Home > Meet our faculty > Sangam Shrestha

Prof. Sangam Shrestha

Position
Dean, Director
Unit
School of Engineering and Technology / Global Water Sanitation Center
Media Links
PROFILE
EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND
RESEARCH INTERESTS
TEACHING
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
ONGOING AND COMPLETED PROJECTS
AWARDS AND HONORS
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
RESEARCH KEYWORDS

Dr. Sangam Shrestha is a Professor of Water Engineering and Management and Head of the Department of Civil and Infrastructure Engineering at the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand. He is a founding Director of Global Water & Sanitation Center (GWSC) at AIT. Dr. Shrestha is also a Visiting Professor of Beijing Normal University in China, University of Yamanashi, Japan, National University of Laos, and SEI Associate of Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI). His research interests are within the field of hydrology and water resources including, climate change impact assessment and adaptation in the water, integrated water resources management and groundwater assessment and management. Dr. Shrestha has published more than 150 papers in peer-reviewed international journals and presented more than 100 conference papers ranging from hydrological modelling to climate change impacts and adaptation in the water sector. Dr. Shrestha has been awarded ‘Distinguished Research Leader Award’ in 2015 and 2019 at AIT. Recently, he has been named as one of the world’s top climate scientists in the ‘Reuters Hot List’ that identifies and ranks 1,000 climate academics according to how influential they are. Similarly, in 2020, 2021 & 2022, his name appeared in the top 2% list of scientists for research impact based on the most recent single year (2019, 2020 & 2021) achievement in a paper published by Stanford University researchers in PLOS Biology.

  1. Diploma, Connection and Flows: Water, Energy and Digital Information in the Global South, Brown University, USA (July 2013)
  2. Ph.D. in Integrated River Basin Management (IRBM), University of Yamanashi, Japan (2007) 
  3. M.Sc. in Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM), Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand (2004) 
  4. M.Sc. in Agriculture (1 year, Major: Soil Science), Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science, Tribhuvan University, Nepal (2002)

Research and development areas include, but not limited to climate change and adaptation in water, integrated water resources management and groundwater development and management.

  1. CE 74.13: Water Resources Systems
  2. CE 74.52: Groundwater Development and Management
  3. CE 74.21: Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
  4. CE74.15 Research Design and Experimental Methods
  5. CE74.18 Climate Change and Water Resources

Below are some of the latest selected journal articles by Dr. Shrestha:

  1. Ghimire, S., Shrestha, S., Hok, P., Heng, S., Nittivattanaon, V., Sabo, J. (2023). Integrated assessment of climate change and reservoir operation on flow regime and fisheries of the Sekong river basin in Lao PDR and Cambodia. Environmental Research, 220, art. no. 115087, Publisher: Elsevier, Impact factor: 8.431 (2022).
  2. Mohanasundaram, S., Baghel, T., Thakur, V., Udmale, P., Shrestha, S. (2023). Reconstructing NDVI and land surface temperature for cloud cover pixels of Landsat-8 images for assessing vegetation health index in the Northeast region of Thailand. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 195 (1), art. no. 211, Publisher: Springer, Impact factor: 3.307 (2021).
  3. Aslam, R.A., Shrestha, S., Usman, M.N., Khan, S.N., Ali, S., Sharif, M.S., Sarwar, M.W., Saddique, N., Sarwar, A., Ali, M.U., Arshad, A. (2022). Integrated SWAT-MODFLOW Modeling-Based Groundwater Adaptation Policy Guidelines for Lahore, Pakistan under Projected Climate Change, and Human Development Scenarios. Atmosphere, 13 (12), art. no. 2001, Publisher: MDPI, Impact factor: 3.110 (2022).
  4. Sokneth, L., Mohanasundaram, S., Shrestha, S., Babel, M.S., Virdis, S.G.P. (2022). Evaluating aquifer stress and resilience with GRACE information at different spatial scales in Cambodia. Hydrogeology Journal, 30 (8), pp. 2359-2377, Publisher: Springer, Impact factor: 3.151 (2021).
  5. Nontikansak, P., Shrestha, S., Shanmugam, M.S., Loc, H.H., Virdis, S.G.P. (2022). Rainfall extremes under climate change in the Pasak River Basin, Thailand Journal of Water and Climate Change, 13 (10), pp. 3729-3746, Publisher: IWA Publishing, Impact factor: 2.803 (2022).
  6. Hu, X., Hu, M., Zhu, Y., Wang, G., Xue, B., Shrestha, S. (2022). Phytoplankton community variation and ecological health assessment for impounded lakes along the eastern route of China’s South-to-North Water Diversion Project. Journal of Environmental Management, 318, art. no. 115561, Publisher: Elsevier, Impact factor: 8.91 (2022). Citation: 4
  7. Han, Q., Zhou, L., Sun, W., Wang, G., Shrestha, S., Xue, B., Li, Z. (2022). Assessing alterations of water level due to environmental water allocation at multiple temporal scales and its impact on water quality in Baiyangdian Lake, China. Environmental Research, 212, art. no. 113366, Publisher: Elsevier, Impact factor: 8.431 (2022).
  8. Wang, L., Wang, G., Xue, B., A, Y., Fang, Q., Shrestha, S. (2022) Spatiotemporal variations in evapotranspiration and its influencing factors in the semiarid Hailar river basin, Northern China. Environmental Research, 212, art. no. 113275, Publisher: Elsevier, Impact factor: 8.431 (2022).
  9. Zhou, L., Sun, W., Han, Q., Bastola, S., Wang, G., Shrestha, S., Tong, R., Xue, B. (2022) Evaluating the influence of different environmental water allocation schemes on the water level of a typical shallow lake in semiarid regions: From the perspective of an integrated modeling approach. Environmental Research, 212, art. no. 112991, Publisher: Elsevier, Impact factor: 8.431 (2022).
  10. Chathuranika, I.M., Gunathilake, M.B., Baddewela, P.K., Sachinthanie, E., Babel, M.S., Shrestha, S., Jha, M.K., Rathnayake, U.S. (2022). Comparison of Two Hydrological Models, HEC-HMS, and SWAT in Runoff Estimation: Application to Huai Bang Sai Tropical Watershed, Thailand. Fluids, 7 (8), art. no. 267, Publisher: MDPI
  11. Muenratch, P., Nguyen, T.P.L., Shrestha, S., Chatterjee, J.S., Virdis, S.G.P. (2022). Governance and policy responses to anthropogenic and climate pressures on groundwater resources in the Greater Mekong Subregion urbanizing cities Groundwater for Sustainable Development, 18, art. no. 100791, Publisher: Elsevier, Impact factor:  6.27 (2021).
  12. Pinsri, P., Shrestha, S., KC, S., Mohanasundaram, S., Virdis, S.G.P., Nguyen, T.P.L., Chaowiwat, W. (2022). Assessing the future climate change, land use change, and abstraction impacts on groundwater resources in the Tak Special Economic Zone, Thailand. Environmental Research, 211, art. no. 113026, Publisher: Elsevier, Impact factor: 8.431 (2022).
  13. Fang, Q., Wang, G., Zhang, S., Peng, Y., Xue, B., Cao, Y., Shrestha, S. (2022). A novel ecohydrological model by capturing variations in climate change and vegetation coverage in a semi-arid region of China. Environmental Research, 211, art. no. 113085, Publisher: Elsevier, Impact factor: 8.431 (2022).
  14. Buhay Bucton, B.G., Shrestha, S., KC, S., Mohanasundaram, S., Virdis, S.G.P., Chaowiwat, W. (2022) Impacts of climate and land use change on groundwater recharge under shared socioeconomic pathways: A case of Siem Reap, Cambodia. Environmental Research, 211, art. no. 113070, Publisher: Elsevier, Impact factor: 8.431 (2022).
  15. Baghel, T., Babel, M.S., Shrestha, S., Salin, K.R., Virdis, S.G.P., Shinde, V.R. (2022). A generalized methodology for ranking climate models based on climate indices for sector-specific studies: An application to the Mekong sub-basin. Science of the Total Environment, 829, art. no. 154551, Publisher: Elsevier, Impact factor: 10.75 (2022).

For more information, download Dr. Shrestha’s Full CV.

See latest information below on on-going and completed projects by Dr. Shrestha. For more information, please download his Full CV.

  1. Establishment of Global Water & Sanitation Center at AIT (GWSC)
    Funding: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF)
    Period: October 2022 – October 2025; Total Budget: US$ 8.1 million; Role: PI (with Prof. Thammarat Koottatep)
  2. Climate Change Adaptation in Agriculture for Enhanced Recovery and Sustainability of Highlands (ADB TA 9993)
    Funding: Asian Development Bank (ADB)
    Period: March 2020 –December 2023; Total Budget: US$ 2 million; Role: PI (with Prof. Mukand S. Babel)
  3. Strengthening groundwater governance in rapidly urbanizing areas of the Lower Mekong Region (GIRA)
    Funding: Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI)- Asia
    Period: March 2020 –June 2023; Total Budget: US$ 200,000; Role: PI
  4. Climate Change Adaptation in Agriculture for Enhanced Recovery and Sustainability of Highlands (CC Thailand)
    Funding: Asian Development Bank (ADB)
    Period: March 2020 –December 2023; Total Budget: US$ 20,000; Role: PI
  5. Safeguarding the Regional Food Security under Climate Change impacts via mainstreaming Nature-based Solutions-centered adaptation strategies (NAFOS)
    Funding: Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN)
    Period: December 2022 –September 2024; Total Budget: US$ 99,350; Role: Co-PI (with Dr. Ho Huu Loc)
  6. Assessment of Groundwater Sustainability in the Special Economic Zone of Thailand for Operational Groundwater Management (GISA)
    Funding: Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI)- Asia
    Period: December 2020 –June 2023; Total Budget: US$ 45,000; Role: PI
  7. Towards mainstreaming the Ecosystem-based Adaptations for Sustainable Groundwater Resources Management in the Transboundary Cambodia-Viet Nam Mekong Delta Aquifer, Lower Mekong Region (GEBA)
    Funding: Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI)- Asia
    Period: June 2021 –June 2023; Total Budget: US$ 45,000; Role: Co-PI (with Dr. Ho Huu Loc)
  8. Climate change risk assessment for Southeast Asian lakes (CCRASEAL)
    Funding: Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN)
    Period: October 2020 – September 2023; Total Budget: US$ 92,000; Role: Co-PI (with Dr. Salvatore Virdis)
  9. ICUE 2022 on Energy. Environment and Climate ChangeFunding: Conference
    Period: November 2021 – March 2023; Total Budget: US$ 60,000; Role: Co-PI (with Dr. Wenchao Xue)
  10. Water Resources Management in the Mekong River Basin (Water Mekong)Funding: United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Period: January 2020–September 2022; Total Budget: US$ 120,000; Role: PI
  11. Sustainable groundwater management under socio-economic and climate change in Mekong Delta, Vietnam (GW-Mekong)Funding: United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Period: January 2020–December 2023; Total Budget: US$ 25,000; Role: PI
  12. Connecting climate change, hydrology & fisheries for energy and food security in Lower Mekong Basin (CC-HYDRO)
    Funding: United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Period: January 2017 – December 2020; Total Budget: US$ 210,000; Role: PI (with Dr. Vilas Nittivatanon, Co-PI)
    Overhead: Baht 857,095.00, Faculty time: -, Student Scholarships/Fellowships: Baht 448,000.00
  13. Mapping groundwater resilience to climate change and human development in Asian cities (GROUNDWATER-ASIA)
    Funding: Asia Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN)
    Period: September 2018 – August 2021; Total Budget: US$ 92,900; Role: PI
    Overhead: -, Faculty time: -; Student Scholarships/Fellowships: Baht 1,134,000.00
  14. A comparative study of global and local model for climate change impact assessment in Asia region (HYDRO-ASIA)
    Funding: Sejong University Industry Academy Cooperation Foundation, Korea
    Period: January 2018 – December 2019; Total Budget: US$92, 300; Role: PI
    Overhead: Baht 426,266.85, Faculty time: Baht 175,000; Student Scholarships/Fellowships: Baht 264,000

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  1. World’s top climate scientists (out of 1,000 climate academics) in the ‘Reuters Hot List’ in 2021.
  2. Top 2% list of scientists for research impact based on the most recent single year (2019, 2020, 2021 & 2023) achievement in a paper published by Stanford University researchers in PLOS Biology.
  3. Awarded “AIT Distinguished Researcher Awards” for 2019 by Asian Institute of Technology.
  4. Awarded “Groundwater Award 2019” for significant contribution in groundwater research in Nepal by Nepal-National Water Week 2019. 
  5. Awarded “AIT Distinguished Researcher Awards” for 2015 by Asian Institute of Technology.
  6. Designated as “NPA Ambassador for the Nepal PhD Association (NPA) International Chapter in Thailand.” 
  7. Nominated (among 3 top scientist) for ‘Young Scientist Award 2011’ by Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST).
  8. The Takeda Techno-Entrepreneurship Award (2007) by The Takeda Foundation, Japan for techno-entrepreneurial achievement for world environmental well-being. 
  9. Best Full Paper Award, the 3rd IWA Young Researcher Conference (YRC2006) for the paper entitled ‘Development of land use export coefficients for the modeling of non-point source pollution loads in Fuji River basin, Japan’.
  10. AIT –DANIDA full scholarship (2002-2004) to pursue Master of Science in Integrated Water Resources Management in Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand. 
  11. Tribhuvan University (Nepal) Merit Scholarship (1997-2000) to pursue Bachelor of Science in Agriculture in Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science, Nepal.
  1. Board Member, Asia Water Council (AWC) 
  2. Member, World Association of Soil and Water Conservation (WAWSC)
  3. Member, American Geophysical Union (AGU)
  4. Member, International Association of Hydrological Sciences (IAHS)
  5. Member, International Water Association (IWA)
  6. Member, Japan Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE)
  7. Member, AIT Alumni Association (AITAA)
  8. Member, Environment and Public Health Organization (ENPHO)
  9. International Coordinator, Rotary Community Corps (RCC), Dhulikhel, Nepal.
  10. Coordinator, Indonesia Earthquake Victim Relief Fund, University of Yamanashi, Japan.
  11. Coordinator, University of Yamanashi, Japan – Environment, and Public Health Organization, Nepal Research Group.
  12. General Secretary, Asian Institute of Technology Nepalese Society, Thailand. (2002-2003)
  13. Advisor, Post Graduate Society, Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science, Nepal. (2001-2002)
  14. Vice-Chairmen, Hitkari Samiti, Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science, Nepal. (2000- 2001)
  15. Vice-Chairmen, Nepal Youth Red-Cross Society, IAAS, Nepal. (1999-2000)
  16. Editor, The Profile of Agricultural Graduates, 2001, IAAS, Nepal. (2001)
  17. Editor, The Springtide, IAAS, Nepal. (2000)
  1. Climate Change and Adaptation,
  2. Integrated Water Resources Management,
  3. Hydrology and Water Quality Modelling,
  4. Groundwater Development and Management,
  5. Sustainable Water Management Policy