Welcome to my personal webpage!

I am currently affiliated as an Associate Professor of Sustainability Science at the Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India. I was the Founding Chair of the Agroecosystem Specialist Group ((2016-2024) of the Commission on Ecosystem Management (CEM), International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Switzerland. My research interest lies primarily in the area of exploring ecological solutions for sustainability and thereby achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs). Specifically, I am interested in the restoration of marginal and degraded lands for regaining ecosystem services and resilience, sustainable utilization of ago-biodiversity (i.e., lesser-utilized wild and neglected plants) for food and nutrition security, pollution in agricultural systems (pesticides and plastics), nature-based solutions, ecosystem-based adaptations for climate-resilient and planet-healthy food production, and urban ecology and complexity. I am also interested in policy research and realignment, sustainability analysis, sustainability indicators, circular economy principles, and localization of the UN-SDGs. It is an honor for me to serve as the founding Editor-in-Chief of Anthropocene Science at Springer Nature and also to serve on the Editorial Boards of leading journals in Ecology, Environment, and Sustainability at leading publishers like Wiley, Elsevier, and Springer Nature. I have visited Sao Paulo State University, Brazil; Beijing Normal University, China; and the University of Sharjah, UAE, as a visiting professor for short stints and taught courses for Masters and PhD students. I have been selected as an Associate Fellow of the Indian National Science Academy (INSA) and elected as a Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences, India (FNASc) and the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (FNAAS). I have also received other prestigious awards/recognitions during my early careear stage, like the INSA Medal for Young Scientist, the NASI-Platinum Jubilee Young Scientist Award, the ICAR-Lal Bahadur Shastri Young Scientist Award, the HIYOSHI Young Ecologist Award,  selection as a Member of the National Academy of Sciences, India (MNASc), Associateship of the National Academy of Agrciultural Sciences, Founding Member of the Indian National Young Academy of Science (INYAS), constituted by INSA, and the Malviya Memorial Young Faculty Award of BRSI. I have been involved with various UN agencies (UN-IPBES, IRP-UNEP, UNDP-BES Network, IPCC, UNCCD), and other international organizations such as APN, GLP, and IUCN Commissions (CEM, CEC, CEESP, and SSC) for fostering global sustainability. I have also visited the USA, the UK, Japan, China, Brazil, and the UAE for academic and research purposes.