Event Calendar
Imagined Ecological Histories threaten India芒鈧劉s most widespread Biome
Environmental Studies Colloquium Series
- This event has passed.
Dear All,
The Department of Environmental Studies cordially invites you to the First colloquium in the Spring '26 Colloquium Series on Friday, 6 February 2026
Title: "Imagined Ecological Histories threaten India’s most widespread Biome"
Speaker: Dr. Ashish Nerlekar, Ramanujan fellow, IISER Pune
Time: 6:30 – 7:30 PM
Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/j/96122435289?pwd=AQe00rb1vK4uaooehLJhNdKJprXO4h.1
Abstract: Inaccurate ecological histories lead to ecosystem mismanagement–eventually exaggerating the global biodiversity crisis. Tropical savannas and grasslands are an ideal example to illustrate this problem, where romanticized ideas of a forested past are pervasive among policymakers and conservation biologists, and are causing massive biodiversity losses. In my talk, I will first focus on the much-debated origins of Indian savannas and provide several lines of evidence–ranging from nature descriptions in traditional literature to archival records and fossil plants and animals–that attest the antiquity of India's most widespread biome. Drawing from my past and ongoing field-based research in the savannas of Maharashtra, I will finally focus on the consequences of this misinterpretation for plant and bird communities, and make a case for why accurate ecological histories matter for halting the global biodiversity crisis.
Speaker's Bio: Dr. Ashish Nerlekar is a Ramanujan fellow at IISER Pune and studies the ecology of tropical savannas.
Looking forward to your active participation in the talk.
Warm regards,
Environmental Studies Department