Neetha Iyer

My interest in the sciences began at a very early age, and I have spent my life trying to feed my curiosity for the natural world. It's possible these interests stem from the fact that I spent my childhood growing up in Dubai, a city rather devoid of a thriving natural environment. Childhood visits to India served as a constant reminder of the richness and diversity of life and so naturally I began to crave a deeper understanding of how biological systems are sustained. As a student in the department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management (ESPM) at UC Berkeley, I have gained an appreciation for the intricate relationships that exist between humans and the environment. I hope to study these interactions in the context of disease transmission between animals in tropical ecosystems and I plan to pursue a doctoral degree in parasite ecology. I am interested in the evolutionary history of trematode parasites and their hosts which will provide insight into the spread of disease with global climate change.

October 2013