Experts

My research interests focus on management of soil and water quality in the shrimp pond environment to achieve sustainable production. Nutrient dynamics and budgeting using tracer studies, application of nanotechnology, rejuvenating disused aquaculture ponds, mitigation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and management of pond health in bio-floc systems are some areas of my work. I have 15 years of experience in soil and water chemistry of aquaculture ponds. My current research areas are the sediment-water interface as a pond health indicator; influence of abiotic factors on the physiology of shrimp; adaptation of shrimp to varying salinities; dynamics of water quality in lined ponds, integrated aqua-agri model and farmer’s livelihood improvement projects.

My research interests include application of bioinformatics and computational biology tools in deciphering useful information from genomic datasets. I have 20 years’ experience in statistical programming, developing web-portals, data mining, linux administration and handling bioinformatics tools. I am the developer of statistical programme Web Agri Stat Package (WASP) which is being widely used in research and academic circles. I have developed several online databases in the fields of aquaculture and agriculture using LAMP (Linux Apache Mysql & PHP) tools.

My research interests include the environmental sustainability of brackishwater aquaculture, soil and water quality management, and the impact of climate change on aquaculture and its contribution to global warming potential. I have twenty five years’ of research experience in environmental impact assessment and monitoring of shrimp aquaculture, carrying capacity assessment of water bodies, soil and water quality management issues, greenhouse gas estimation from aquaculture ponds, life cycle analysis of aquaculture systems, adaptations and mitigations for climate resilient aquaculture. I am recipient of International Norman Borlaug and NAIP fellowship and a reviewer of research papers in international journals.

37 years’ experience working in policy and planning, knowledge-based management, reservoir fishery management, community-based fisheries development projects, small-hold aquaculture for food security, training and capacity building in fisheries and ocean governance in Thailand and worldwide. Expert in planning and adaptive management of community-based projects; assessment of fish stocking programmes; early warning, disaster risk reduction for tsunami, earthquake, floods and impacts of climate change. I am a former Director General of the Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia-Pacific.

My research interests include exploration of ecology and fisheries in rivers, wetlands and reservoirs, including fish diversity and alien species. I am interested in impact assessment of river-linking and environmental flow issues, sustainable enhancement of fish production in wetlands, Himalayan aquatic ecosystems and fisheries and climate change. I also hold interests in the domestication and breeding of Himalayan fish species, the farming and breeding of rainbow trout, and the extension of fish farming in the Himalayan region.

My research over twenty five years is focussed on aquatic invasive apple snails and other invasive alien species affecting food and nutrition security of smallholder farmers. With multidisplinary team members, I experiment and devise integrated crop management systems for ecologically sustainable management approaches against invasive alien species in the changing climate.

I have extensive work experience in innovative product development and promotion. I have been invited to share my work on invasive alien species and integrated pest management by many international organisations including FAO/IPPC, World Fish Center, CSIRO, JSPS, SP-IPM, IPPO, APEC, in 25 countries throughout the Asia-Pacifc region, Europe, Africa and South America. I have published four books and over 150 research articles on crop protection and production.

I am currently the TAA Pacific Coordinator; a CABI-SEA Associate; SAFE-Network Pacific Islands Coordinator; Technical Advisor on invasive apple snails to DELTAMED (Asociación de Deltas del Mediterráneo), Amposta, Spain; Senior Adviser on Invasive Apple Snails, NEURICE Project-Funded by European Commission, Spain; and Visiting Adjunct Professor at the University of the South Pacific, Fiji.

My research interests include conservation genetics and genomics in natural populations of fishes. In the course of twenty five years' research experience, I have developed genetic resources to generate the information to be utilised in conservation and management of natural resources of fishes of India. Additionally, I have studied signatures of natural selection and genomic diversity in important freshwater fish species to build genomic resources and to gain knowledge about functional biodiversity. I am also working on deciphering molecular basis of tolerance in fishes for abiotic stresses, like hypoxia, high temperature and high ammonia tolerance. At present, I have over hundred publications with an H-index of 18.

My research focuses on nutritional physiology with the aims of understanding how aquatic animals use and waste nutrients including amino acids, fatty acids, and minerals. This encompasses understanding climate change effects, growth under sub-optimum conditions and developing new ingredients and aquafeeds. My PhD was on nutritional bioenergetics of grass carp and his interest in warm water animals continues with research on sea bass (barramundi) and tropical lobster species. I am also very interested in globally relevant aquaculture systems including polyculture, integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA), recirculation aquaculture systems (RAS) and off-shore aquaculture.

My research interests include fisheries eco-environmental monitoring, essential habitat assessment, resource conservation and discrimination of the geographic origin of fishery products. I have 20 years’ research experience in corresponding conservation biology, pollution ecology, and eco-toxicology, especially through the use of bioindicators (e.g., otolith microchemistry of freshwater, diadromous and marine fishes;  “Freshwater Mussel Watch” monitoring).

My research interests include inland fisheries management and aquaculture development. I have 25 years research experience on culture-based fisheries development in Sri Lankan reservoirs. This has included the introduction of co-management to improve the socio-economic status of fishing communities; the development of community-based strategies to increase fish seed production to meet requirements at the national level; and the development of web-based systems to collect information related to culture-based fisheries (www.infis.gov.lk) with data input and maintenance handled by fishing communities. I am a member of the NACA Technical Advisory Committee (2015-2018) and a life member of Sri Lanka Association for Fisheries and Aquatic Resources.