for nature, his entrepreneurial spirit, and his desire to impact at The Fletcher school and beyond.
Growing up in Miami and witnessing the declining political and security situation in Venezuela opened Alfredo’s eyes to the impact governments can have on a person’s life . He understood this power and wanted to bring about change. Alfredo attended the University of Florida (UF), where he graduated with a Bachelor of Political Science and a Minor in Business Administration.
Alfredo at the Guri Dam in Bolivar, Venezuela
It did not take long for Alfredo’s entrepreneur gene to show up. During his time at UF, he developed his first business, ALRAS Academics, to provide academic advising and tutoring on diverse topics and even preparing incoming students for standardized admission testing. Through this opportunity, Alfredo got to measure his impact directly through his students’ progress, strengthening his desire to help others, see change, and create an impact. Goals he would continue to seek and achieve through his next endeavors.
Following his passion, he moved to Washington, DC, where he worked as an associate Digital campaigns manager in digital marketing for the League of Conservation Voters and Chispa, LCV’s Latino organizing arm. He helped launch a campaign called Clean Buses for Healthy Niños to urge U.S. governors to use federal money to invest in electric school buses for low-income communities that are disproportionately affected by air pollution. He organized Latino communities across the U.S. through digital grassroots organizing and outreach. Through this work, Alfredo revisited his love for nature and entrepreneurship.
Alfredo’s second company was ALRAS Digital, a fast-paced, flexible, and forward-thinking digital communications agency for mission-driven individuals and organizations. While Alfredo continued his work at Rational 360 and his own company, he was interested in pursuing his Master’s degree. This time he hoped to further explore and deepen his understanding of the energy sector and environmental justice works.
While looking for his next step, Alfredo was captivated by Fletcher’s alumni network, which led him to apply and attend The Fletcher School. The community and network building throughout classes, events, and hallway conversations are precisely what Alfredo found. As challenging as it was to start his Master’s fully remote because of Covid times, it did not stop him from making friends, joining the soccer and water polo teams, and reaching out to his professors for life advice.
Alfredo’s Fletcher experience was filled with essential connections and mentors, although certain classes genuinely shaped his time, like Professor Michael Glennon’s course on International Legal Order. It helped Fletcher students understand the International Relations system and its legal foundations, but most importantly, how to make changes within established institutions and systems. This was important to Alfredo because of his drive to make an impact.
As Alfredo was starting his MALD degree, he decided to co-found his second venture, Prosal, a procurement platform and marketplace that assists nonprofits in creating, sharing, and finding partners for their requests for proposals. And unsurprisingly, at Fletcher, he found the support network to explore, expand, and strengthen his business proposal, encountering open doors and supportive mentors in the community.
We are excited to see where Alfredo goes next as he pursues his passions and finds ways of exploring the intersection between environment, energy, and people. Hoping to create long-term impacts and amplify the benefits for the communities, and possibly expand his innovations to Latin America. ∎
Claudia Gago Ostos is a MALD candidate at the Fletcher School.