research statement
As a political ecologist focused on the coastline and waters of the Indian Ocean I undertake critical research about the socio-economic structures and power relations that simultaneously drive ecological collapse and economic dispossession.
I'm interested in the dynamics between people and nature, society and state, science and society, development and biodiversity conservation and its linkages to the transformation of land-seascapes.
My research process is rooted in the practice of bringing several disciplines into conversation with each other, the specific attributes of each that I employ is detailed below:
Fisheries
Unpacking the complexity of the Indian Fisheries sector in terms of its immense cultural and ecological heterogeneity is a major point of focus of my research. To this end, I currently work closely with fisher associations, unions and support networks to understand the change face of ocean governance under the new Blue Economy paradigm.
Poltical Ecology
Oceans are recognised the next and possibly last frontier for capitalism. Through the lens of political ecology my research is enriched in being able to read structural causes of "sustainable development" rendering poverty, deepening existing forces of oppression in social relations of class, caste, gender, ethicity.
Science and Technology Studies
Modern science holds the hegemony over most other forms of knowledge. Consequently it wields the power to shape society and culture. Today technology is seen as a solution to majority of problems from the climate crisis, health, poverty, hunger, and education etc. STS allows for a critical view to examine the ethics, politics, pitfalls and risks of a world shaped by scientific solutions alone.
Anthropology of Biodiversity Conservation
Im interested in the role of biodiversity conservation in the context of a rapidly transforming nature-culture relations, where it plays huge role in prescribing specific values (in economic and cultural terms) on the environment. I draw significantly from critical studies of neoliberal conservation and science and technology studies.
Law and Public Policy of Ocean Governance
I examine public policy, laws, regulatory mechanisms at the international, national and state level of Ocean Governance. Often I see them as factors in a longer socio-historical process of 'place-making'. This involves close examination of state institutions, supranational international agencies, and more normative forms of local resource governance.