It is our pleasure to announce the last Policy in Practice seminar of the semester, to be delivered by Dr. Veena Srinivasan, WELL Labs
Speaker: Dr. Veena Srinivasan, ED, WELL labs
Title: Evolving from interdisciplinary to transdisciplinary -- what I've learned from 20 years of translating science to create impact
Date: 1 November 2023
Time: 12-1.30pm
Venue: LH 606
Abstract
Over twenty years ago, Veena enrolled in an interdisciplinary PhD program. Her goal was to learn to do world class research that would change the world. How did that pan out? In this talk, she will present her work on groundwater depletion and how she tried to move the needle on both policy and practice and what actually happened (very little). She'll then reflect how her own thinking has evolved and what she thinks might work better.
Bio
Dr. Veena Srinivasan is the founder and executive director of WELL Labs, which she set up in 2023 with a mission to transform scientific research into real-world impact through solutions that simultaneously create livelihoods and conserve the environment. Prior to this, Veena was a Senior Fellow at the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) where she led the Center for Social and Environmental Innovation (CSEI). Veena received her PhD from Stanford University and her Bachelor's degree from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay. She has published extensively, both academic papers and articles, on various aspects of water resources such as groundwater, urban water, river basin management and water policy. Her groundbreaking work has been recognized by awards such as the 2015 Jim Dooge Award from the European Geophysical Union and the 2012 Water Resources Research Editor's Choice Award from the American Geophysical Union.
Veena chairs the Strategic Advisory Group for the Integrated Monitoring Initiative for UN SDG6 and was the Prins Claus Chair at Utrecht University, Netherlands from 2018 to 2020.