Former Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Government of Tamil Nadu, Dr. S. Balaji serves as Care Earth Trust’s Scientific Advisor. He is currently the FAO, Rome’s Regional Forestry Expert and Chairman, ABS Committee of the National Biodiversity Authority, Government of India. As Director of Environment, he was instrumental in the implementation of CRZ regulations in coastal areas of the states. Dr. Balaji led Care Earth’s research team that worked to augment green cover in Greater Chennai Corporation.

Er. S. Thirunavukkarasu retired as the Assistant Executive Engineer, Public Works Department, Tamil Nadu. He is an expert on hydrology and irrigation management, he now serves as an Advisor, assisting the Trust in evaluation, monitoring and execution of wetland restoration projects.

Anjana’s research interests include climate change risks and resilience, and political ecology. Anjana holds a degree in international security from Sciences Po specialized in Global Risks and South Asia, and work experience in risk consulting. As part of her work at Care Earth, she manages wetland restoration projects, urban sustainability grants and has authored reports on NTFP dynamics and Chennai climate risk. Her works have been published in Mongabay India, The Wire Science and Arcadia.

Ariprasath has an undergraduate degree in Botany from Thiruvalluvar University. At Care Earth, he has worked on supporting enterprises and livelihood projects in the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve, assisting in field operations focused on organic farming. Currently, he is involved in restoration projects, nature education projects, and he is passionate about photography.

Aswathi, holds Master’s degree in Environment science and management and Bachelor’s degree in Botany. She completed her master’s dissertation in people’s knowledge on biodiversity in Anaikkatty hills from Salim Ali centre for ornithology and natural history (SACON). At Care Earth, she is working on Human wildlife conflict project across various forest division in Tamil Nadu.

P. Chandrasekaran holds a Master’s degree in Development Economics from the Pondicherry University. His interest revolves around environment and development. He is presently involved in studying and reconciling livelihoods of Scheduled Tribes and Conservation in the Moyar landscape of the Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu. P. Chandrasekaran is also a part of the team working on preparing National Working Plan Code 2023 for the Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu.

Das is a technical assistant at care earth. He holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology. He has assisted in the socio-economic survey of various projects. He is currently involved in Wetland Restoration projects

Dr. Dhaneesh Bhaskar holds a PhD in Zoology, specializing in Ecology, Taxonomy, and Conservation Biology. His PhD research delved into the impact of habitat management strategies in National Parks and Tiger Reserves in Kerala, shedding light on effective conservation measures. He has also actively participated in wildlife conservation research, with a focus on wild animal road kills and human-wildlife interactions. He serves as the Regional Vice-Chair for Asia in the IUCN Species Survival Commission Grasshopper Specialist Group. In this capacity, he is coordinating the Red List assessment of grasshoppers in Asia

Jeya Kumar works as a Senior Project Associate at Care Earth Trust. He leads Care Earth’s Nature Education programme. He is part of the team involved in preparation of the working plan to the Department of Forests & Wildlife, UT Administration of Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu. He also manages Care Earth’s effort to establish a Chennai pollinator network. He holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Engineering and Management from Pondicherry University

Keerthana is a graduate in Bachelor of Computer Applications and is part of admin and accounts team

Keerthika holds a postgraduate degree in zoology. At Care Earth, she is engaged in socio economic survey, biodiversity assessment and documentation of Unamancheri wetland restoration. She has also worked on studying ecosystem services of peri-urban wetlands and was a resource person for TechCamp Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli. She has previously worked as an intern with National Biodiversity Authority, Advanced Institute of Wildlife Conservation and Chennai Snake Park Trust

Keerthi, Post Graduate in Zoology, has worked with Elephants in Mudumalai (MTR), Sathyamangalam (STR), & Coimbatore Forest Division (CFD) regarding Human – animal conflict focussing on Elephant Conservation and Ecology. At Care Earth, Keerthi is actively involved in Human -Wildlife Conflict studies across various Forest divisions in Tamilnadu.

Mano Chandran holds a Master’s degree in Spatial Information Technology from the University of Madras. He has a keen interest in web-GIS analysis, automation mapping using Python, GeoServer, remote sensing, and Village Information Systems. With two publications in GIS to his credit, he currently serves as a project manager for the Vengathur restoration project. Additionally, he has assisted in developing working plans for the forest management in Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu

Muthu Karthick is a Masters in Botany and a trained plant taxonomist interested in studying phytogeography. He has a decade long field experience on vegetation assessment and forest mensuration across peninsular India.
“Currently, he is studying urban trees of Chennai. He is also in to the vegetation assessment of forests of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu.”

Muraleedaran is a graduate in Physics who brings with him a broad range of experience in administration during time he spent in the shipping sector and construction industry. Having spent over a decade with Care Earth, he has been looking after the Trust’s administration and accounts. Muraleedaran is a passionate teacher of Yoga and Pitman Shorthand, now almost a forgotten art

As Project Coordinator, Murugesan is passionate about integrated crop management as well as women empowerment. He holds nearly three decades of various experiences in agri-research, agri-extension, microfinance and tribal livelihood development with various organisations. He is currently engaged in supporting livelihood initiatives in Sathyamangalam

Driver – Chennai

Nilesh’s focus lies in application of GIS and Remote Sensing techniques in Wildlife Research and Conservation. He holds a MSc in Environmental Science and Technology from Bharati Vidyapeeth Institute of Environment Education and Research, Pune. Currently he is working as a GIS Analyst for Human Wildlife Conflict Mitigation Project in Care Earth Trust.

Padmavathy S has background and experience in the hospitality industry. At Care Earth, she works as an Administration assistant, responsible for clerical and organizational tasks.

Ramamoorthy has a wealth of expertise working with Central Government Departments such as the Indian Coast Guard, the Narcotics Control Bureau, and Chennai Airport. At Care Earth, he currently works on the Chennai Urban Horticulture Initiative with the Chennai Resilience Centre

Dr Ramesh currently works on various projects to improve the livelihoods of Tribal communities and Forest Conservation in Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve. His PhD from University of Madras is on soil micro fungi flora and its biopotential in medicine. His primary research interest is in plant identification and traditional medicinal plants

Sunanda’s interest in the environment and in people got mixed up with her interest in storytelling quite early. Having two years of content writing experience and a Master’s in Urban Policy and Governance, she works as a part of the nature education project and pollinator network project at Care Earth.

A commerce graduate, Vidya has been working with Care Earth Trust from 2017 onwards, handling both Administration & Accounts. She was previously associated with Integrated Enterprises Ltd for 8 long years in handling investments.

Vivekananthan completed his Master’s degree in Botany at Pachaiyappa’s College in Chennai. With a professional journey spanning almost eight years, his expertise lies in the domains of Phyto taxonomy, plant ecology, and environmental education.

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