Conservation studies a hit among Bangalore youth

Life sciences as a subject has always been cool. Now, many graduates in the age group of 21 to 27 are taking up conservation sciences as a career. And Karnataka, especially Bangalore, is their favoured destination of study.

Shazia Quasin, a 25-year-old MSc graduate in Zoology from Calcutta University who works with the Wildlife Institute of India, in Dehradun, said: “I chose this as a career option as it’s my turn to give back to Nature and what better way than this. Yes, there is less money compared to other fields and I earn less than my friends. But I’m happier.”

With career aims such as Quasin’s, over 300 students from around the world recently attended the three-day Student Conference on Conservation Science  at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc). Professor Raman Sukumar, director, Centre for Ecological Sciences, said conservation science is a career option for students pursuing their PhD and masters in science subjects.

Though wildlife and conservation science is in its infancy in India, awareness among the youth is on the rise and Bangalore’s bang in the middle of it all due to the presence of many centres such as Centre for Ecological Sciences, National Centre for Biological Sciences, ATREE, Wildlife Conservation Society and Wildlife Conservation Fund, apart from the various universities and colleges in the city.