Dr. Sonam Sahoo is currently an Assistant Professor at the Centre for Sustainability, Mahindra University. Before joining MU, she was a Fulbright-Kalam Climate Postdoctoral Scholar at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Maine, Orono, USA. Dr. Sonam earned her PhD in Earth Sciences from the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar, Gujarat. Her research focuses on the dynamics of hydro-geomorphic processes and their implications for river health and water security.

• Ph.D. (Earth Sciences), IIT Gandhinagar, July-2019

• M. Sc. Geology, University of Delhi, 2013

• B.Sc. (H) Geology, University of Delhi, 2011

• Brierley, G., Sahoo, Sonam, Danino, M., Fryirs, K., Pandey, C.N., Sahoo, R., Khan, S., Mohapatra, P. and Jain, V., 2023. A plural knowledges model to support sustainable management of dryland rivers in western India. River Research and Applications. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/rra.4219

• Sonam, Vikrant Jain, Kirstie Fryirs, Gary Brierley. 2022. Geomorphic characterization of a seasonal river network in semi-arid western India using the River Styles Framework, Journal of Asian Earth Sciences X. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaesx.2021.100077
• Sonam, Ajit Singh, V. Jain. 2022 A review of hydro-geomorphic studies in the Ganga Plains: emergence of a new interdisciplinary area of research. J. of Paleontological Society of India. 67(1), 139-157

• Sonam, Sahoo, R., Singh, R.N. and Jain, V., 2020. Temporal profiling of uplift rate along an active fault using river long profile in the Kuchchh region, Western India. Quaternary International. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2020.11.022
• Jain, V., Sonam, Singh, Ajit, Sinha, R., and Tandon, S. K., 2020. Evolution of modern river system: An assessment of ‘landscape Memory’ in Indian River System. Episodes. doi: 10.18814/epiiugs/2020/020035

• Dey, S., Kaushal, R.K., Sonam and Jain, V., 2019. Spatiotemporal variability of Neotectonic activity along the Southern Himalayan front: a geomorphic perspective. Journal of Geodynamics. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jog.2018.09.003

• Sonam and Jain, V., 2018. Geomorphic effectiveness of a long profile shape and the role of inherent geological controls in the Himalayan hinterland area of the Ganga River basin, India. Geomorphology, 304, pp.15-29. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2017.12.022
• Agrawal, S., Srivastava, P., Sonam, Meena, N.K., Rai, S.K., Bhushan, R., Misra, D.K. and Gupta, A.K., 2015. Stable (δ 13 C and δ 15 N) isotopes and magnetic susceptibility record of late Holocene climate change from a lake profile of the northeast Himalaya. Journal of the Geological Society of India, 86(6), 696-705. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12594-015-0362-9

• Fulbright-Kalam Climate Postdoctoral Scholar at University of Maine, Orono-USA (September, 2023 to September, 2024).

• CSIR Research Associate, Sustainable river basin management hosted at IIT Gandhinagar (September, 2021 to August, 2023).

• Research Associate in Forest and Biodiversity in NMSKCC project at IIT Gandhinagar (September, 2019 to August, 2021).

Her research interests primarily focus on

• Exploring the interactions between geology, climate, anthropogenic influences, and river morphological evolution.
• Developing methodologies for environmental flow modeling through the integration of hydrological data, geospatial data, and indigenous knowledge.
• Creating datasets that inform river management frameworks to support healthy river ecosystems.
• She employs a range of methodologies, including Digital Elevation Model analysis to quantify river basin morphometry, stream power modeling to characterize river form-process relationships, and geospatial data analysis to assess the hydro-geomorphic sensitivity of river systems. Through these approaches, her work aims to enhance our understanding of river processes and support sustainable river basin management practices.