Bhawani Venkataraman

Associate Professor of Chemistry, Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts, The New School

About Me

I am an Associate Professor of Chemistry at Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts, The New School, New York City. I obtained my PhD in physical chemistry and over the years my work has evolved to look at the role of chemical research in informing environmental policies with particular focus around access to safe drinking water, air quality and energy decarbonization. This work shapes my teaching through the design of courses that aim to help students see the relevance of the chemical sciences in informing and shaping policies and actions that are socially and environmentally just.

Focus of current FEW-Nexus-based education work

My interest in FEW-Nexus-based education stems from my interest in learning how to interweave topics and issues that I currently teach about and conduct research on to inform interdisciplinary, systems-thinking curricula that address real-world, 21st-century issues. I am also interested in drawing extending my own research in connecting the chemical sciences to policies and actions that holistically address food-energy-water systems and focus on more climate-resilient approaches.

Publications, presentations, and other references

• B. Venkataraman. The Paradox of Water: The Science and Policy of Safe Drinking Water. University of California Press, 2023 (https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520343443/the-paradox-of-water)