Extension Activities

EXTENSION ACTIVITIES

Dr. Jeni Padua is a researcher, environmentalist and social activist who dedicates her research to the environmental perils of her District, Kanyakumari. She engages herself in educating women on Environmental risk factors for Cancer and gives awareness on Plastic Poisoning and Radiation Poisoning which according to her research are two major risk factors for Cancer (Radiat Prot Dosimetry 156 (1): 42-48.doi:10.1093/rpd/nct035). She believes that research should not be confined to research centres or done for the sake of research publications, but rather be taken forth from LAB TO LAND to the public, for the betterment of the lives of the Women and Children of the Society.

Dr Jeni Padua is working as Asst. Professor in the Department of Zoology, Holy Cross College, Nagercoil. She is also an active environmentalist who proudly holds her position as the Joint Secretary of Friends for Nature Society, Kanyakumari, an organisation which works in liaison with the Kanyakumari District administration. She is constantly involved in Environmental Awareness Programmes, Cancer Awareness Campaigns and engages herself in delivering lectures and presentations for the conservation of nature and Entrepreneurship from natural resources, thereby upliftment of women in the society.

In par with men, she walked across 41 coastal villages of the District to study the radiation levels prevailing in the 2486 hamlets of these villages and correlated this with cancer prevalence.

As a biologist, she formulated preventive measures and started campaigning through radiotalks and public campaigns. Her campaigns and awareness programs were so intense that they won her “The Kanyakumari District Woman Achiever Award- 2017” and the ”Inspiring Woman Award”.

Her ardent desire to find a preventive medicine for Cancer, won her an invitation by the European Union, which awarded her the ERASMUS MUNDUS EUPHRATES research fellowship to conduct research along with Spanish Scientists on xenografting of cancer cells, morpholino microinjections, Drug targeting and drug delivery in human cancer cells using nanocarriers, etc., at the research centre of Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Lugo, Galicia.

It was a rare privilege that she was honored as the Visiting Researcher of the Zebrafish Research Centre of Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Spain and her profile is uploaded in the website (http://www.zebrabiores.com/jeni-chandar) of the University Research Centre.

Her radio talks on Plastic Poisoning and the effects of Natural Environmental Radiation were extremely effective that they were repeatedly telecast on AIR, FM 101, and spread on social media for the benefit of the underprivileged people of the coast for whom she suggested ways to escape the perils of Cancer.

She was awarded the Indian Science Academies’ Research Fellowship to conduct Gene-Editing using CRISPR/CAS9 Technology, one of the state-of-art technologies of the scientific field. Being the District Joint Secretary of FFNS, she works in liaison with the Kanyakumari District administration and is constantly involved in Cancer Awareness Campaigns, Environmental Awareness Programs, and engages herself in travelling miles to deliver lectures and presentations to women and children of the District.

Her “Quit Plastics Campaigns” were a huge success among thousands of school students who took an oath to refuse plastic carry bags, plastic lunch boxes and are involved in educating their families on the hazardous biological effects of plastics. The district administration requested her to give awareness lecture sessions to school teachers and head masters on Plastic Evasion and alternatives to plastics. She was featured in one page in the Rotary Bulletin as the Iron Butterfly of the District. She also works towards Communal Peace and Harmony, through International WPG and Thiruvarul Peravai.

She strongly believes that scientific research has to be taken forth to the women of the society, so that children would be educated through them, to become “Ambassadors of Societal Consciousness and Upliftment”… a Batallion of Soldiers who would fight towards a Better World… and a Better Global Society.