Aakash-9

Aakash Lamba

Academic qualifications

Ph.D. in Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore

MSc. in Conservation Science, Imperial College London, UK

BSc. in Electrical Engineering (Highest Distinction), Purdue University, USA

Research areas

Conservation Science; Technology for Good; Nature-based Solutions; Carbon markets

Research interests

Aakash’s research interests focus on identifying novel paradigms for catalyzing the adoption of Nature-based Solutions, which can simultaneously address climate change, help conserve biodiversity and enhance local livelihoods, especially in South and South-East Asia.

Biography

Aakash Lamba is a conservation scientist at the Centre for Nature-based Climate Solutions at the National University of Singapore. Aakash has over a decade of environmental conservation experience with a multi-disciplinary background that spans ecology, engineering, and research. He has previously conducted field-based research expeditions in some of the most remote regions of the Himalayas and Central Asia. Additionally, he has a keen interest in leveraging novel technologies for environmental applications, which include conservation drones, artificial intelligence and blockchain. He has published his research in leading international journals including Current Biology, Global Change Biology and Biological Conservation. Through his research, he hopes to propose holistic, inclusive and financially viable solutions that can achieve biodiversity conservation, climate change mitigation targets, and improve human wellbeing.

Selected publications

  1. Lamba, A., Teo, H.C., Sreekar, R., Zeng, Y., Carrasco, L.R. and Koh, L.P., 2023. Climate co-benefits of tiger conservation. Nature Ecology & Evolution, 7(7), pp.1104-1113.
  2. Lamba, A., 2022. Are carbon offsets the key to green cryptocurrencies?. PLOS Sustainability and Transformation, 1(3), p.e0000002.
  3. Lamba, A., Cassey, P., Segaran, R.R. and Koh, L.P., 2019. Deep learning for environmental conservation. Current Biology, 29(19), pp.R977-R982.
  4. Lamba, A., 2015. Assessing the Impacts of Livestock Grazing in the Trans-Himalayan Rangelands of Spiti, India (Doctoral dissertation, Department of Life Sciences, Silwood Park, Imperial College London).
  5. Sreekar, R., Koh, L.P., Lamba, A., Mammides, C., Teo, H.C., Dwiputra, A. and Zeng, Y., 2024. Conservation opportunities through improved management of recently established protected areas in Southeast Asia. Current Biology, 34(16), pp.3830-3835.
  6. Teo, H.C., Raghavan, S.V., He, X., Zeng, Z., Cheng, Y., Luo, X., Lechner, A.M., Ashfold, M.J., Lamba, A., Sreekar, R. and Zheng, Q., 2022. Large‐scale reforestation can increase water yield and reduce drought risk for water‐insecure regions in the Asia‐Pacific. Global Change Biology, 28(21), pp.6385-6403.
  7. Sreekar, R., Zeng, Y., Zheng, Q., Lamba, A., Teo, H.C., Sarira, T.V. and Koh, L.P., 2022. Nature-based climate solutions for expanding the global protected area network. Biological Conservation, 269, p.109529.