Our Team
Working together for a bio-responsible future
Dr. Suryesh Kumar Namdeo
Senior Research Analyst and Project Lead
Dr. Suryesh Kumar Namdeo is responsible for overall leadership and coordination of the project. He contributes to policy research, training, policy engagement and outreach activities in the domains of bio-responsibility and science diplomacy.
Dr. Suryesh Kumar Namdeo is an internationally recognized expert at the intersection of biosecurity, science diplomacy, and global biogovernance. He is a member of the Indian National Young Academy of Science (INYAS) and a former Fellow at the Asia Centre for Health Security (ACHS) in Singapore. Dr. Namdeo serves on the advisory board of the International Biosecurity and Biosafety Initiative for Science (IBBIS) and contributes to the working groups of the AIxBio Global Forum, convened by the Nuclear Threat Initiative — reflecting his deep engagement with emerging biosecurity risks.
His expertise has been sought by leading global institutions, including the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), where he has contributed to multiple expert committees on biosecurity. He previously served as Science and Technology Consultant for the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) at the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs, where his responsibilities included facilitating science and technology advice to policymakers and international civil servants. He has co-authored the ‘Seoul Youth Declaration for Disarmament and Non-proliferation’ and the ‘Youth Declaration for Biosecurity.’ For his contributions, he was a finalist for the PACEY Award 2026, by the Basel Peace Office.
An IFBA certified Biorisk Management Professional, he has also championed the science policy community as a former Director for Outreach and Engagement at the Journal of Science Policy and Governance (JSPG). He earlier served as programme officer for the Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Fellowship Programme of the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. He holds a PhD in Molecular Biology from the Max Planck Institute for Biology, Tübingen, Germany.
Dr. Ketan Thorat
Consultant
Dr. Ketan Thorat contributes to planning, coordination and strategy for the Bio-Responsibility Initiative and the Bio-Responsibility Collective. He also leads the Bio-Responsibility Collective comic series.
Dr. Ketan Thorat is a Scientist and Regulatory Compliance Officer at the Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine (iBRIC-inStem), part of the Bangalore Life Sciences Cluster (BLiSC), India. His work focuses on ensuring that advanced biomedical and biotechnology research is conducted in compliance with national and international regulatory frameworks. He plays a key role in operationalising regulatory requirements within research environments, supporting institutional oversight, risk assessment, and the responsible conduct of research involving emerging biotechnologies. Dr. Thorat is actively engaged in strengthening cultures of responsibility across the life sciences through his work with the Bio-Responsibility Collective and through helping build the Bio-Responsibility Initiative, which advances awareness, dialogue, and practical approaches to responsible life science governance. Dr. Thorat is a 2024 United Nations Youth for Biosecurity Fellow and India Biosecurity Fellow, reflecting his active engagement in global biosecurity dialogue and capacity-building initiatives. He also contributes to academic engagements through lectures, workshops, mentoring, and interdisciplinary discussions connecting researchers, students, and policy communities on biosafety, biosecurity, and responsible innovation. His experience bridges laboratory practice, regulatory implementation, science diplomacy, academic outreach, and international policy discussions on responsible innovation.
Akriti Sharma
Research Associate
Akriti is responsible for undertaking research on biosecurity governance, including the design of anticipatory risk assessment frameworks for emerging biological risks in India and Global South. She conducts field-based research (FGDs, surveys, interviews) and contributes to academic and policy publications.
Akriti Sharma is a Research Associate at the Centre for Society and Policy, Indian Institute of Science (IISc). She submitted her PhD thesis titled “Environmental and Climate Change in the Himalaya: A Case for Regional Cooperation” to the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS). She was awarded the UGC NET-JRF fellowship to conduct her thesis research. She was previously a Visiting Researcher at Eurac Research, Italy, and a Visiting Fellow at the Centre for South Asian Studies, Nepal. Her research interests include non-traditional security, climate governance, science-policy interfaces, anticipatory governance, and risk assessment of emerging security challenges.
Aayushi Sharma
Research Analyst
Aayushi is responsible for conducting research on disarmament and non-proliferation in the context of biological weapons, with a focus on national implementation, compliance with the Biological Weapons Convention. Her focus remains on national policy frameworks for advancing biosecurity. She also supports programme management and operational coordination for the initiative.
Aayushi is a Research Analyst at the Centre for Society and Policy, Indian Institute of Science (IISc). Her work has been at the intersection of international security, non-proliferation, and disarmament. She has experience across research, advocacy, and programme roles, having worked as a Programme Manager with the Middle East Treaty Organisation (METO), and as a Consultant with the Chemical Weapons Convention Coalition, facilitating engagement between Chemical Weapons Survivors and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). She has previously been a Research Intern at the Nuclear and Arms Control Centre at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA), where she examined the legal disarmament frameworks for chemical and biological weapons.
She has been a Research Fellow at the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty- Centre for Energy and Security Studies, where she examined the legal, technical, and geopolitical dimensions of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.
Tanya Sarawagi
Project Associate
Tanya contributes to programme development through the organisation of policy lectures, expert consultations, and workshops that convene stakeholders across science, policy, and security domains. She supports content development for the initiative, ensuring analytical rigor and policy relevance, and develops visual communication tools, including comic-based illustrations, to make complex biosecurity concepts more accessible to wider audiences.
Tanya Sarawagi is a biosecurity policy researcher at the Centre for Society and Policy, Indian Institute of Science. Her work focuses on governance challenges in emerging life sciences, particularly synthetic nucleic acids, AI–biology convergence, and dual-use research, with an emphasis on regulatory gaps, institutional preparedness, and responsible innovation. She holds a Master’s degree in Biotechnology and has experience across biosafety policy analysis, regulatory compliance (FDA, EMA, CDSCO), and applied life sciences. Her work includes contributions to international collaborations assessing climate-linked vulnerabilities of high-containment laboratories, along with exposure to advanced biomedical imaging technologies. She has contributed to academic and policy-oriented publications, including co-authorship in forensic genetics research and ongoing work on technology democratization in global health. Her training in biosecurity, science diplomacy, and international governance frameworks complements her work at the intersection of science, policy, and security. With prior experience in science education and curriculum engagement, she brings a strong focus on public communication and stakeholder outreach, working to bridge technical expertise with policy application in biosecurity.
V Krithika
Research Intern
Chenni Valavan
Research Intern
Chenni Valavan is an Integrated Master’s student in Development Studies at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, with academic interests in international security, biosecurity, public health preparedness, and biological risk governance. He is currently a Research Intern with the Bio-Responsibility Initiative at the Center for Society and Policy, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, where his work focuses on biological threat governance and policy responses to emerging biological risks. His current research examines the intersections between life sciences research, public health and biological threat assessment in Mizoram, alongside the design of simulation exercises for public health preparedness and biological risk response.
He has prior research experience across geopolitical risk analysis, international conflicts, and public health. His work has included field-based research on health systems and institutional capacity in Mizoram, analysis of regional security and political developments in West Asia & Africa, and research in CBRN risks. He has authored policy reports, analytical briefs, and research papers addressing conflict dynamics, emerging technologies, health-system resilience, and biological security. He has also developed exploratory epidemiological models and maintains a self-hosted research computing environment for data management and computational research.