Suman Acharya

Research Graduate Student

Office Location: 236 A South Stevens Hall, University of Maine, Orono, Maine 04469

Faculty Advisor: Dr. Cynthia Isenhour

Biographical Statement:

I grew up in a small village in Nepal and earned my undergraduate degree in Forestry from Institute of Forestry at Tribhuvan University, Nepal. Currently, I am a PhD student in the Anthropology and Environmental Policy at the University of Maine. I worked as District Climate Change Specialist for the Adaptation for Smallholders in Hilly Areas (ASHA) project for one year in Nepal before I joined University of Maine. In addition, I was engaged in different organizations as a part time and full-time personnel. I am broadly interested in climate adaptation, carbon accounting, and ecosystem-based adaptation. Working in wild as a wildlife conservationist, travelling in rough terrain and swimming are my passion. I completed my domestic travel, all around Nepal, and now looking forward to travel around the world. I am now working on my Ph.D. with Dr. Cynthia Isenhour at the Department of Anthropology.

Research Area:

I am focusing my research in Human Dimensions of Climate Change with a particular interest focused on climate change adaptation in rural livelihood of Nepal. I am currently designing my research project and I find working with the proactive adaptation responses and strategies by the rural communities that are the most climate vulnerable communities could lead my dissertation. Moreover, I am focusing on understanding the roles of diverse institutions (national, state and local levels) in climate change adaptation policy formulation and implementation and the collaboration of these institutions in Nepal.

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