Asmita’s academic background encompasses a Bachelor’s degree in zoology, a Master’s degree in forestry and a Doctoral degree in ecology. Over the years, her research has chiefly developed along two (not mutually exclusive) trajectories: plant-animal interactions and human wildlife-interactions. She is particularly interested in understanding how the human-wildlife interface, in its multitude of forms, influences animal lives, human lives and ecosystems at large.
In recognition of her research that has quantified the impact of providing food subsidies to wildlife on their ecological functions, Asmita was awarded the Indian National Science Academy (INSA) Medal for Young Scientists in 2023; the medal is considered to be the highest recognition of promise, creativity and excellence in an early-career researcher. She has also been a National Postdoctoral Fellowship and a DST-INSPIRE Faculty Fellowship awardee.
In 2022, she was selected by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) as a Fellow and is currently engaged in the Transformative Change Assessment.
You can get to know more about her work here.