Image Credit: Edwin Remsberg
Rebecca (Becky) Epanchin-Niell joined the department at the beginning of the 2020-2021 academic year. She conducts research at the intersection of economics and ecology to improve decision-making regarding natural resources and ecological systems. Her interests include invasive species management, conservation of species and ecosystems, and rural coastal adaptation to climate change.
Prior to joining UMD, Epanchin-Niell spent a decade working with Resources for the Future specializing in spatial targeting of natural resource policies and management. She received her Ph.D. from the University of California, Davis.
In the fall of 2020, Epanchin-Niell taught AREC 200, The Chesapeake Bay Ecosystem: Intersection of Science, Economics, and Policy. She is planning to offer the class again in the fall of 2021.
M. R. Sharan is an assistant professor specializing in development economics and political economy.
Sharan is a recent graduate of Harvard University, where he received his PhD in public policy from the Harvard Kennedy School. His research focuses on inequality in socially diverse settings and how institutional and technological innovations could empower marginalized groups.
His research is set in India, and often in the state of Bihar. A common theme that runs through most of his work is a focus on rural local government institutions. He has worked on grievance redressal mechanisms and the role of local government actors in making them more effective.
Professor Sharan is currently teaching AREC 365, World Hunger, Population, and Food Supplies.
