Fellows

Vinay Sankar
Fellow in Residence
Water and Society Program.

Vinay Sankar is a social scientist interested in Political Ecology and Pluralist Economics. He uses a mixed-methods approach to understand the commodification of commons like water, food and forests. After his PhD in the ‘Political Ecology of Small Freshwater Bodies in Central Kerala’ from BITS Pilani, Hyderabad Campus, he was briefly with Christ University, Bangalore, as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics. Before switching to academia, he worked in the development sector for four years, associated with the Foundation for Ecological Security (FES), Anand, and Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR), Pune.

Vinay was recently awarded, along with Sachin Tiwale, the ATREE Early Career Research Grant for the project titled “New Age Hydro-Agricultural Regime (NAHAR): Understanding Wastewater Governance and the Impact of Wastewater Irrigation on the Environment and Society”. 

 

Projects

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Publications

Teaching

Vinay coordinates the core course Economics for Environment and Development for the MSc and PhD programs at ATREE. Additionally, he contributes to courses on Research Methodology, Introduction to Climate Change, and Practicing Interdisciplinary Research on the Environment (C3).

Currently, he is advising a PhD scholar, Meera M., on her thesis and an MSc student, Vinhu V., on her master’s dissertation. 

Policy Outreach

Sharad engages actively in contributing his interdisciplinary environmental knowledge to the policy sphere by serving on various local, state and national committees/task forces.

Ongoing engagements:

  • Member of Madhya Pradesh State Task Force on FRA and PESA (November 2024-)
  • MOU with Chhattisgarh government: The CFR Central India Initiative, led by Sharad, has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Tribal Development Department of Chhattisgarh to provide inputs for better implementation of the Forest Rights Act 2006 in the state. (October 2024-).

Past engagements:

  • Member, Working Group on FRA, National Commission on Schedule Tribes (Aug 2022-December 2023). (Closing Report of Working Group).
  • Member, Working Group on Forest Rights and Community Forest Rights, Chhattisgarh State Planning Commission (Aug 2021-March 2022). (Final Report)
  • Member, Fact-Finding Committee on Environmental Violations, National Green Tribunal in Sanjay Chauhan vs Central Coalfields Ltd (Jun-Sep 2020) (Amrapali OCP)(Dakra OCP)(Piparwar OCP)(Purnadih OCP)(Rohini OCP)
  • Member, Committee for Monitoring of CWH process under FRA in Melghat Wildlife Sanctuary, Government of Maharashtra (Nov 2019-May 2020). (Report)
  • Member, Oversight Committee for Tamnar-Gharghoda block environmental compliance, National Green Tribunal (Feb 2020-Jan 2022) (Report 1) (Report 2) (Report 3)
  • Member, Fact-Finding Committee appointed by National Green Tribunal in Shivpal Bhagat & Ors vs UoI & Ors (OA 104 of 2018) (Oct 2019) (Report of NGT Committee).
  • Member, Expert Appraisal Committee (Coal Mining and Thermal Power), Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Government of India (December 2016-July 2020)
  • Member-Secretary, Task Group on Water Policy, Karnataka Knowledge Commission (Dec 2017-Oct 2019) (Karnataka State Water Policy Draft 2019)
  • Member, Technical Committee for Development of Bellandur and Varthur Lakes, Bangalore Development Authority (Apr 2018-Mar 2019) and Monitoring Committee for Rejuvenation of Bellandur Lake (Jan 2017-Dec 2017).
  • Member, Expert Committee on Rejuvenation of Bellandur Lake (May 2016-Nov 2016) (Final Report on Bellandur Lake Rejuvenation)
  • Member, Karnatake Elephant Task Force, High Court of Karnataka (Jan-Sep 2012). (Final report of KETF)
  • Member, Joint Committee on Forest Rights Act, Ministry of Environment & Forests and Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India (Apr 2010-Dec 2010). (Final report of Joint Committee)

Videos and Podcast

A Dialogue on Transdisciplinarity and Sustainability 26 2 2025 0-1 screenshot
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A Dialogue on Trans-disciplinarity and Sustainability
ATREE Academy faculty_ Sharachchandra Lele 0-1 screenshot
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Sharachchandra Lele’s teaching
Building capacities for recognising CFR rights in Bastar 0-58 screenshot
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Building capacities for recognising CFR rights in Bastar
Comprehensive Forest Rights Recognition in ‘Forest Villages’_ An ATREE Initiative in Baiga Chak, MP 5-0 screenshot
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Comprehensive Forest Rights Recognition in ‘Forest Villages’: An ATREE Initiative in Baiga Chak, MP
Building capacities for recognising CFR rights in Bastar 1-46 screenshot
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बस्तर जिले में सामुदायिक वन संसाधन अधिकार (CFR Rights in Bastar District, Chhattisgarh)
भाग 1 - ऐतिहासिक अन्याय क्या है_ (Historical injustice and the Forest Rights Act) 0-10 screenshot
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भाग 1 – ऐतिहासिक अन्याय क्या है? (Historical injustice and the Forest Rights Act)
भाग 2 - ऐतिहासिक अन्याय का निवारण (Addressing historical injustice through forest rights) 0-1 screenshot
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भाग 2 – ऐतिहासिक अन्याय का निवारण (Addressing historical injustice through forest rights)
WEBGIS for Mapping the Potential for Community Forest Resource Areas 0-1 screenshot
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WEBGIS for Mapping the Potential for Community Forest Resource Areas
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Interdisciplinarity
Prof. B.D. Tilak Memorial Lecture 0-2 screenshot
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Prof. B.D. Tilak Memorial Lecture
Whither People, Whither Tigers_ Reconciling Discourses about People and Tigers in India's Forests 36-45 screenshot
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Whither People, Whither Tigers? Reconciling Discourses about People and Tigers in India’s Forests
OSM 2019 – Sharad Lele_ Why bother about land-use change_ 13-8 screenshot
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OSM 2019 – Sharad Lele: Why bother about land-use change?
Thinking About Water, why we need a paradigm shift Talk by DR Sharachchandra Lele 34-48 screenshot
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Thinking About Water, why we need a paradigm shift Talk by DR Sharachchandra Lele
WALMI Conference Talk 2023 - Dr Sharachchandra Lele 3-36 screenshot
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WALMI Conference Talk 2023 – Dr Sharachchandra Lele
WaterTalk_ Sharachchandra Lélé 29-40 screenshot
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WaterTalk: Sharachchandra Lélé
River or Sewer_ The Story of Vrishabhavathy River in Bengaluru, Southern India [English] 0-53 screenshot
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River or Sewer: The Story of Vrishabhavathy River in Bengaluru, Southern India [English]
Arkavathy_ A Changing Waterscape [English] 0-51 screenshot
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Arkavathy: A Changing Waterscape [English]
ATREE@25_ Keynote Address - Sharachchandra Lele 3-41 screenshot
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ATREE@25: Keynote Address – Sharachchandra Lele
Thinking Environmentally about Bengaluru's Water by Sharachchandra Lele 1-12-5 screenshot
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Thinking Environmentally about Bengaluru’s Water by Sharachchandra Lele
podcast
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Sustainability Now! Sunday, September 18th: Letter to Fellow Citizens of Earth, with Dr. Sharachchandra Lele
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Is the Environmental Performance Index really faulty? | Data Point podcast
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Producing Knowledge for Meaningful Change with Sharachchandra Lele
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Forests of the People: Purnima Upadhyay, Kesav Gurnule, Mittali Sethi, Sharad Lele, Vandana Dhoop
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COP29: Why are developing countries so disappointed? | In Focus podcast
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How do we get to a more sustainable society? (Sharachchandra Lele)
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Are we conserving for the right reasons? (Sharachchandra Lele)
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ATREE’s FRA-related Work by Sharad Lele_24 Aug 2023
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Biophysical and socio-political aspects of Carbon and Climate Change
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ನಿಸರ್ಗ ಪ್ರೇಮದಿಂದ ಪರಿಸರವಾದಕ್ಕೆ (From Nature Love to Environmentalism): KRVP Env Day 2021 Lecture
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Sharachchandra Lele on “ಜಲ ಸಂರಕ್ಷಣೆಯ ಭೌತಿಕ ಮತ್ತು ಸಾಮಾಜಿಕ ಆಯಾಮಗಳು” (Science of Water Conservation)
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Sharachchandra Lele: Paul Harris Endowment Lecture on “Beyond Planting Trees” at IIWC, Bengaluru
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DR Gadgil Memorial Lecture: Sustainable & Equitable Development: Manifesto for a Post-Pandemic India
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Socio-ecological Impact of CFR rights: Announcement
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“What do we mean by Sustainable & Smart Water Management?” Sharachchandra Lele @ MumbaiFirst NEERI
भाग 3 - वन ग्रामों की विशेष समस्या और उसका समाधान (Forest Villages - grave historical injustice) 0-0 screenshot
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भाग 3 – वन ग्रामों की विशेष समस्या और उसका समाधान (Forest Villages – grave historical injustice)
बस्तर जिले में सामुदायिक वन संसाधन अधिकार (CFR Rights in Bastar District, Chhattisgarh) 14-30 screenshot
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बस्तर जिले में सामुदायिक वन संसाधन अधिकार (CFR Rights in Bastar District, Chhattisgarh)
Communities and Sustainability 2-30 screenshot
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Communities and Sustainability
CFR Right for 20 villages 0-6 screenshot
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CFR Right for 20 villages
Celebrating Van Adhikar at ATREE 53-7 screenshot
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Celebrating Van Adhikar at ATREE
Prof. Prakash Shetty Public Lecture - 2022 11-15 screenshot
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Prof. Prakash Shetty Public Lecture – 2022

Team

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Obaiah B
Sr. Library & Information Officer
Sriram-ravichandran
Sriram Ravichandran
Placement, Communications, and Certificate Course Manager
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Madhavi Latha
Coordinator
Pallavi-Varma-Patil
Pallavi Varma Patil
Lead – Collaborations and Partnerships
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Siddhartha Krishnan
Sr. Fellow

Awards

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