Aprajit "Jeet" Desai

Aprajit “Jeet” Desai was born in Meerut, a city northeast of New Delhi near the Ganges River in India. From an early age, 德赛发现自己在科学取向的母亲和艺术取向的父亲之间寻求平衡. Desai opted to split the difference, 让他走上职业道路，用创造性的眼光探索宏观技术问题.

And heart.

他开玩笑说:“实际上，我的父母让我的DNA接受矛盾，并在极端情况下工作。. (Laughter and Desai go hand in hand.) “I always seek moderation.”

德赛在古吉拉特邦东南部城市艾哈迈达巴德上高中. 他获得了环境规划与技术中心的工程学学位, which offered an alternative approach to learning. Desai participated in street theater, protesting government policies, social taboos, high pressure standardized testing, and the Kargil War between India and Pakistan. 这些剧团突然出现在火车站和蔬菜市场, demanding attention for their causes.

For his final-year thesis, rather than choosing an engineering topic, 德赛专注于整个城市的运作方式，这让他的教授们感到震惊. 他的论文是关于艾哈迈达巴德的固体废物管理的，他因此获得了金牌. “如果我的房子很干净，但我的邻居很脏，那就行不通了，”他说.

2000年12月，在古吉拉特邦发生大地震前几周，德赛完成了他的大学学业，获得了工程学学位, killing 20,000 people and destroying some 350,000 structures. Desai signed on with Oxfam to help with the recovery. 他看到赤脚女孩在华氏120度的高温下徒手搬运巨大的石头. He saw people in trauma who remained thankful. Desai realized that everyone has something to offer, no matter their outward appearance or apparent status. 这次经历教会了他要始终保持学习渠道的畅通.

Six months later, Desai was on a plane to the United States. 在位于阿灵顿的德克萨斯大学攻读硕士学位并不容易，部分原因是文化冲击，部分原因是他身无分文. 吃拉面使德赛的体重从200磅降到了140磅. 就连花300美元买一辆地板是胶合板的汽车，用来买杂货和办事，都是一种负担.

然而，对汽车的依赖促使他在公共交通领域从事职业. 德赛的硕士项目探索了在阿灵顿提供公共交通的替代方案, the largest city in the United States without such a system. “And they are proud of it,” he said.

Desai met a young woman named Moumita. She was born in Nepal but raised in Jamaica and Belize. 一开始，他们的恋情充满挑战，因为他们有着不同的性格和背景. But they soon realized that being different is good, as it provides alternative perspectives, growth and evolution.

德赛的第一份全职工作是堪萨斯州威奇托市的交通规划师. 意识到他对公共交通的强烈兴趣后，一位朋友的推荐让他去了丹佛.

当他第一次走过16街购物中心时，德赛感到肃然起敬. He admired the wide sidewalks and the throngs of people. 他看着RTD商场将顾客从市中心的一端运送到另一端. 他兴奋地在城市的街道上逛了四个小时.

The sights and sounds of Denver were powerful and inspiring. 观看街头表演者“机器人人”让德赛想起了他在印度街头表演的日子. Desai knew he wanted to work in Denver. He remembered thinking: This was meant to be.

接受RTD的采访是一个非常激动人心的时刻，他在采访结束后拥抱了RTD的小组成员. “I was just so excited,” he recalled. “我得到这份工作后，他们还在取笑我的那些拥抱.”

德赛在RTD担任交通规划师的第一天是9月9日. 11, 2006.

德赛从事了8年的长期规划工作，然后转到工程领域, which led to the biggest challenge of his career. RTD内部越来越意识到，该机构应该运营通往桑顿的新13英里的N线，而不是把它交给丹佛运输合作伙伴公司, 经营科罗拉多大学A线的营利性特许经营公司, B Line and G Line.

“It was the fiscally responsible thing to do,” said Desai, 谁会相信同事亨利·斯托普莱坎普和艾伦·米勒的远见卓识. Desai considers them to be “brilliant mad geniuses.”

德赛的任务是负责运营和维护N线的各个方面. RTD “wanted to be self-reliant, but due to uncertainties and sensitive cost analysis, we had to keep our work under wraps,” he said. 有10,000个齿轮需要完全协同工作. 他回忆说:“我们对接下来的步骤很有把握，但当时一切都还停留在理论上。.

They presented the plan to the RTD Board in October 2017. At the same time, Desai was also taking his PE exam. 他和斯托普坎普、米勒一起全力以赴地工作, who were easily putting in 100-hour weeks. 内部操作方案显示了RTD的巨大成本节约. 经过对该提案的严格审查，董事会于2019年1月最终批准了该提案. 9月9日，N线作为RTD运营的内部部分投入使用. 21, 2020. This was a proud day for the agency.

如今，德赛是RTD资本项目的业务项目经理. 他会告诉你，这意味着每件事都做一点:积极倾听, providing council, facilitating teams with decision-making, or improving the transparency of capital programs.

德赛认为，他正在与公共交通领域的巨头合作. It’s “relationships that carry you through,” he said. “这是我过去的经历和这个职位教给我的. Build consensus. Listen. 接受新的想法，尤其是那些与你的观点相矛盾的想法. Build alliances. Take no shortcuts. All these things come into play every day,” he said.

德赛说:“我正在展示什么是RTD——我们不会放弃。. “You can knock us down, but you can never knock us out. We will learn, adapt and evolve.”

这种态度应该是一个叫, Aprajit, means “one who cannot be defeated.他说，他的父母教他接受这种世界观. “They told me that when you feel out of control, you can always control your outlook about your situation.”

奇怪的是，他的昵称在印地语中也有强大的含义.

Jeet means “victory.”