Prapti Barooah

PhD Researcher
Department of Social and Institutional Change in Agricultural Development (490c)

Prapti is an external doctoral researcher at the Division of Social and Institutional Change in Agricultural Development since November 2023. Her PhD project focuses on innovative approaches to enhance access and adoption of climate-smart agricultural practices among smallholder farmers, particularly women. Her research interests lie at the intersection of gender, agriculture, and climate change, examining their impact on socio-economic outcomes and climate resilience.

She is also working as a Senior Research Analyst at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and is based in New Delhi, India. She has a decade of research and evaluation experience across India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Lao PDR. She uses both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies as part of her research, including case studies and participatory rural appraisal, primary household surveys, randomized controlled trials, and econometric and panel data analysis.

PhD Research Project

Agricultural innovations for promoting climate-smart agriculture: The case of women farmers in India

My PhD project focuses on understanding the implications of agricultural innovations around climate-smart agriculture (CSA) and natural resource management in strengthening the position of women farmers. Using India as a case study, I am assessing the effectiveness of video-based extension approaches in enhancing awareness, knowledge, and adoption of CSA practices. Furthermore, I am also examining the opportunities and challenges of direct-seeded rice adoption, emphasizing on labor implications for marginalized groups such as women and landless farmers.