Our Team
M Firoz Ahmed
PhD, Coordinator (J4L) & Scientist F - Aaranyak
Dr. Ahmed has been associated with Nature Conservation since 1994. His interests lie in landscape level biodiversity conservation through applied research in the field of ecology, wildlife biology, Taxonomy, Community Based Natural Resource Management, Conservation Outreach and Conservation Livelihoods. He is also behind the discovery of several new species of amphibians from NE India. He has served key policy making bodies of the MoEFCC as member. He received the Wildlife Service Award in 2006 and the Carl Zeiss Award in 2010 for his contribution towards nature conservation.
Jayanta Sarma
PhD, Academic Coordinator (J4L), Aaranyak
Dr. Sarma is a freelance researcher and science communicator in Environment and Development with core expertise in Natural Resource Management, Traditional Knowledge System, Bio-culturalism, Tribal study and Livelihood planning. He has 19 years of experience in teaching participatory learning and research in the Resource Literacy to graduates and post graduates. He also teaches environmental education to school children, students, and local communities in the Eastern Himalayas. He is a member of the National Academic Committee of NCSC, under DST, GoI. He loves video documenting and producing short documentaries.
Bibhuti P. Lahkar
PPhD, Associate Coordinator (J4L) - Aaranyak
Dr. Lashkar has been associated with Aaranyak since 1993. He is involved in grassland management, endangered grassland dependent species, ecology of large mammals, human wildlife conflict-coexistence and invasive species. He has been working with communities living around Manas Tiger Reserve, empowering local youth, grassroot NGOs and marginalized families promoting alternative livelihoods. He received IUCN’s Heritage Hero Award in 2016 for his outstanding contribution towards conservation of Manas. He represents several key groups of IUCN, including Asian Elephant Specialist Group and IUCN Commission for Ecosystem Management. He is a Member of Management Effective Evaluation Team for NPs and WLS of India formulated by MoEFCC.
Jayanta Kumar Roy
PhD, Ecosystem Specialist (J4L), Aaranyak
Dr. Roy has been working with Aaranyak since 2011 in the field of understanding river ecology, landscape ecology, weather monitoring, herpetofauna research and conservation in northeast India. He is amazing in finding little known jewels of the forest, the amphibian and reptiles. He has years of experience working with the Indigenous Idu-Mishmi community in remote areas of Dibang River Basin in Arunachal Pradesh. He is also working with the indigenous Karbi community at Kaziranga-Karbi Anglong landscape in understanding the ecosystem health and community participation for ecosystem conservation.
Bipul Das
MSc, Conservation Specialist (J4L) - Aaranyak
Mr. Das has been working with Aaranyak since 2007 in the field of nature conservation, particularly conservation livelihoods and management of human- wildlife conflict and coexistence. He practices organic farming and animal husbandry. He has a long-drawn relationship with the grassroot NGOs in the Manas Landscape and actively supports them in their operations. He was a Darwin Fellow in Dorking, London, and he has attended World Parks Congress in Australia.
Sarlongjon Teron
MA, Community Specialist (J4L) - Aaranyak
Mr. Teron, a knowledge hungry indigenous Karbi youth who has been working with Aaranyak since Jan 2018. He is an avid knowledge seeker and gathers information from the communities, compiles and analyses the same for strategic planning, for conservation of livelihoods and outreach in the villages. He manages field activities of the J4L events and leads teams as an expert in the field. He spends time with the communities to address their questions and concerns about Natural Resource Management.
CONSULTING SPECIALIST
Mridupaban Phukon
BSc, Senior Naturalist (J4L)
Mr. Phukon is an expert naturalist and a renowned birder of India. He has been working in the field of conservation and environmental education for over two decades. He has conducted several training, nature camps and scientific baseline studies in different National Parks, Wildlife Sanctuaries, and Reserved Forest of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. He is well experienced in developing communication materials for nature conservation campaigns and has contributed many of his articles to newspapers, magazines and journals.