I am a Ph.D. student in Integrative Conservation at the Department of Anthropology, University of Georgia. I received my Masters in Environment and Development from the School of Human Ecology, Ambedkar University Delhi in 2016, and my Bachelors in Commerce (Honors) from the University of Delhi in 2012. My master's thesis focused on the spatial response of a wild herbivore species, kiang (Equus kiang), to a nomadic-pastoral-indigenous community, Changpas, in the Rhupshu region (Changthang) in Ladakh. I worked on a project titled "Development of Landscape Management Plan and Monitoring with Reference to Ken-Betwa River Link Project, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh" at the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) at the Landscape Ecology and Visualization Lab (LEV-L) from 2018 to 2021. My role was to design a Community Engagement Plan in a 47,620 sq km area in and around protected areas in the Panna landscape, where I investigated socioeconomic situations, forest dependency, and human-wildlife interactions.​ My broad research interests include human-wildlife interactions, social and political ecology, and cultural and environmental anthropology, with a focus on people's attitudes toward wildlife, local institutions, resource/space use, and quantification of ecological, economic, and sociological factors in order to develop mitigation strategies. I'm interested in comprehending how interdisciplinary methods challenge traditional planning practices and archaic conservation policies. I find it intriguing to question if human-wildlife tolerance is by choice or is the only way of negotiation? Prior to joining WII, I also worked at the Centre for Urban Ecology and Sustainability (AUD) on an ecological restoration project amidst Delhi's concretization, as well as on the representations of a wild herbivore species called Nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus) in Delhi's urban parks and rural villages. My study focuses on human and non-human space usage in a diverse environments, including cold deserts, urban settings, and forested areas, and I use regional and landscape approaches to build a more convivial world.
Projects
Portfolio of Work
Acknowledgements
(Funding Sources)
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SPECIES CONSERVATION
Wolf Conservation Initiative-India
Independent Project, A virtual initiative to advocate wolf conservation in the Indian subcontinent https://www.facebook.com/wolfconservationinitiativeindia
Landscape Planning & Management
Project: Development of Landscape Management Plan and Monitoring with reference to Ken-Betwa River Link Project in Panna Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh
Role: Development of Community Engagement Plan for Greater Panna Landscape, Central India
Human-Wildlife Interactions
Project: Habitat use interactions between kiang and Changpas in Tsokar Basin, Ladakh
Master's Dissertation Research: The goal was to investigate the human-wildlife conflict debate by looking at the interaction between a wildlife herbivore species, Kiang, and a local nomadic pastoral community, the Changpas.
WILDLIFE REPRESENTATION IN CITIES
Project: Representations of a Large Bodied Mammal Nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus) in India
Independent Project: The goal is to study what ecological and sociological representations emerge of a large-bodied herbivore species, Nilgai, due to rapid habitat destruction and changing political scenarios in India.
ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION
Project: Dheerpur Wetland Restoration Project
I worked at the Centre for Urban Ecology & Sustainability, Ambedkar University Delhi for this project. Learn and explore more about Dheerpur Wetlant Park at: Dheerpur Wetland Project
Project: Ecological Restoration around Kanha National Park, India
I worked at the Network for Conserving Central India (NCCI) as an intern for this project. The purpose of this study was to understand the restoration approached of the identified restoration efforts around Kanha
Get in Touch
Office: 252B,
Department of Anthropology
355 South Jackson Street
Baldwin Hall Room 250
University of Georgia
Athens, GA 30602