People Page

Dr. Sanjay K. Srivastava is the S. Radhakrishnan Chair Professor at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS).

Until July 2025, he served as Chief of Disaster Risk Reduction at the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), leading regional initiatives linking science, policy, and technology for resilience. He directed the Asia-Pacific Disaster Report and the Risk and Resilience Portal, supporting national DRR and adaptation strategies.

Previously, he held leadership roles at ISRO and the SAARC Disaster Management Centre, advancing the use of space-based technologies for disaster management.

A recipient of ESCAP Innovation Awards (2022, 2024) and ISRO’s Team Excellence Award, he has authored 150+ publications and contributed to major UN and WMO climate reports. He holds a Ph.D. in Remote Sensing and an Executive Certificate in Digital Transformation from UC Berkeley.

Raghu Ananthanarayanan  is a direct disciple of Yogachaarya Krishnamaachaarya and his son  Shri TKV Desikachar and has spent more than a decade in deep study of the Yoga Shastras with them. He has also benefitted from a long association with J. Krishnamurti and Prof. Pulin K. Garg (IIM Ahmedabad). Raghu is also a post-Graduate in Engineering from IIT Madras. 

Raghu, has delved deeply into Yoga and Behavioural Sciences to develop a unique approach to personal unfolding and organizational transformation called “Citta Vidya”.   “Citta Vidya” brings together his understanding of Antaranga Yoga, Human Processes, Theatre and Dance. He has applied this in organizations through a model called the “Tensegrity Mandala”. He has pioneered the use of traditional theatre and the Mahabharata in experiential learning, Leadership Development and Coaching. Raghu has devoted almost four decades to transforming organizational cultures across the spectrum from grass roots developmental organizations to modern industrial organizations.

Raghu has authored several books: Learning Through Yoga; Anataranga Yoga- The Foundation of Indian Psychology and The 5 Seats of Power Learning Through Yoga, The Totally Aligned Organization, Leadership Dharma, Arjuna the Timeless Metaphor, Organizational Development and Alignment: The Tensegrity Mandala (as co-author with Gagandeep Singh). Raghu is engaged in designing an advanced leadership  development and inner transformation based on Indic Wisdom. He is in the process of creating the Centre for Citta VidyA and Indian Psychology in collaboration with the National Institute of Advanced Studies (Bangalore). Currently his wife Sashi and he, donning their role as Chief Mentors are working on nurturing people on a Dharmic Quest at Ritambhara Ashram, situated in the beautiful Nilagiris.

Dr Arshiya Bose is a Human Geographer whose work bridges rigorous academic inquiry with hands‑on conservation practice. She holds a PhD in Geography from the University of Cambridge, UK, where her doctoral research examined market incentives for biodiversity conservation, using sustainability certifications in the coffee sector as a critical lens. Following her doctorate, she was appointed to a Post‑Doctoral Fellowship at ETH‑Zurich, deepening her expertise in agroecological systems and participatory research methodologies.
In 2016, Arshiya founded Black Baza Coffee, a social and conservation enterprise operating in India’s Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot. Over nearly a decade, she has developed and refined a participatory model that engages smallholder producers to restore native tree species on their coffee farms, protect local ecosystems, reduce household debt and strengthen rural livelihoods. This pioneering work earned Black Baza Coffee the Specialty Coffee Association’s Global Sustainability Award in 2025—the first and only Indian organisation to receive this honour. Arshiya is an Acumen Fellow, a National Geographic Explorer and Associate Director of Kinship Conservation Fellows. She holds Coffee Quality Institute's accreditation as a Post‑Harvest Processing Professional and serves as a Lecturer in Post‑Harvest Processing. Her academic and practice interests focus on co‑designing market‑based solutions that deliver tangible social, economic and ecological benefits for smallholder producers and the landscapes they steward.

Dr. R. Natarajan, a Chemical Engineer, joined the Department of Atomic Energy in 1975 and held the post of Director of Reprocessing Group and Project Director of Fast Reactor Fuel Cycle Facility in Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research. Under his leadership, the radioactive hot cell  facility, for establishing the process technology for the reprocessing of fast reactor fuels, was designed, erected and commissioned. He led the team that has successfully completed the reprocessing of plutonium rich fast reactor spent fuel from FBTR (Fast Breeder Test Reactor), which was highly irradiated, which is an international benchmark. This technology is being exploited for the fleet of fast reactors that are being set up in the country now. He was also responsible for the R&D activities of fast reactor fuel reprocessing and scaling up for the medium size demonstration plant as well as the commercial size fuel reprocessing plants. He was also instrumental in the recovery of the Uranium by reprocessing the irradiated thorium, facilitating thorium utilisation in the country. Thus his contributions are vital for the country in attaining self sufficiency, in both the Uranium-plutonium and the Thorium-Uranium reprocessing technologies.

He has over hundred technical presentations and publications to his credit. He has won the prestigious NOCIL Award for Excellence in Design and Development of Process Plant and Equipment for the year 2005 for his contribution in the development of fast reactor fuel reprocessing. He is also the recipient of Indian Nuclear Society's INS award for the year 2006 for his contributions in Nuclear Fuel Cycle technologies. He was awarded the prestigious VASVIK award for the year 2014. He is a fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering and honorary fellow of the Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers.

Dr P Sasidhar is an Environmental Scientist with 40+ years of experience in hazardous and radioactive waste management, environmental impact assessment, groundwater modelling, and sustainability studies. Extensive contributions to safety assessment, remediation technologies, and regulatory compliance for nuclear and industrial facilities.

Education • Ph.D. (Environmental Science/Chemistry), Anna University, 1995 • M.Phil. (Chemistry/Spectroscopy), University of Hyderabad, 1977 • M.Sc., B.Sc. (Chemistry), Osmania University, 1975 & 1973

Certificate Courses: • Disasters and Ecosystems: Resilience in a Changing Climate – Diversity GmbH (2015) • Introductory e-Course on Climate Change – UN CC:Learn & UNITAR (2015) • AI for All: From Basics to GenAI Practice – NVIDIA Academy (2025)

Professional Experience • Scientific Officer (B–G), Dept. of Atomic Energy (BARC, AERB), 1977–2012 – Research in waste treatment, radionuclide migration modelling, environmental safety. • Senior Scientist, IIT Madras – Indo-German Centre for Sustainability, 2013–2017 – Projects on climate change and ecological resilience. • Senior Scientist, Stratus Environmental Inc., 2017–2019 – Groundwater remediation and site assessment studies.

Key Contributions • Developed numerical models for radionuclide migration and site performance assessment (IAEA projects: NSARS, ASAM). • Guided 4 Ph.D. and multiple PG/M.Tech. scholars. • Expertise in Remote Sensing & GIS, Bio-treatment, and Waste-to-Energy studies. • Published ~50 papers; delivered 70+ conference presentations

Paavana P. Varma is a doctoral student in the School of Natural Sciences and Engineering. She is working with the Energy, Environment and Climate Change Programme. Her research explores the concept of charisma in conservation, examining how narratives about nature and species shape human perceptions, ethics, and relationships with the environment. Her research interests include environmental humanities, conservation narratives, human–nature relationships, affect studies, and interdisciplinary approaches to the Anthropocene.

Rupsa Karmakar is a PhD student at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (School of Humanities), Bengaluru, whose research involves archaeometallurgy, indigenous smelting, the history and the processes of metal crafting technology, ethnoarchaeology, and preservation of both tangible and intangible heritages in India. She holds an M.Sc. In Anthropology with a specialization in Paleoanthropology-Prehistoric Archaeology and a B.Sc. in Anthropology from the University of Calcutta.

Manikranth Chakravarthula is a doctoral student at the Conflict Resolution and Peace Research Programme, School of Conflict and Security Studies, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bengaluru. He holds a Master’s degree in Conflict Analysis and Peacebuilding from Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and History from Hindu College, University of Delhi. His research interests centre on political violence and peacebuilding in South Asia, with a focus on Indian approaches, state responses, and the role of civil society in negotiating state-society relations in conflict and post-conflict contexts