PhD Student
Pronouns: he/him
Education
B. Tech, Electronics & Communication Engineering, ITM University, Gurgaon
MS, Environmental Sciences, Wageningen University
Bio
Ojas is an interdisciplinary environmental scientist interested in sustainably managing watersheds, reviving riparian ecosystems, and studying socio-ecological systems. His doctoral research focuses on studying the interactions between vegetation, soil and the hydrological cycle. At Bren’s Tague Team Lab, he uses field measurements and numerical models (like RHEYSSys) to better understand how vegetation affects surface and subsurface water flows in watersheds, and how those flows in turn affect vegetation. He aims to dovetail these eco-hydrological results with socio-economic dimensions of water and land use to inform better management of rivers, groundwater and forests. Ojas has previously worked on multiple internationally funded projects related to forests, livelihoods, agriculture, watersheds and common pool resources in India. Before starting his PhD at UCSB, He worked as a Research Associate at IORA Ecological Solutions, where he developed an environmental cost-benefit analysis for a Forest Landscape Restoration project targeting the state of Haryana. Ojas holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Sciences from Wageningen University in The Netherlands and a Bachelor’s in Electronics and Communications Engineering from ITM University, Gurgaon in India.
He is passionate about conserving and restoring rivers of the Hindu-Kush-Himalayas and believes they are the key to a resilient political ecology in much of South Asia.
Year Admitted
2022
Faculty Advisors
Christina (Naomi) Tague