Dr. Praveen Kumar is an Associate Professor at the Boston College School of Social Work. He also holds a faculty affiliate status at the Environmental Studies Program, the Global Public Health and the Common Good Program, and the Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society, at Boston College.
His research focuses on the human dimensions of climate and environment, particularly in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. The overall objective of his research is to examine interventions that address the health and well-being of marginalized communities vulnerable to climate and environmental risks. A significant thrust within his scholarship on climate and environment is understanding the causes and consequences of household energy access in the context of climate change, health, and well-being.
His research is shaped by the conceptual frameworks of implementation science. He harnesses field-based studies, systematic reviews, secondary datasets, and system science approaches, particularly social network analysis, to advance his research. He also leverages his methodological expertise in social network analysis to collaborate with scholars and practitioners in cognate areas, including mental health, food and agriculture, and women’s empowerment.
Dr. Kumar’s work has been supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the International Growth Centre, the UN Foundation, and the Government of India, among others. He was the NIH Climate Change and Health Scholar for the year 2023, wherein he contributed to strengthening the agency’s strategic initiative on climate change and public health by sharing knowledge and helping build capacity for conducting climate change and health research.
He is currently the Network Co-lead for one of the Grand Challenges initiated by the American Academy of Social Work & Social Welfare—to create social responses to a changing environment.
Dr. Kumar teaches a graduate class on climate change and environmental justice and an undergraduate class on environment and public health. He is also an associate editor of the Annals of Global Health. Previously, Dr. Kumar worked as a management consultant in the International Development Services team of KPMG in India.
