Team & partners
The project team blends mycology, citizen science, community mobilisation, and program implementation with institutional oversight through IFFRH.
G. Venkatasubramanian (Venkat)
Venkat holds a PhD in Sociology from Pondicherry University and has been an associate researcher at the French Institute of Pondicherry. Over recent years, he has specialised on rural development and the role of NGOs and microfinance organisations, analysing their role in poverty eradication. He co-coordinates the Observatory of Rural Dynamics and Inequalities in South India (ODRIIS).
He is the Managing Director of the Indo-French Foundation for Research and Heritage (IFFRH), a charitable and research-oriented foundation of IFP, fostering Indo-French collaborations in sustainability, biodiversity, and heritage.
Administrative and financial oversight through IFFRH’s institutional framework; compliance and reporting; stakeholder coordination; enabling field implementation.
Prakash Kumar
Prakash studied Social Work (TISS, 2013) and has expertise in project management, monitoring & evaluation across agriculture, community development, livelihood and health projects. He has executed programs and capacity building on child protection centric social work, trafficking of children, and judicial education around child protection.
His organisation Woodpeckers Initiative runs an ecological innovation lab in Patna, Bihar. He is also the Managing Director for Samvedna Social Service Pvt. Ltd. (SSSPL), engaged in community mobilisation, sustainable agriculture and citizen science initiatives.
Project Management & Implementation Lead: workplans and timelines, monitoring indicators, logistics, coordination, reporting, and quality assurance for Trichoderma production and use.
Nadja Akcadurak
Nadja obtained her Master in International Affairs from the University of Vienna and was an associated researcher at the Institute for International Affairs and Development, focusing on environmental development and sustainability in the global south. She has been involved with ecological and human rights organisations such as Greenpeace, the Berghof Foundation, Peace Brigade International and the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict.
Her interests are transdisciplinary collaborations that bring together ecological restoration and human resource use, taking into account the interconnectedness of all beings.
Citizen Science & Public Engagement Consultant: co-designs community frameworks, co-leads establishment of minilabs and “Mycology on Wheels”, develops training modules and IEC, and facilitates hands-on workshops and demonstrations.
Nagesh Anand
Nagesh studied biotechnology, English linguistics and psychology, and completed his post-graduation in Dalit and Tribal centric Social Work from TISS Mumbai (2011–2013). He has been closely associated with ecological non-profits such as Greenpeace, Tarumitra, Prayogashala Trust, and various ecological movements across the subcontinent.
His key interest is restorative ecological mycology studies and citizen science centric interdisciplinary ecological / mycological research. His organisation Woodpeckers Initiative runs an ecological innovation lab in Patna, Bihar.
Technical & research leadership: protocol development and adaptation for local conditions; technical consultations; knowledge exchange between scientific communities and farmers.