As a student at Stanford University, Adarsha Shivakumar is an environmental enthusiast. He recognized the complex relationship between the environment and rural Indian economy as an adolescent and cofounded Project Jatropha. Project Jatropha is an international nonprofit dedicated to promoting the plant jatropha curcas as an ecologically friendly and economically sustainable source of biofuel. The organization aims to demonstrate the commitment of the youth in developed countries to environmental issues that affect developing nations as well.

Shivakumar has won several national and international awards such as the Gloria Barron prize, the Brower Youth award, the International Young Eco Hero Award, and the Teens For Planet Earth Gold Service Award.