Shilpi Chhotray (she/her) is an award-winning advocate, journalist, and forthcoming OR Books author dedicated to advancing climate and environmental justice. As the Co-Founder and President of Counterstream Media, she leads the organization's strategy, fundraising, and storytelling initiatives that cover frontline voices and strengthen movement organizing.
Shilpi is also the host of A People's Climate for The Nation, where she interviews community organizers, legal strategists, and cultural workers shaping the future of the climate movement. Her writing has been published in The Guardian, Nonprofit Quarterly, Prism, and The Nation, with commentary in The New York Times, NPR, Rolling Stone, BBC, ABC, NBC, and Al Jazeera. She is also the Executive Producer of Peace & Riot, Counterstream’s digital magazine.
With nearly 15 years of experience, Shilpi's work spans global campaigns on plastic pollution, narrative strategy across social movements, and the creation of media platforms that challenge extractive systems. Prior to founding Counterstream Media, she served as the Global Communications Lead for Break Free From Plastic, where she played a foundational role in movement-building — establishing and leading its communications hub while campaigning on plastic reduction policy at local, federal, and international levels. She also worked at Mission Blue/Sylvia Earle Alliance, where she guest-authored for National Geographic.
Shilpi is also the creator and host of the five-season People over Plastic podcast, which helped shape Counterstream's storytelling work today. She holds a Master’s Degree in Earth and Environmental Resources Management from the University of South Carolina and a Bachelor’s of Science in Environmental Policy and Planning from Virginia Tech University.
She is the recipient of the 2026 Hari Kondabolu Award for South Asian Excellence in Audio Storytelling and a 2025 Rachel's Network Catalyst finalist. A People's Climate won Best in Society & Culture at the 2026 NYC Podcast Awards and was nominated for a Webby.
She lives in Oakland, California, on Ohlone land with her family.