PM Rishi Sunak gives big responsibility to Indian-origin professor, will protect Britain’s natural history

London: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has re-appointed Indian-origin academic Yadvinder Malli, a pioneer in the field of environmental science, as a trustee on the board of the Natural History Museum in London. Appointed for a second four-year term, Professor Malhi will oversee the Institute’s role in nature conservation in an unpaid advisory role.

Earlier in May 2020, he was appointed to the board for the first time. Expressing his delight on his appointment, Professor Malhi said, “My aim is to support this wonderful, respected and much-loved institution in research and public-policy engagement.

How do we understand relationships with the natural world?

The most fundamental question, he said, is how we can understand and restore our relationship with the natural world. Malhi, Professor of Ecosystems at the School of Geography and Environment, University of Oxford, was awarded a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) for his services to the late Queen Elizabeth II in 2020.

Malhi advocates global equality in conservation

Malhi, 50, is a former president of the British Ecology Society and the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation, and an advocate for global equity in science and conservation.