PhD Candidate, Integrative Conservation & Anthropology Amit Kaushik is a PhD Candidate in Integrative Conservation and Anthropology in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Georgia, a National Geographic Explorer, and an external scholar at the Wildlife Institute of India. His research examines how caste hierarchy and conservation science jointly determine which species and communities are treated as worth protecting in India's wildlife landscapes. Drawing on ethnographic and mixed-methods fieldwork, including prior research on kiang–pastoralist interactions in Ladakh, Nilgai in urban Delhi, and landscape planning for Panna Tiger Reserve with the Wildlife Institute of India, his dissertation traces how tiger reintroduction in Central India reorganizes relationships among conservation officials, pastoralist and caste communities, and wildlife such as wolves. This research is supported by the Wenner-Gren Foundation, the National Geographic Society, and the Rufford Foundation. Kaushik is the founder of the Wolf Conservation Initiative and serves as Student Board member for the Anthropology & Environment Society, American Anthropological Association. He has previously also worked as Secretary of the Social Science Working Group at the Society for Conservation Biology. Contact: amitkaushik@uga.edu Of note: Student Board Member, Anthropology and Environment Society, American Anthropological Association (2025-) Secretary, Social Science Working Group, Society for Conservation Biology (2025) President, Anthropology Graduate Student Organization, University of Georgia (2022-23) Research Research Areas: Cultural Anthropology Research Interests: Environmental Anthropology; Multispecies Ethnography; Political Ecology; Anthropology of Conservation; Science and Technology Studies (STS); Caste, Environment, and Environmental Justice Labs: Human and Environmental Change Lab Selected Publications Selected Publications: Academic Publications: 1. Dietsch, A. M., Selinske, M.J., van Eeden, L. M., Blount-Hill, K.-L., Hauptfeld, R. S.,Banerjee, S., Brittain, S., Gelves-Gómez, F., Kaushik, A.,Fischer, P. M., Uddin, M. K., & Wallen, K. E. (2025). Conservation and the social sciences revisited. Conservation Biology, 39, e14462. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.14462 2. Thomas-Walters, L.,Gelves-Gomez, F., Brittain, S., van Eeden, L. M., Sky, N.H., Kaushik, A., Kemink, K., Manzano-Fischer, P.,Plotsky, K., & Selinske, M. (2025). Essential skills for the training of conservation social scientists. Conservation Biology, 39, e14456. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.14456 Masters Research: Kaushik, A. 2016. “Habitat-Use Interactions between Kiang (Equus kiang) & Changpas (Nomadic Pastoral Community) in Tsokar basin, Ladakh." Unpublished MA Thesis, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar University Delhi, India. Reports: 1. Wildlife Institute of India, 2022. Integrated Landscape Management Plan for Greater Panna Landscape, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. https://wii.gov.in/images/images/documents/publications/rr_2022_integrated_landscape_management_plan.pdf Popular articles/Blogs: Kaushik, A. 2024. “Alice In Chains”: Ground Staff Heroes, Conservation Realities, And Reflecting On William Cronon’s Insights. Current Conservation. https://www.currentconservation.org/alice-in-chains-ground-staff-heroes-conservation-realities-and-reflecting-on-william-cronons-insights/ Kaushik, A. 2024. Tigers, Animality, and Dignity: A Journey Through the Central Indian Landscape. Engagement – A blog published by the Anthropology and Environment Society, American Anthropological Association https://aesengagement.wordpress.com/2024/01/20/tigers-animality-and-dignity-a-journey-through-the-central-indian-landscape/ Kaushik, A. (2017). Situating Nilgai in Delhi. CUES Blogs, Centre for Urban Ecology & Sustainability, Ambedkar University Delhi. https://cuesonline.org/2017/08/11/situating-nilgai-in-delhi/ Grants Grants: 2025 1st Rufford Small Grant, Rufford Foundation 2025 Wenner-Gren Dissertation Fieldwork Grant 2024 National Geographic Society Grant 2024 Robert E. Rhoades Pre-Dissertation Travel Award, UGA Department of Anthropology 2024 Communication of Research and Scholarship, UGA Graduate School 2024 Integrative Conservation Mini-Grant, UGA Centre for Integrative Conservation Research 2023 Arts Collaborative Grant, UGA Arts Collaborative 2023 Graduate Research Award, UGA Willson Center for Humanities and Arts 2022 Communication of Research and Scholarship, UGA Graduate School 2015-16 Dr. B.R. Ambedkar University Delhi Merit Scholarships Education Education: M.A., School of Human Ecology, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar University Delhi 2016 B.Com.(Honors), Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College, University of Delhi 2012
