Sea turtles, Island fever and Magical mysteries: the adventures of an evolutionary ecologist

In this episode, we interview #KartikShanker, who was inspired to begin a career in #ecology by an ancient reptile, a #seaturtle that crawled ashore late one night in Madras (now Chennai). As faculty at the Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India, his focus is the ecology and evolution of frogs, reptiles, birds, plants, and marine fauna. His group works on evolutionary biogeography of different taxa, and on the ecology and behaviour of mixed species groups of birds and reef fish. He has recently initiated work on sharks and rays off the Indian coast, and on reef associated organisms in the Andaman Islands.
Shanker is also a founding trustee of Dakshin Foundation, where he leads the Marine Flagships and the Community Wellbeing programmes.
In a wide-ranging conversation, we talked about how he started off with evolutionary ecology around three decades ago, through sea turtle walks which continue till date. We discussed conservation in India, the often exclusionary and elitist ways in which programmes and schemes are rolled out, the differences between terrestrial and marine paradigms, and the importance of working with local communities.
Shanker spoke of his love of writing, both fiction and non-fiction and the research and collegiality at the Centre for Ecological Sciences, the joy it gives him, and the sea change ethos of the work they do at the Dakshin Foundation. He also talks about the new book he is working on in the area of #paleobiogeography.
#KartikShanker #IISCBengaluru #IISC #CESIndia #DakshinFoundation #SeaTurtles #sciencecommunication #scicommpodcast #podcasts #interviewpodcasts #darknlightzine #thesubverse