Oceans and Coasts
We work in India's oceanic islands and coasts with a broad mandate to understand the basic ecology and behaviour of these systems, how human communities interact with them, and the impact of disturbances — both regional and global — on this relationship.
Long-term monitoring and climate change
As coral reefs across the tropics succumb to increasingly frequent ocean warming events in the wake of global climate change, documenting the consequences of these events on reef communities and human communities alike, and their ability to resist and recover from these perturbations become critical. Our investigation in the Lakshadweep Archipelago and the Andaman & Nicobar Islands attempt to understand the factors that confer resilience to reefs and seagrasses and how in turn, they ensure the survivability of fragile oceanic islands.
Reef Accretion and Island Stability
We aim to understand how ecological processes in the coral reefs surrounding the islands in the Lakshadweep archipelago, along with human decisions on freshwater and land use, affect the geological stability and habitability of the islands.
Conflict and cooperation in the sea
Tropical coastlines are home to the highest density of people anywhere and they depend heavily on resources these waters provide. It is not unusual then that human communities interact with wild marine species
Species ecology and conservation
Understanding the basic biology and ecology necessary for their conservation and rational management