Neeraja Havaligi
Neeraja is a practicing agriculturist, educator, scientist and a life-long learner of the power of growing, cooking and sharing food. Neeraja has a doctorate in environmental science with research focus on urban water and food resilience and urban agrobiodiversity. She has two masters degrees, one in agronomy, another in plant physiology, and a bachelors in agriculture science. Her work experience includes consulting with United Nations Development Program (UNDP)-Global Environment Facility (GEF) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for biodiversity conservation, sustainable land management, gender mainstreaming and climate change adaptation in countries from Asia and the Pacific, Arab States, Europe and South American regions.
She has served non profits and sustainability start-ups as board member and advisor. Neeraja believes that home and community gardens and urban green spaces can serve as centers of individual and collective change drawing communities together in how we identify with our resources and how we use them, leading to diverse, resilient and giving-living-thriving communities. Details about Neeraja are at www.neeraja.net