Urmila Mallick
EducationMESc, 2023, Yale School of the Environment
B.A., 2021, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Environmental and Sustainability Studies B.S., 2021, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Biology and Biotechnology Curriculum VitaeClick here for cv
Current researchMy research goal is to explore how animal presence influences carbon cycling and how these biogeochemical processes can be comprehensively considered in the planning of regional and global carbon budgets. Specifically, I am interested in studying how the terrestrial carbon pool sequesters varying levels of carbon depending on wildlife, livestock, and human activity on the landscape. My current research, in collaboration with Botswana’s Okavango Research Institute, is focused on how wildlife versus livestock affect soil carbon storage in northern Botswana’s Makgadikgadi National Park and the bordering livestock rangeland that acts as a migration corridor between the park and Central Kalahari Game Reserve. My work involves analyzing camera trap image data, collecting soil samples and measuring soil properties at camera trap sites, and mapping the landscape using remote sensing. By analyzing soil carbon with animal presence data and landscape variables that may influence carbon cycling, I aim to model the effects that wildlife versus livestock have on carbon sequestration potential in the Makgadikgadi landscape.
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ContactEmail: [email protected]
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/urmila-mallick/ Mailing Address: Yale University School of the Environment 370 Prospect Street New Haven, CT 06511 USA 
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Previous research
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My undergraduate thesis research with Dr. Marja Bakermans and Dr. Khalid Saeed at Worcester Polytechnic Institute focused on social integration feasibility of Indian free-ranging/stray dogs (FRD), for animal welfare, public health, and conservation benefits. I studied FRD population dynamics in India, conducted semi-structured interviews with residents and researchers, and designed a system dynamics model to compare conventional FRD management policies with a proposed social integration pathway. During my senior year of college, I had the opportunity to be an NSF-REU student and visiting undergraduate at Harvard University, where my work in Dr. Colleen Cavanaugh’s lab involved learning programming and data visualization skills and using metagenomics and metatranscriptomics to study bacterial symbiosis.
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Collecting soil samples near Makgadikgadi National Park with research assistant Dikatholo Kedikilwe
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Publications
Mallick, U.B., Bakermans, M.H., Saeed, K. 2021. Transforming a Liability into an Asset: A System Dynamics Model for Free-Ranging Dog Population Management. Systems 9(56). https://doi.org/10.3390/systems9030056
Masozera, A.B., Mallick, U.B., McVey, A., Ruzigandekwe, F., Teferi, T., Koliba, C., Sanford L., Martin, A. International cooperation and mountain gorilla conservation: Longitudinal analysis to inform species conservation action planning. (In preparation)
Masozera, A.B., Mallick, U.B., McVey, A., Ruzigandekwe, F., Teferi, T., Koliba, C., Sanford L., Martin, A. International cooperation and mountain gorilla conservation: Longitudinal analysis to inform species conservation action planning. (In preparation)
