People Page

I take a multidisciplinary approach to climate change research, spanning the physics, ecology and economics of climate change. At NIAS, I am with the Energy, Environment and Climate Change Programme of the School of Natural Sciences and Engineering. My formal educational background comprises a Master of Science in Physics from the University of Mysore and a Master of Science in Climate Change and Sustainability Studies from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. I have also benefited greatly in my learning journey from my engagement with social movements and extensive on-ground fieldwork. I have worked on research projects at the Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Chennai, where I did my dissertation in nonlinear dynamics and at the National Institute of Biological Sciences, Bangalore where I studied trends in bioclimatic variables in different forest biomes of India.

My doctoral research focuses on the interlinkages between land use change and climate change, with both science and policy components- the representation of land use change processes in earth system models, and the development of future land use scenarios focused on equity. Apart from the specific topic of my PhD dissertation, I am interested in climate change impacts in the Himalayan mountain region, development of early warning systems for flood and heat extremes, and Global South perspectives in international climate change negotiations. Along with my academic work, I also enjoy mountaineering, cycling, running and working on english-kannada nonfiction translations.

Mr. Prasanna Khanvilkar is a doctoral student in the School of Humanities at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), conducting research on donative patronage during the early historical Western Deccan. He holds a Master's degree in Ancient Indian Heritage Culture & Archaeology from Deccan College Post-Graduate Research Institute, Pune. His professional experience includes serving as a Research Assistant in the Department of Palaeography, Epigraphy & Numismatics at the Indian Institute of Heritage, Noida (Formerly National Museum Institute), and working as a research intern on the Government of India's Department of Science and Technology project on "Scientific Investigation, Digital Documentation and Conservation of Petroglyphs of Konkan."

His research interests include Ancient Indian History and Culture, ancient and medieval Indian scripts, and environmental archaeology.

Dr. Ravi Bhandari is a distinguished economist whose extensive career has been marked by a relentless pursuit of knowledge and an impact on the world of economics. For over three decades, he has been at the forefront of teaching economic development, international financial markets, and world economic history.

Professor Ravi has taught these subjects at the leading universities around the world where he has earned accolades as an exceptional educator, consistently winning the best teacher award for his outstanding contributions to learning across the social sciences. 

His commitment to excellence transcends borders as he shares a wealth of knowledge with colleagues and students across the globe, teaching and conducting research in a number of countries including India, Nepal, Greece, Costa Rica, and the United States.

Beyond the classroom, Ravi’s  global foresight and analytical insights have earned him widespread international recognition. His timely warnings on economic crises – from the Asian currency crisis of 1997 to the global crisis of 2001 to the Great Recession 2007/2008 —  solidified his reputation in the field. 

Professor Ravi current research focuses on the unholy alliance of the unraveling global debt crisis, retaliatory tariffs/sanctions, and the epic AI bubble. Professionally, he advises clients on how best to avoid and hedge against the upcoming Global Depression, what he calls the mother of all crashes.

AVM Pawan Kumar graduated from National Defence Academy in 1988 and was commissioned as a Fighter Pilot in Indian Air Force in June 1989. The Air Officer has more than 3000 hours of accident-free flying and has flown Hunters, Jaguars and MIG-27s. He has had an illustrious career with various important assignments in service and been part of all the important courses and exercises in India and abroad. He was also Defence Attache to Czech Republic with concurrent accreditation to Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Serbia, Bulgaria and Greece. He played a major role in various bilateral / Multilateral engagements including various exercises with friendly foreign countries.
Air Vice Marshal Pawan Kumar served as Director General, Defence Space Agency before superannuating on 31 Aug 25. As DG Defence Space Agency, he was instrumental in formulation of Military Space Doctrine and handled all aspects related to space surveillance, communication, PNT, SSA and space weather amongst others.

I am a field-based ecologist and cognitive biologist working at the intersection of animal behaviour, cognition, and conservation. My research seeks to answer a central question: “How are animals adapting to anthropogenic stressors?” By integrating behavioural and cognitive insights with ecological perspectives, I aim to develop context-specific strategies for conserving biodiversity and sustaining ecosystem services in landscapes undergoing rapid urbanization, climate change, and agricultural intensification.

My work spans multiple taxa, including amphibians, reptiles, crows, owls, mammals, and non-human primates, and explores how animals do what they do in environments increasingly shaped by human activity.

Some of my ongoing projects include:

1. Primate novel use of tools and strategies in response to human food provisioning

2. House crow adaptation to urban habitats

3. Amphibian personality in urban environment

4. Herpetofauna ecology and roadkill prevention

5. Ecosystem services and adaptive pest management

6. Mammal ecology and conservation

7. Recovering traditional strategies for human-wildlife coexistence

I am an Assistant Professor at the Centre for Urban Ecology, Biodiversity, Evolution, and Climate Change at Jain University, Bengaluru, India, where I lead the Animal Behaviour and Cognition in Conservation (ABCC) research group. Through my research and mentorship, I strive to bridge fundamental science with applied conservation.

Malini Mallikarjun graduated from the National Law School of India University, Bengaluru, in 1995.

For over 20 years, she worked with international accounting firms such as Arthur Andersen and Ernst & Young; she also spent 10+  years as a senior founding member of BMR Advisors, a homegrown entrepreneurial professional services firm. During this time, Malini advised companies from diverse sectors such as manufacturing, infrastructure, media and power generation on indirect tax and regulatory matters. She also represented clients and industry bodies before adjudicating and policy making authorities.

9 years ago, looking for a career in the impact space, Malini joined the Leadership team of the Piramal Foundation. Here, she was a founding team member of the Systems Transformation Program which was aimed at enabling better service delivery by public systems in India. In this role, Malini worked with the Niti Aayog and the State bureaucratic leadership of 5-6 states specifically on improving primary education and public health outcomes in the states; pilots were also launched to better enable access of land rights by marginalised communities. She also launched a specific initiative to provide holistic solutions including policy advisory, process re-engineering and technology solutions, to reduce the litigation burden of State Governments.

In this role, Malini established partnerships with technical partners and other civil society organisations in order to assist States in deploying a multi-pronged approach to solving what are clearly complex societal challenges; she also led large teams to roll-out the initiatives and undertake necessary field work.

Over the 18 months, Malini has also worked with the office of the Advocate General of Karnataka to help improve efficacy of the Government litigation management platform deployed in the state.

In NIAS, she leads BhuSampada, a Centre focussed on undertaking field action research on governance of land and natural resources. 

BhuSampada is an action research center that will work at the inter-section of land, climate resilience, and the attendant governance structures and processes. 

It is BhuSampada's belief that given the intersection between these areas and the inherent challenges in the attendant legal and institutional framework, it is imperative that field led and evidence-based findings are brought to the efforts in policy making. This is best done by an independent agency which can blend both academic rigour and field experience; an agency that collaborates with both grassroots communities and government policymakers to discern the changes that are necessary both in policy and practice. This is the role that BhuSampada hopes to play and to contribute towards shifting legal and institutional systems in a manner that can benefit hundreds of thousands, if not millions of India's poorest citizens while also reducing the strain on governance structures and processes.