Ipek is Associate Director in the Sustainable Finance program, where she focuses on the role of the public sector in mobilizing and shifting finance to align with climate goals.

Before joining ClimateWorks, Ipek spent nine years in the Climate and Sustainability Program at the global affairs think tank ODI (formerly Overseas Development Institute), most recently as Program Director. She led programs of work on energy transitions in various sectors, on shifting public finance away from fossil fuels, and on green skills and labor mobility. She contributed extensively to the organizational, business development and communications strategies of ODI. She also co-led research and engagement for the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate, which included a period of secondment to the World Resources Institute. This research brought together evidence on the economic benefits of climate-compatible development in energy, cities and land use.

Her research spans projects in low and middle-income countries, including Colombia, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Nigeria and Turkey, as well as key international fora such as the G7 and the G20.

Ipek has an MSc in Political Theory and a BSc in Philosophy and Economics, both from the London School of Economics, and a Certificate in Global Philanthropy and NGOs from New York University.