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Anil K. Gupta
Kasturbhai Lalbhai Chair in
Entrepreneurship, email: anilg@iimahd.ernet.in, anilg@sristi.org website: |
Anil K Gupta |
| Academic & Research: |
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Ph.D., Management, M.Sc.(Genetics), B.Sc.(Hons), Agri. Research and Action Interests: Expanding global, national and local space for grassroots inventors and innovators to ensure recognition, respect and reward for them; blending excellence in formal and informal science; protection of their Intellectual Property Rights; ethical issues in conservation and prospecting of biodiversity; setting up incubators to link innovations, investments and enterprise; voluntarism, leadership for social change; socio‑political transformation towards a meritocratic society; creating Knowledge Network at different levels for augmenting grassroots green innovations and build a global value chain to get the creativity its due; support to Honey Bee Network including about twenty three thousand innovations and examples of traditional knowledge from various parts of the country and rest of the world on farm and non farm sustainable technologies, energy saving and herbal aid to human, animal and plant health; special focus on women innovators; Mission is to demonstrate the potential of knowledge rich economically poor people in taking developing societies out of the morass of mediocrity and lead these on to a path of sustainable progress. |
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| Work Experience: |
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Helping NIF in setting up first National Micro Venture promotion Fund through a collaboration between SIDBI and NIF as per the announcement by Finance Minister in Union Budget 2002 in response to our request. Helped establish NIF (National Innovation Foundation, India) (March 2000) with an initial corpus of Rs.20 crores (USD five million) with a view to help India become an inventive and creative society and a global leader in sustainable technologies by scouting and sustaining grassroots innovations. Union Finance Minister of India announced this fund in his Budget speech for 1999 in response to our work to develop a national register of innovations, help link informal and formal science, convert innovations into products through linkage with investment and enterprise, help set up incubators etc. NIF has Dr.R.A.Mashelkar, Secretary, DSIR and Director General CSIR, as its Chairperson and Prof.Anil K Gupta as its Executive Vice Chairperson apart from fourteen members on its Board from diversified fields, including Director General, ICAR and Secretary, DARE, Director, IIMA, Secretaries, Finance, Expenditure, Science and Technology, Enforcement Director, Chief Secretary, Govt. of Gujarat, leading private sector industrialist Mr Anand Mahindra, eminent Gandhian women NGO leader Ela Ben, Prof. Kuldeep Mathur, etc. National Project Director for a GEF (Global Environment Facility) and UNDP supported PDF B project on Conservation of Biodiversity in Dry Lands in North Gujarat sanctioned to Ministry of Environment and Forestry, designed and implemented by SRISTI, to develop a larger project for conservation of faunal and floral biodiversity in two sanctuaries and agro-biodiversity in farms with in and outside protected areas (completed in 2001 and approved by GEF council without any revision). Set up GIAN (Grassroots Innovation Augmentation Network) Society and Trust (1997) to scale up grassroots innovations and convert these into viable products or services with appropriate benefit sharing arrangements, with a corpus of Rs 50 lacs in collaboration with Gujarat Government as a consequence of International Conference on Creativity and Innovation at Grassroots, January 11-14, 1997 organised at IIMA. Helping establish four more GIANs in different parts of the country with funds allocation from NIF and already set up two, for North-East at IIT-G and for north India at Jaipur. Convinced by the necessity of the NIF, Commonwealth Secretariat has sought Prof. Gupta’s help in establishing similar NIFs in all the Commonwealth countries. He has also been requested to review the performance Commonwealth Science Council (CSC), UK. Prof. Gupta has also helped in organising the Commonwealth countries Ministerial gathering and arranged to showcase outstanding grassroots innovations at the exhibition in South Africa during 9 -15 June 2002. CSC has also decided to adopt Honey Bee Network as a model to identify, document and disseminate innovations at grassroots. In addition an MOU is being finalised among CSIR, NIF, SRISTI from India and ARC, CSIR and Northern Province of South Africa for technology transfer from grassroots in India to farmers and artisans there. Worked on a three year Pew Award of US $150,000 (1993‑1996) for Biodiversity Conservation and Environment granted by Pew Scholars program at University of Michigan, Ann Arbor to ten outstanding scholars around the world. This award has been used to strengthen Honey Bee network- a global network of activists, scholars, policy makers and farmers around the issue of indigenous technological and institutional innovations for sustainable natural resource management, and building bridges between formal and informal science. President, SRISTI (Society for Research and Initiatives for Sustainable Technologies and Institutions) and Editor, Honey Bee (a newsletter on indigenous innovations) Chairperson, Ravi J Matthai Centre for Educational Innovation, Indian Institute of Management, 1993 ‑1994 Chairperson, Research and Publications, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, 1990‑92 Professor, Centre for Management in agriculture, Indian Institute of management, Ahmedabad, 1981 to present. Adviser (Farming Systems Research), Bangladesh Agri. Research Council & Bangladesh Agri. Research Institute, October 1985 to November 1986. Management Specialist (Rural Development), Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi, Action Research Project on District Project Planning in six drought prone districts of the country, 1978‑1981. Farm Representative/Agri. Finance Officer, Syndicate Bank‑ a nationalised commercial bank‑ 1974‑1978. |
| Honours: |
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| Policy impact at the National and International levels: |
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Recently, in June 2002, the Commonwealth Science Council adopted the goals of the NIF, India, and the Honey Bee Network, as the direction of its future mission. The Commonwealth Science Council decided to become a Common Wealth Innovation Network. NIF, chaired by Dr. R. A. Mashelkar, Director General, CSIR was set up in March 2000 by the DST with a corpus Rs. 20 crores, essentially in response to the work being carried out for the last 13 years by the voluntary members of the Honey Bee Network. As a consequence of NIF mobilising more than 13,000 innovations and traditional knowledge examples in 2001, as against only 1600 practices in 2000, the Finance Minister of India announced in his budget speech of 2002 the setting up of a National Micro Venture Fund. The Honey Bee Network, supported by IIMA, SRISTI, SEWA, SIDBI, PEDES and many other voluntary institutions and individuals, mobilised about 12,000 innovations and traditional knowledge examples over the period of a decade. NIF has set up three incubators, the first of their kind, to convert innovations into enterprises, known as GIAN. The first GIAN was set up in 1997 in Gujarat and the other two have been set up in Jaipur and in the North East at IIT Guwahati. NIF has facilitated the filing of patents through pro bono help in India as well as in USA on behalf of innovators, and in one case has even licensed the technology to a US company, with the entire money going to the innovator. Professor Gupta’s efforts have been recognised in the form of a Star of Asia award conferred on him by BusinessWeek (July 2, 2001, p.32A37, www.businessweekasia.com), an Asian Innovation Award by the Far Eastern Economic Review committee (Oct 26, 2000, www.feer.com), the Kasturbhai Lalbhai Entrepreneurship Chair Professor at IIMA and numerous other honours and distinctions. There is only one purpose in Professor Gupta’s life and that is to make India innovative and generate a new model of poverty alleviation relying on innovation based enterprises. |
| Biographical Summary: |
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Dr. Gupta earned his Ph.D. degree in management from Kurukshetra University (India) in 1986 after his masters in Biochemical Genetics in 1974 from Haryan Agricultural University, Haryana. He is currently a professor in the Centre for Management in Agriculture. His unique work analysing indigenous knowledge of farmers and pastoralists and building bridges to science based knowledge has led to the honour of being elected at a young age to India’s National Academy of Agricultural Sciences and recognition through Pew Conservation Scholar Award of USD 150,000, 1993‑96 from University Of Michigan. Biodiversity conservation through documentation, value addition and dissemination of local peoples’ innovative resource conservation practices is the thrust in future work. His desire to develop a platform to recognise, respect and reward local innovators was the stimulus behind the creation of the Honey Bee network. The name Honey Bee was chosen to reflect how innovations are collected without making the innovators poorer and how connections are created between innovators. Honey Bee network has demonstrated that by building upon a resource in which poor people are rich in, that is their knowledge, a new paradigm of development can be unleashed. To help provide support structures for grass roots innovators and link formal and informal knowledge systems, SRISTI (Society for Research and Initiatives for Sustainable Technologies and Institutions), a global initiative and a NGO, to network local innovators was established in 1993. It provides organisational support to the Honey Bee network in over 70 countries. The key objectives of SRISTI are to strengthen the capacity of grassroots level innovators and inventors engaged in conserving biodiversity to (a) protect their intellectual property rights, (b) experiment to add value to their knowledge, and (c) enrich their cultural and institutional basis of dealing with nature and modern science. National Innovation Foundation was set up by Department of Science and Technology (DST) in 2000 to make India a Global leader in sustainable technologies. Compared to 948 entries in its first national competition, it mobilised more than 13000 entries in second year. Organised an international contest for scouting innovation through IFAD Rome, and three grassroots awardees from three countries were honoured at Global Knowledge Conference held in Malaysia in March 2000. The forceful presentation on green grassroots innovations at Commonwealth Science Council has brought about a significant change in its focus veering the CSC towards the goals of Honey Bee network. Working towards setting up Global Innovation Foundation so that India becomes a sanctuary or an incubator for green grassroots innovations from all over the world. |
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Recent Conference organization: Organised the first International Conference on Creativity and Innovation at Grassroots for sustainable natural resource management, January 11‑14, 1997 at IIMA cosponsored by various national and international organisations such as World bank, commonwealth foundation and secretariat, NABARD, ICAR, CSIR, SRISTI, FAO/FTPP, etc., attended by grassroots innovators, policy makers, academics etc., from 40 countries. GIAN- a green venture promotion fund was set up as one of the follow up actions. Organised an International Conference On Criteria and Indicators of Sustainability for Rural Development sponsored by UNESCO in Feb., 1999; First National Workshop on Indian Incubator for Innovation Based Enterprises held at IIMA sponsored by Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Dec 1998; coordinated a Workshop on Harnessing Intellectual Property for Strategic Competitive Advantage at IIMA in April 2000 and 2001. Prepared an invited paper on indigenous Aquatic Germplasm entitled, 'Fishing in Troubled Waters ' for Bellagio conference organised by ICLARM and Rockfellor Foundation (1998); policy paper on Access to Biological Diversity and Benefit Sharing based on a national consultation organised for the purpose for Ministry of Environment and Forestry, 1998; paper on Article 8J and 10 c of Convention on Biological Diversity invited by the Secretariat of the Convention in Canada, November 1996, Society for International Development invited a contribution on Honey Bee network for a conference on globalization in Spain (1997), Similarly, Foundation for the Promotion of Intellectual Property Protection, Berne in collaboration with WIPO, WTO, USPTO, etc., invited him to the International Conference on Strategic Issues of Industrial Property Management in a Globalizing Economy, September 1996 as key note speaker and has been again invited to World Trade Forum being held in Berne in August, 99; Invited for OECD Conference on Biodiversity Incentive Measures in Australia, March 1996; nominated as a member of an Expert Panel on Animal Germplasm Conservation Strategy of FAO to advise the secretariat; member of Taskforce to prepare 25 years perspective plan for Rainfed Regions set up by Indian Planning Commission; also steering a proposal of SRISTI to set up a Knowledge Network on the pattern of Honey Bee newsletter. This proposal was discussed at the International Conference on Hunger and Poverty organised by IFAD in Brussels, November 1995 and endorsed by representatives of civil society from more than 100 countries. SRISTI served on the Advisory Committee of the conference and has been a member of the Coalition against Hunger and Poverty formed after the conference; recently invited to serve on an evaluation panel for Biodiversity Grant program of USD 2.5 mill per annum implemented by National Institute of Health, NCI, National Science Foundation of USA (1997), Have examined post graduate thesis at Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences for three years (1994‑1996). |
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| Select Publications: (For Full Paper Details Click here) |
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Published extensively on survival under stress through grassroots innovations for instance in the proceedings of International Congress of Plant Physiology, Capitalism, Nature and Socialism- a journal from University of California, Santa Cruz; a chapter entitled “Why Poor Don’t Cooperate” in a book - The Research Relationships- edited by Clare Wanger and published by Allen & Unwin, 1987.
Other important publications include paper on Monitoring of Rural Projects Through People’s Participation, Ekistics, 1981, 291, pp.434-442; Common Property Resources published by National Research council, National Academy of Sciences, USA, 1987;
On Organising Equity: Are Solutions Really the Problem?, Journal of Social and Economic Studies, Vol.2, No.4, October 1985, pp 295- 312;
International Range Land congress proceedings, paper on matching farmers’ perception with that of the scientists’ in Farmers’ First, ed. Chambers, Thrup and Pacey (1988),
The Design of Resource-delivery Systems: A Socio- ecological Perspective, Int. Studies of Management and Organisation, Vol-18, no-4.pp 64-82, 1989;
Biodiversity, Poverty and Intellectual Property Rights of Third World Peasants: A case for renegotiating global understanding, in “Biodiversity: Implications for Global Food Security” (Eds.M.S.Swaminathan, and S.Jana),1993;
Biotechnology and Intellectual Property Rights: Protecting the interests of third world farmers and scientists, in Commercialisation of Biotechnologies for Agriculture and Aquaculture: Status and Constraints in India, Oxford & IBH Publishing Co.Pvt.Ltd. 1990, pp.31-56;
Pastoral aptation in Studies in History (Sage, New Delhi and London) 1991, 7(2) 325-341; (With S T Patil and Rakesh Singh)
Designing an Accessible & Accountable Administrative System: Why Do Not People Protest? - A Case Study of Grievance Redressal Cell in a Drought-prone District, CMA Monograph 153, Oxford-IBH, New Delhi, 1992;
Environmental Policy Analysis for Maintaining Diversity, The Indian Journal of Social Science, Vol.7, No.1, 1994, New Delhi, Sage Publications;
Ethical Dilemma in Conservation of Biodiversity: Towards Developing Globally Acceptable Ethical Guidelines” in Eubios Journal of Asian and International Bioethics 5 (Japan), March 1995, pp.40.46;
Sustainable Institutions for Natural Resource Management: How do we participate in people’s plans? 1995, published by APDC in People’s Initiatives for Sustainable Development: Lessons of Experience (Eds., Syed Abdus Samad, Tatsuya Watanabe and Seung-Jin Kim), Chapter 15, pp.341-373; ( with Aseem Prakash),
Institutions and Environmental Sustainability, In Willem A. Hamel (ed) Proceedings of the Ecol-Environ-management Group, 1997, pp. 39-49, The Association of Management, 12th Annual Conference, Dallas, Texas, August 10-13; (with Aseem Prakash),
Ecologically Sustainable Institutions, in Fraser Smith (Ed.), Environmental Sustainability: Practical Global Implications, Florida: St. Lucie Press, 1997, 47-66;
Social and Ethical Dimensions of Ecological Economics, in Ed. Robert Constanza, Oleman Segura and Juan Martinez-Alier, Getting Down To Earth: Practical Applications of Ecological Economics, Washington DC:Island Press, 1996, 91-116;
Durham: Duke University press, 180-189;
New Economic Policies and Environment: The case of Biodiversity Conservation, in M.S.Rathore (Ed.) Environment and Development , Jaipur & New Delhi; Rawat Publications, 1996, 146- 166;
The Honey Bee network: Knowledge Rich Grassroots Innovations, Development, 1997, 36-40;
Rewarding Local Communities for Conserving Biodiversity: The case of Honey Bee, in Lakshman D. Guruswamy and Jefferey A. McNeely (Ed.) Protection of Global Biodiversity: Converging Strategies, 1998: Policy and Institutional Aspects of Sacred Groves;
Tending the Spirit, Sustaining the Sacred, in Conserving the Sacred for biodiversity Management (Eds. P.S.Ramakrishnan, K.G. Saxena and U.M.Chandrashekara), New Delhi and Calcutta: Oxford & IBH Publishing Co.Pvt. Ltd. Pp. 415-421, 1998;
Science and Sustainability and Social Purpose: Barriers to Effective Articulation, Dialogue and Utilisation of Formal and Informal Science in Public Policy;
Creativity Counts, A Regular Column on Grassroots Green Innovation in Special Issue on Science for Sustainable Development, (Eds. S.Funtowicz and M.O'Connor), International Journal for Sustainable Development, Vol.2, No.3, 1999;
Proceedings of the International Training Workshop, "Criteria and Indicators of Sustainability in Rural Development: A Natural Resource Perspective." New Delhi and Calcutta: Oxford & IBH Publishing Co.Pvt.Ltd., 2001, 424 p;
Grassroots Globalisation: An alternative model of globalisation,” Gentleman, (June 2001), pp.47-53; (With P.S.Ramakrishnan and K.C.Malhotra)
An Operational Framework for Developing Indicators of Sustainability, published in the book, Criteria and Indicators of Sustainability in Rural Development: A Natural Resource Perspective. New Delhi and Calcutta: Oxford & IBH Publishing Co.Pvt.Ltd., 2001, pp. 421 – 424;
Proprietary Science, Patenting, TRIPS, published in the proceedings of MSSRF-FAO Expert Consultation on Science for Sustainable Food Security, Nutritional Adequacy, and Poverty Alleviation in p. 265 – 270;
Contours of collaboration: Coping with disasters through effective inter-organisational networks, talk delivered at the seminar on “Disaster Management and the Armed Forces: A National Effort” on 11th September 2002 at the Air Force Auditorium, Subroto Park, New Delhi and published later by the Army Headquarters and Institution of Engineers, New Delhi in their souvenir, p. 61 – 69, 2002;
Rights for all published in, “Managing Intellectual Property”, June 2002, Issue 120, p.34-37; |
| Some recent contributions on grassroots innovations and biodiversity |
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(With Sanjeev Saxena, Vikas Chandak, Shrabani B.Ghosh, Riya Sinha and Neeru Jain) Costs of Conservation of Agrobiodiversity in India, published in “Efficient Conservation of Crop Genetic Diversity: Theoretical Approaches and Empirical Studies” (Ed. Detlef Virchow), Berlin, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, p. 137 – 174, 2003 Sustainability Through Biodiversity: Designing Crucible of Culture, Creativity and Conscience in “Criteria and Indicators of Sustainability in Rural Development: A Natural Resource Perspective.” New Delhi and Calcutta: Oxford & IBH Publishing Co.Pvt.Ltd., 2001, pp. 179 - 226. Ethics of Extraction: Biodiversity and Indigenous Knowledge, published in Protecting Biological Diversity under the title Blending Universal and Local Ethics: Accountability towards Nature, Perfect Strangers and Society (Eds. Catherine Potvin, Margaret Kraenzel and Gilles Seutin) , London, Ithaca, McGill-Queen’s University Press, Montreal & Kingston, p. 129-148, 2001 Implications of WTO On Indian Agriculture: The Case Of Intellectual Property Rights And Emerging Biosafety Protocol, 1999; IIMA WP No.99-10-06, October 1999, published as a chapter in the book entitled, Implications of WTO Agreements for India Agriculture. Samar K Datta and Satish Y. Deodhar (Eds.). Calcutta and New Delhi, Oxford & IBH Publishing Co.Pvt.Ltd., (2001), Chapter 10; pp.245-307 Conserving Biodiversity and Rewarding Associated Knowledge and Innovation Systems: Honey Bee Perspective, invited paper for the First Commonwealth Science Forum – Access, Bioprospecting, Intellectual Property Rights and Benefit Sharing and the Commonwealth, Goa, 23-25 September 1999 Rewarding Traditional Knowledge and Contemporary Grassroots Creativity: The Role of Intellectual Property Protection, paper presented at a seminar at Kennedy School, Harvard University, Boston, May 2000 Transforming Developmental Options for Knowledge-rich, Economically-poor people: From Grassroots Innovations to Global Space, paper presented at the UNESCO-ACEID Conference in Bangkok during December 12-15, 2000 Financing tiny and small sector technological innovations: A pre-budget submission to the Finance Minster, 2000 Rethinking priorities for Science and Technology policy for augmenting grassroots innovations: A pre-budget submission to the Finance Minister, 2001 Value chain augmentation for grassroots innovations making India innovative, note submitted to Finance Minister at the pre budget consultation meeting, January 9, 2002 Technological innovations for revitalising small scale and tiny sector: Need for a bold initiative - A note submitted to Finance Minister for budget 2003-04 (With Riya Sinha) Contested Domains, Fragmented Spaces: rights, responsibilities and rewards for conserving biodiversity and associated knowledge systems, Presented at International Conference of MAB UNESCO on Biosphere Reserve, IFRI. Dehradun, Feb 2001 Grassroots Movements: Introductory Statement, published in Villages in the Future: Crops, Jobs and Livelihood (Eds. Detlef Virchow and Joachim von Braun), New York, Springer-Verlag BerlinHeidelberg, p. 93 – 95, 2001 Done three case studies for WIPO on the role of IPRs in the sharing of benefits arising from the use of biological resources and associated traditional knowledge based on the data collected from Mali, Nigeria and India in 2001. These cases have been widely circulated on CD as a joint WIPO-UNEP pre-publication launch. Rewarding Conservation of Biological and Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge and Contemporary Grassroots Creativity, IIMA W.P.No.2003-01-06, January 2003, . – This is the final chapter of the case studies on the role of intellectual property rights in the sharing of benefits arising from the use of biological resources and associated traditional knowledge, based on the data collected from Mali, Nigeria and India,” brought out in CD format by WIPO- UNEP, 2002. Have papers in International journals like International Review of Administrative Sciences, International Journal of Sustainable Development, Agri. Systems, Capitalism, Nature and Socialism, International Studies in Management and Organisation, Indian Jr. of Social Studies, Indian Jr. of Public Administration, Vikalpa, Studies in History, Biotechnology Law Report (USA), Eubios (Japan), Development, Cultural Survival Quarterly, Biotechnology and Law Monitor, Diversity, etc., on Action Research, Social Effects of Rural Projects, Designing Resource Delivery Systems, Right To Resource, Household Economy in Dry regions, Biodiversity Conservation, Ethics of resource extraction, farmers' Innovations, Intellectual property rights of people etc. |
| Workshops, Research and Consultancies : |
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Have been requested to carry out a performance review of Commonwealth Knowledge Network of Commonwealth Science Council, UK. Have organised sessions/workshops on indigenous innovation and intellectual property rights in various national and international conferences of natural science societies dealing with Crop Science, Agronomy, Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, range management, soil and water conservation, etc. Have been invited as keynote speaker in scores of international conferences during 1981-2002 too many to be enumerated but including IAUES anthropological conference, rural sociology, farming systems, common property resource management, IAAE agricultural economics, AIPPI on IPRs, OECD on biodiversity, Range management, ICLARM on aquatic diversity, IFAD and EU on hunger and poverty, Universities of Arizona, Upsala, Hohenhiem, Boston, Aarhus, Mexico, TWAS, Trieste, in addition universities of Harvard, Duke, Cornell, Indiana, Oxford, etc., have invited for seminars, meetings and presentations. Participated in the Second Global Knowledge Conference in Kulalumur (March 2000); European Science Foundation’s Workshop on Biotechnology, Agriculture and Environmental Policy in Rome (May 2000); Global Dialogue on the Role of the Village in the 21st Century: Crops, Jobs and Livelihood in Hannover, Germany (August 2000); International Conference on Biotechnology in the Global Economy: Science and the Precautionary Principle at Harvard University, Boston (Sep 2000); Workshop on Democracy and Global Governance: Challenges for the XXI Century in Port Alegre, Brazil (Jan 2001); Policy Forum on Using Knowledge for Development at Wilton Park, London (March 2001); Multi-stakeholder Dialogue on Trade, Environment and Sustainable Development in Chiang Mai, Thailand (March 2001); Workshop on Development by Design, organised by the Media Lab, MIT, Cambridge in Washington (July 2001); II WIPO International Conference on Electronic Commerce and IP in Geneva (Sep 2001); Workshop on IPR, WTO, TRIPS Agreement and Environment, organised by UNEP in Geneva (Dec 2001); Expert Workshop on Traditional Knowledge organised by Commission on IPR at Commonwealth Science Council in London (Jan 2002); Taskforce on Technology, Innovation and Society organised by World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) in Feb 2002; International Workshop on Science, Technology and Sustainability: Harnessing Institutional Synergies in Trieste (Feb 2002); Conference on International Patent System in Geneva organised by WIPO (March 2002); Workshop on S&T for Sustainable Development, organised by Initiative on Science and Technology for Sustainability, International Council for Science and the Third World Academy of Sciences (May 2002) Coordinating a large research programme (6,50,000 CAD) 1993-2003 on Indigenous Knowledge Innovation and Network (Global) and Grassroots Incentives for Sustainable Natural Resource Management through a collaboration between IIMA and SRISTI on one hand and other editors of regional language version of Honey Bee. The phase III of this project focuses on women innovators and knowledge network. InfoDev Division of World Bank is supporting a project on creating electronic knowledge network among grassroots innovators using multimedia technologies. A multimedia database on Honey Bee and SRISTI's collection on grassroots innovations was presented at the first Global Knowledge Conference, Toronto, 1997. Coordinating a project on creating a multi language electronic database on grassroots innovations developed by Honey Bee Network and SRISTI, supported by NISSAT, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Government of India. Finished a research project on Harnessing Wisdom for Watershed Management partly supported by FAO, pursuing research on in situ conservation of agro biodiversity and generating incentives for the same. WIPO has sponsored international case studies on Role of IPRs in Benefit Sharing to be circulated to General Assembly of WIPO. Has been a consultant to CGIAR/World Bank, Swiss Development Co‑operation, BMZ, IADS, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council and Institute, Ford Foundation, IDRC, UNESCO, ISNAR, FAO, IFAD, National Institute of Health, USA, UNDP, WIPO, UNEP, CBD, WIPO, FTPP/FAO, OECD, UNDP, besides numerous national organisations such as NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development), voluntary organisations, Khadi and Village Industries Board, Narendra Dev University of Agriculture and Technology (NDUAT), Indian Council Of Agricultural Research (ICAR), MOEF, co-ordinated a joint report on Reorganisation of Indian Council of Agricultural Research Headquarters (1991). Since 1993, have reduced consultancy considerably to focus all energies on local innovations. |
| Membership of Research advisory Committees and other boards: |
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Served on the advisory committee of an international cross country research project of International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR), The Hague on On‑Farm Client Oriented Research;, was member External Advisory Committee, Centre For Indigenous Knowledge for Agricultural and Rural Development, Iowa state University, USA; was member, National Land Use and Conservation Board, and working group on soil conservation for 7th and 9th Five Year plan, Rainfed agriculture and watershed planning for seventh and ninth five year plan, Sub Group on Resource Mobilisation for Indian Council of Agricultural Research, 9th FYP; Planning Commission; was regional/ country representative of International Association of Rural Sociology and International Society of Advancement in Socio‑ Economics; International Society of Ecological Economics; life member, Gujarat Sociological association, Gujarat Economics Society, Indian Institute of Public Administration Society, Member Board of Directors, International Association For Studies of Common Property Resources; Gujarat Institute of Development Research; and National Institute of Vocational Education, Bhopal; Member Research Advisory Committee of Biological Sciences Division of Indian Statistical Institute, Calcutta, National Academy of Agricultural Research Management, Hyderabad; National Centre for Agricultural Policy, ICAR; Central Arid Zone Research Institute, Jodhpur; Board member VIKSAT, Ahmedabad, Member, Board of Directors of National Research Development Corporation; Sub Committee on Finance and Governance of Accreditation Board of ICAR , Coastal Zone Management Authority, Gujarat, National Committee to prepare twenty year plan for Forestry, MOEF; Member, Technical Advisory Group of Media Lab, Asia. Have guided three FPM (doctoral) theses on Ecological Movement, Incorporating Farmers’ Interests in Biotechnology Input Development and Endogenous Innovations for Sustainable Pest Management, besides being member of several other FPM committees on Trade and environment, organisational change, risk and uncertainty in agriculture etc. |