Stefanos is an environmental economist by training with focus on water resources and climate change aspects. He initially acquired a 3-years of postdoctoral experience in India and Ethiopia as astaff member of the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). Subsequently, Stefanos did research on climate change and agriculture in South Asia, based at the Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy (NIBIO), and worked as Head of the Water and Energy Security Unit at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Office in Tajikistan.

Before joining Nazarbayev University, he was a Senior Researcher in University of Central Asia leading activities on water-energy-food and environment nexus in the region. He is Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Central Asian Journal of Water Research (CAJWR) while he is a committee member of the International Water Association’s Specialist Group on Statistics and Economics.