Dr. Kamal Bawa

Dr. Kamal Bawa is President Emeritus of the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE)and Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Biology at the University of Massachusetts Boston. He is also President of ATREE USA.

A renowned conservation biologist and sustainability scholar, Dr. Bawa founded ATREE, one of India’s leading environmental research and policy organizations. His work has focused extensively on biodiversity conservation, climate change, sustainable development, and the relationship between human societies and the natural environment, with significant research in the Himalayas and India’s Western Ghats.

Dr. Bawa has published more than 200 research papers and authored or edited more than 10 books. He has founded and served as editor of major interdisciplinary journals, including Conservation and Society and Ecology, Economy and Society.

His many honors include the Gunnerus Prize in Sustainability Science, the MIDORI Prize in Biodiversity, the Linnean Medal, and the UNESCO Sultan Qaboos Prize for Environmental Conservation. He is an elected Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Royal Society, the American Philosophical Society, and other leading scientific institutions.

Through his research and institution-building, Dr. Bawa has contributed significantly to advancing conservation and sustainability across India and globally.