I am an Assistant Professor at the Asian School of the Environment at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. I work in the areas of Conservation Biology, Land Use Change and Agriculture. Much of my work focuses on the social and ecological consequences of human impacts on the environment, especially within Southeast Asia. After having worked on a range of topics in conservation (wildlife trade, invertebrate ecology, habitat fragmentation), I now focus on the conservation and development challenges faced in the context of commercial and small-scale agricultural expansion in the tropics. I am the Principal Investigator for the Coupled Human and Natural Systems Lab.
I plan to delve more into the issues of conservation and development in the rural tropics, food security, sustainable certification of agro-commodities, as well as taking on the challenge to curb the haze in Southeast Asia. The topic on food and agriculture is cross disciplinary and one that needs urgent attention due to multiple reasons, ranging from a projected increase in global food demand to increased risk of crop failure due to climate change. I believe that impact-oriented research on agriculture in tropical rural landscapes and the linkages between urban and rural landscapes is greatly lacking in the region of Southeast Asia and deserves more research attention.
Janice Ser Huay Lee 