Madhusudan Katti

I am an Associate Professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Science and the Chancellor's Faculty Excellence Program for Leadership in Public Science at North Carolina State University.

I am an evolutionary ecologist who discovered birds as an undergrad after growing up a nature-oblivious urban kid near Bombay, went chasing after vanishing wildernesses in the Himalaya and Western Ghats as a grad student, and returned to study cities grown up as a reconciliation ecologist. I study animals and plants in cities with the goal of applying our understanding towards reconciling biodiversity conservation with human development. I lead the multidisciplinary Urban Long-Term Research Area - Fresno And Clovis Ecosocial Study (ULTRA-FACES) project, studying the interactions between water policy, human water use, and urban biodiversity in California's Central Valley. I serve on the steering committee of UrBioNet, a network that grew from an NCEAS Working Group to study global urban biodiversity.

I study the behavioral effects of humans on other species, e.g. effects of urban noise on birdsong. I serve on the Science Advisory Board of Desert Biodiversity, the Advisory Board of Current Conservation and the Editorial Boards of the journals, Journal of Urban Ecology,Urban Naturalist, andIndian Birds.

I strive to make science a part of our everyday culture. My writing has appeared in The Conversation, The Nature of Cities, Coyot.es Network, and other outlets. I founded the Central Valley Café Scientifique and host an affiliated radio show, "Science: A Candle In The Dark" which airs on the 4th Tue of each month at 3:30PM (Pacific Time), and is also available as a podcast.