Harish Hande is a seasoned renewable energy entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience in addressing the energy needs of underserved communities. He is the founder of SELCO India, a pioneering rural energy enterprise established in the early 1990s, which focuses on providing last-mile energy solutions across India.

Born in Handattu, Udupi District, Karnataka, and raised in Rourkela, Odisha, Hande is a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur, and holds a Master's degree and PhD from the University of Massachusetts, USA.

In recognition of his efforts to drive development through sustainable energy, Hande was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 2011. Under his leadership, SELCO India has earned multiple accolades, including the Ashden Award for Sustainable Energy in 2005 and the Accenture Economic Development Award in the same year. SELCO won the Ashden Award again in 2007 for "Outstanding Achievement" in the energy sector, with the award presented by Al Gore, former Vice President of the United States.

Hande's contributions have been widely recognized. In 2007, he was named the Social Entrepreneur of the Year by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and the Nand & Jeet Khemka Foundation. Business Today included him in their list of "21 young leaders for India’s 21st century" in 2008, and later that year, India Today recognized him as one of the "50 pioneers of change" in India. Hande was also elected an Ashoka Fellow in 2008.

In 2011, Hande received the Magsaysay Award for his work in bringing solar power to India's rural poor, empowering them to become asset creators. He was also honored with the Karnataka Rajyotsava Prashasti by the Government of Karnataka in the same year.

In recognition of his outstanding achievements, the University of Massachusetts awarded him an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters in 2013, and in 2014, IIT Kharagpur presented him with the Distinguished Alumnus Award.