Former Head of Exploration, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) India Member, Senior Executive Board, Central University of Tamil Nadu (CUTN) Member, Expert Committee for CRRC & SUNIL Programmes, Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India
Dr. Krishnan Srinivasaraghavan is currently serving as an Adjunct Professor of Sustainable Development in Amrita School for Sustainable Futures (ASF), Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, India. He is a senior international civil servant and a seasoned international development professional with over two decades’ experience and expertise in multilateral affairs, regional cooperation, science, technology and innovation (STI) and establishing cross-border partnerships. During 2019-2023, Dr. Krishnan held the position of Head of Exploration, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) India wherein he led UNDP’s efforts to test, pilot and scale groundbreaking new and emerging technological innovations for accelerating progress in achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs). For over 13 years, he was the Coordinator for Technology Transfer Programme for the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and played a lead role in establishing and operationalizing several UN regional initiatives in the areas of renewable energy, climate resilient agriculture, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) development as well as 4 th Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies in the Asia Pacific region.
Prior to joining United Nations, he served as Assistant General Manager in a public sector organization under the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India and contributed significantly to technology transfer negotiations of Government of India in biopharmaceutical sector. Dr. Krishnan also served as a Science Specialist with the Australian Government and he was one of the founding members of “Australia-India Strategic Research Fund”, an Australian dollar 40 million joint initiative by Australia and India to promote research collaboration between the two countries. Dr. Krishnan also worked for the internationally renowned The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) as a scientist in environmental biotechnology during which he also held the position of Visiting Researcher at the Waseda University, Tokyo during 2004-2005.
Dr. Krishnan has several academic and professional achievements to his credit including Member, Third Court (Senior Executive Board) of the Central University of Tamil Nadu; Member, Expert Committee, Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, Member, Subgroup on Innovation and Technology Transfer, NITI Aayog. He secured University First Rank and was a recipient of Gold Medal in Masters in Microbiology from Bharathidasan University. He was also recipient of DAAD Fellowship from Germany, Overseas Scholar Award from Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund (JNMF), Postgraduate Scholarship from The Fletcher School, USA.
He holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Biotechnology from TERI School of Advanced Studies, New Delhi, India, a Master of Arts degree in International Relations from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, USA and a Master of Science in Microbiology from Bharathidasan University, India. He also has a keen interest in learning new languages and obtained Certifications in Sanskrit and Japanese languages.