Anonymous

Department of Environmental Biology, University of Delhi, India
Today's Date: August 23, 2006

1. What interaction with an animal and/or nature in your life has had the biggest impact on you?

In my childhood my father encouraged me to be in the outdoors. went out to the jungle with him. as a child had a mini zoo in my home. loved the zoo from very early on as well as nature. I guess this had the biggest impact on me.
2. Did you have a favorite place in the great outdoors during your childhood?

no one particular place but i liked ponds, with lotus flowers, reed beds, trees in the neighbourhood etc.
Now? there are a couple of places in and around the city of Delhi that I frequent. one of them is the delhi zoo where a wild colony of storks has been nesting since 1960. I am studying that, as a researcher.

3. As a former zookeeper, I would love to know what your favorite animal is, and why?

strangely, i dont like mammals- furry creatures very much. I am terrified of rats and mice. so my favourite animals are certainly not mammals. I like birds.

I was once in charge of a zoo myself- a snake park. although I am not a reptile man myself (and have a healthy fear of snakes) I find this group of animals fascinating.

4. What do you think is the greatest environmental challenge facing us now, and what do you think will be the greatest challenge in the future?

certainly the human pressure on resources and how to check it is the biggest challenge. Everyone knows that but the challenge is how to conserve it, without drastically cutting on the human consumption, because I feel, it is impossible to cut down on the consumption of resources (such as in western societies).

5. If you could give everyone one piece of advice regarding the environment and our natural resources, what would it be?

I really don’t want to give advice. But Mahatma Gandhi once said: “There is enough for every man's need, but not enough for every man's greed". I guess that sums it up.