I am currently an Associate Professor (Universitetslektor) at the Dept. of Forest Economics, SLU, Umeå. I was previously employed as a researcher at the Beijer Institute of Ecological Economics (a research insititute of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences at Stockholm). My background and training has been in a combination of engineering and economics, with my PhD being in (the economics of) "Sustainable Development" at the Columbia University in New York, a program that trained us in the use of tools of economics to address questions related to the natural world and health.
I largely work on applying the tools of economics to three broad areas relating to "sustainability": improving management of natural resources; designing "better" electricity markets; dealing with urban-transportation-related challanges.
I have taught many courses in a rather broad variety of subjects at the master's and PhD level (D-level), at Umeå University's Dept. of Economics and at SLU in the Jägmästare program, including in environmental and resource economics, forest economics, econometrics, and microeconomics, in addition to shorter courses. I have taken course responsibility for environmental and resource economics thrice (2014, 2017), econometrics twice (2014, 2016), and microeconomics once (2013), and have taught a course on forest economics thrice (2017-2019). I have also taught parts of the course on Forest Industry Supply Strategy (2017), and a short course in R (KVA/Beijer, 2015).
I am interested in broad areas of environmental and resource economics. My recent work has largely centered on three broad research areas: How should natural resources (e.g. fishery, groundwater) be managed under a variety of natural conditions? How can the transition to a more "renewable" energy system be achieved? And how can public policies be designed to reduce the environmental footptint from transportation?
I use both theoretical (mathematical) models and empirical (data-based statistical) methods to answer questions related to these broad directions. These are research directions rather than specific questions, and my recent papers (published and working) provide an idea of some aspects of these directions I have addressed.
I have ongoing collaborations with researchers at the University of Oregon, Tel Aviv University, George Washington University (Washington D.C), The Beijer Institute and the Stockholm Reslilience Center, among others.
Before moving to the SLU Umeå in January 2017, I was at the Beijer Institute in August 2014 and prior to that, was a Brouwaldh Fellow at the Center for Environmental and Resource Economics and the Department of Economics at Umeå University. I came to the U.S. from India to do a PhD in Sustainable Development at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, and moved to Sweden soon after its completion.
I am currently co-supervisor (de facto main) for Xiao Hu (anticipated completion: Spring 2022), have been co-supervisor for Mattias Vesterberg (2013-2017) at the Dept. of Economics at Umeå University, and continue to be co-supervisor to Anders Vesterberg (Dept. of Economics, Umeå University).
I have also been primary supervisor for more than five Master's students at the Dept. of Economics at Umeå University.
1. Unlocking the unsustainable rice-wheat system of Indian Punjab: Assessing alternatives to crop-residue burning from a systems perspective ?(Andrea Downing et al) Ecological Economics (2022). 195. [Paper]
2. Valuing biodiversity and resilience: An application to pollinator diversity in the Stockholm region. (2020) Spatial Economic Analysis. 15(3). [Paper]
3. Carbon pricing and planetary boundaries. (2020). Nature Communications, 11(1), 1-11. [Paper]
4. Hourly demand for electricity in Sweden: Implications for load, welfare and emissions. (2022). 43(1), 119-147. [Paper]
5. An Ecological Golden Rule. Resource and Energy Economics (2021). 64, 10129. [Paper]