Kartik Shanker
Kartik is a founder trustee of Dakshin Foundation. An ecologist by training, Kartik has interests in both mountain and marine systems. Currently, he is a Professor at the Centre for Ecological Sciences (CES), Indian Institute of Science (IISc.), Bangalore where he conducts research on a range of taxa including frogs, reptiles, birds, plants, and reef fish and other marine fauna. His work with marine turtles in the last 20 years has led to broader interests in coastal and marine conservation. His work at Dakshin is embedded in the belief that social, cultural and political contexts largely determine conservation outcomes. Kartik’s commitment to public understanding of science led him to establish Current Conservation, a magazine that bridges conservation and art by bringing together research professionals, writers and artists from different parts of the world.
He holds a Ph.D., Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science.
NIF Books
Tigers, elephants, lions and other large mammals have so far been central to India's conservation story. In spite of the country's vast coastline and millions being dependent on marine resources for their livelihoods, such species and habitats have been largely neglected in writings on wildlife. From Soup to Superstar provides the first comprehensive account of marine conservation in India, focusing on sea turtles, which are at once a fishery resource, a religious symbol and a conservation icon.
Worshipped as Kurma, the incarnation of Vishnu, by several communities, these creatures have been part of folklore and mythology for over 2,000 years. Until the 1970s, there were large- and small-scale turtle fisheries in Odisha and the Gulf of Mannar, while eggs and meat were consumed along the rest of the coast. Since then, several conservation programmes have been led in these regions by naturalists, scientists, activists and concerned citizens with diverse, often conflicting, approaches. Globally, attention has centred on the mass-nesting beaches in Odisha, where over 1,00,000 turtles may nest simultaneously. New threats have emerged and elicited responses at local, national and international levels.
Bringing together a range of issues and actors that have affected the world of sea turtles, filled with fascinating insights into scientific research and human-animal ecologies, this is a definitive chronicle of the efforts that have been made to protect these mysterious creatures in the last fifty years.
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Reviews:
‘Through the story of sea turtles, Kartik Shanker provides a rich history of India's marine ecosystems, the international conservation movement and cutting-edge ecological research. The pen portraits are vivid, the analysis deep, the more luminous. If more scientists could write as well as Shanker, and more environmentalists think as carefully as him, the world would be a happier place.’ - Ramachandra Guha
‘An important book on the conservation efforts of experts and laypeople alike, who have helped make safe the lumbering journey of turtles from sea to shore and back.’- Ranjit Lal, The Hindu Business Line
‘From Soup To Superstar is a celebration of seafaring turtles and adventurous marine conservationists who worked tirelessly through the last four decades’ - Anand Bannerjee, Live Mint
‘The book, authored by sea turtle expert Kartik Shanker, is a riveting, deeply researched – and often personal – look into sea turtle conservation in India, reflecting Shanker’s decades-long experience working with these creatures.’ - Shreya Dasgupta, Mongabay
Other books by the author:
