Climate Change and Livestock Production: Concepts and Technologies for Resilience and Sustainability

Author Biography

Veerasamy Sejian, M.V.Sc & PhD., is the Principal Scientist at ICAR-National Institute of Animal Nutrition and Physiology (NIANP), Bangalore, India. Previously he was the Dean, Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Veterinary Education and Research, Puducherry. His major thrust area of research is on “Climate Resilient Livestock Production”. Dr Sejian is the team leader to establish the concept of “Multiple stresses impacting small ruminants”. His current research focuses on identifying molecular markers for different environmental stresses in small ruminants with the primary focus to develop agro-ecological zone specific thermo-tolerant breeds. Dr Sejian is currently the Fellow of National Environmental Science Academy. Dr Sejian has published 214 peer-reviewed articles, 158 book chapters, 310 invited/lead papers, 271 conference papers and 26 technical manuals. Further, Dr Sejian has published five International Springer books and one Elsevier book. His h-index is 63 and i10 index is 178. His total citation is 12822. Dr Sejian did his first post doctorate at The Ohio state University, USA. Dr Sejian was bestowed with Endeavour Research Fellowship by the Australian Government to pursue post doctorate at The University of Queensland, Australia. For his outstanding contribution in animal science, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has bestowed him with the prestigious Lal Bahadur Shastri Outstanding Young Scientist Award in 2012. Further, Career360 an academic organization in India had selected Dr Sejian to be one of the top 10 scientists in India under environmental sciences category during 2017-18. Currently, Dr.Sejian is ranked #1 among the four veterinary and animal science researchers in top 1000 best veterinarians in the world list for 2024 released by research.com an academic organization. Dr Sejian is also listed in world top 2% scientists for five consecutive years by Stanford University, USA during 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 & 2024. Dr Sejian is also listed in world top 1% scientists by PubMed based on last 10 years of publications in heat stress. In addition, Dr Sejian is also serving as Associate Editor in Elsevier’s Small Ruminants Research and Academic Editor in PLOS Climate. Apart from this he is also serving as editorial board member in 24 international journals. He has developed eight technologies and also has one patent granted. He has guided 20 Masters and 6 PhD students. Presently, he is collaborating with researchers from Australia, France, Italy, USA, and Brazil. Chinnasamy Devaraj, M.V.Sc., Ph.D., is a Scientist at the Division of Bioenergetics and Environmental Sciences, ICAR-National Institute of Animal Nutrition and Physiology (NIANP), Bengaluru, India. His major research thrust lies in energy metabolism, environmental physiology, and sustainable livestock production under climate stress. He is currently engaged in the research project titled "Climate change and small ruminant production: novel approaches to establish climate resilience and for stress amelioration in sheep and goats", which focuses on developing adaptive strategies and technologies to enhance climate resilience in small ruminants. His broader research investigates the physiological role of adipokines and other molecular regulators associated with energy homeostasis in small ruminants, with an emphasis on stress adaptation. Dr. Devaraj was awarded the Junior Research Fellowship by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) through an All India Competitive Exam for his M.V.Sc. studies at the National Dairy Research Institute (2004–2006). He also received the prestigious ICAR Award for Outstanding Interdisciplinary Team Research (2007–2008) in the field of Animal and Fisheries Sciences. Over his career, he has published 225 scientific contributions, including 36 peer-reviewed research articles, 30 book chapters, 58 invited/lead papers, 91 conference presentations, 10 technical manuals and one Springer book. His h-index is 15, i10 index is 21, and he has a total citation count of 1399, reflecting a steadily growing academic footprint. He is an active reviewer for reputed journals such as the International Journal of Biometeorology and Journal of Agrometeorology Small Ruminant Research, Veterinary and Animal Science, Heliyon, Livestock Sciences, Plos One, Frontiers in Animal Science, Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology - Part D: Genomics and Proteomics, BMC Public Health, Microbe, Research in Veterinary Science, Gene Reports and Computers and Electronics in Agriculture. Dr. Devaraj actively participates in institutional training's, technical workshops, scientific meetings, and outreach activities, contributing significantly to the dissemination of climate-smart livestock practices and physiological technologies. Artabandhu Sahoo, MVSc & PhD, is the Director of ICAR-National Institute of Animal Nutrition & Physiology, Bengaluru, India. He is a domicile of Odisha (village: AIDA, Sub-Division: Athmallik, District: Angul). Graduated (BVSc & AH) in 1988 from OUAT, Bhubaneswar followed by post-graduation (MVSc, Animal Nutrition) in 1990 and PhD (Animal Nutrition) in 1994 from Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, India. Received Endeavour Research Fellowship-2009 by DEEWR, Govt of Australia to undertake post-doctoral research at CERAR, UniSA, Adelaide. Joined Agricultural Research Services (ARS) as Scientist in 1993 and served in different capacity as Director(s) of ICAR-Central Sheep and Wool Research Institute and ICAR-National Research on Camel prior to present assignment. Major field of activities are nutrition-physiology-environment interaction, nutrition and feed resources, feeding systems & evaluation, rumen ecology, clinical nutrition & dietetics. Worked with a variety of animal species (cattle, buffalo, sheep, goat, camel, rabbits, poultry etc.) and their productive performance in different environments at different physiological stages and nutrition. Published > 500 publications with >220 peer-reviewed research papers and 18 edited books. GoogleScholar rated him as internationally acclaimed Animal Nutritionist with 35 H-Index, 114 i10-index (~4600 Citations). Granted patents (04), Technology Certification (05), Copyrights (06), Trademarks (14) for his footprint in R&D. Besides being recognized as Fellow by four different Professional Societies, received ‘Life-Time Achievement Award’ for outstanding contributions in R&D in the field of Nutrition and Welfare of animals, received Extraordinary Leadership in Technological Advancements by Agriculture Today Group (2023).