About Me

Biography

I am Dr. Shekhar Sharan Goyal, currently working as a Research Scientist at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Leipzig, Germany. My work bridges agricultural nutrient management, ecohydrology, and geospatial modeling to promote sustainable and climate-resilient food systems.

Appointments

• Postdoctoral Fellow, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Leipzig, Germany (2025–present)

Education

• Ph.D., Earth Sciences – Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (2020–2024, submitted)
  Advisor: Prof. Udit Bhatia | Focus: Nutrient pollution and agri-trade sustainability
• M.Sc., Geology – Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (2016–2018)
  Advisor: Prof. Abhijit Mukherjee
• B.Sc., Geology – Banaras Hindu University (2013–2016)

Research Experience

• Research Scientist, UFZ Leipzig (2025–Present)
  Stream-temperature modeling (FluSeeQ) and nutrient management modeling
• Visiting Researcher, UFZ Leipzig (Aug–Dec 2023)
  Developed district-scale nitrogen surplus dataset for Indian agriculture
• Summer Intern, WIHG (2017)
  Structural geology and neotectonic mapping in the Himalayas

Research Interests

• Nitrogen & phosphorus pollution in agriculture
• Ecohydrology and climate-resilient cropping
• Agro-trade networks and environmental footprints
• Stream temperature dynamics and water stress
• Policy design for sustainable agriculture

Grants & Distinctions

• Helmholtz Benchmark Projects – UNLOCK 2026, Principal Investigator (2025) – Secured €108.508,00 funding for AI sustainability benchmarking project
• EGU Outstanding Student and PhD Candidate Presentation (OSPP) Award (2025)
• Overseas Research Fellowship, IIT Gandhinagar (2023)
• CSIR-NET (Lectureship) – AIR 15 in Geology (2019)
• GATE – 98.7 percentile in Earth Sciences (2019)
• JAM – 98.5 percentile in Geology (2016)

Session Convenerships

• 2026 – Convener, “Advances in Extreme Weather Impacts on Networked Systems” (NH1.2), European Geosciences Union (EGU) General Assembly, Vienna, Austria.
• 2025 – Convener, “From Hazards to Resilience: Preparing Infrastructure for Evolving and Interdependent Risks”, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria.

Mentoring & Advising

Postdocs (main advisor)

Ph.D. Students

Master / Graduate Theses

• Shaonli – IIT Gandhinagar

Research Projects

• UNLOCK – Helmholtz Benchmark Projects – UNLOCK 2025 (Principal Investigator) Leading a one-year project to develop AI sustainability benchmarking datasets using Helmholtz’s data assets to advance AI model evaluation in environmental sustainability research.
• FluSeeQ – Stream Temperature & Hydrologic Forecasting across Germany (2025-2028) Investigating stream temperature dynamics and hydrological forecasting for climate adaptation across German river networks.
• AquaSub – Satellite-based River Temperature Modelling (2025-2027) Developing a satellite-based model to predict river temperatures and their impact on aquatic ecosystems in Germany.
• C-Narmada – Agricultural & Nutrient Dynamics in the Narmada Basin (2023-2024) Examining agricultural practices and nutrient fluxes in the Narmada Basin to enhance sustainable farming practices and water management.

Teaching & Field Experience

Teaching

• Lab Teaching Assistant, Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN)
  • Earth Surface Processes in the Anthropocene (2024)
  • River Morphology and Ecology (2023)
  • Modeling Earth System and Sustainability (2022)
  • Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Development (2020)

Field Campaigns

• Surat region field course, IIT Gandhinagar (2022)
• Varanasi and surrounding areas, IIT Kharagpur (2017)

Publications

• Goyal, S.S. et al. (2024). Indian interstate trade exacerbates nutrient pollution. Communications Earth & Environment.
• Goyal, S.S. et al. (2024). District-scale nitrogen surplus dataset for Indian agriculture. Scientific Data.
• Under Review: Nutrient-Centric Restructuring in Indian Agriculture. Nature Communications.
• Under Review: Goyal, S.S. et al. (2025). Rising Disparity in Sustainable Nitrogen Management Across Indian Croplands.

Conference Presentations

• Oral presentation – Goyal, S.S., et al. (2024). “Agricultural Pollution in Indian Interstate Trade Networks.” European Geosciences Union (EGU) General Assembly 2024 (EGU24).
• Oral presentation – Bhatia, U., Goyal, S.S., & Kumar, R. (2023). “Restructuring the Indian Agricultural System towards Sustainability.” European Geosciences Union (EGU) General Assembly 2023.
• Poster presentation – Goyal, S.S., & Bhatia, U. (2023). “Trade-driven Greenhouse Gas Emissions in India.” European Geosciences Union (EGU) General Assembly 2023.
• Poster presentation – Goyal, S.S., & Bhatia, U. (2021). “Urbanization Impact on Urban River Water Quality.” American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting 2021.

Skills

• Programming: Python, R, MATLAB, LaTeX
• Geospatial & Hydrological Tools: ArcGIS, QGIS, SWAT, HEC-RAS
• Languages: English, Hindi

Workshop Organizer

• - “Resilience of Power and Allied Lifeline Infrastructure Systems,” Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN), 2022.
• – “From Lab to Land: Technology Transfer for Farmers,” Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN), 2024.
• – Prithvi (Earth Sciences Student Society), Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, 2017.

Collaborative Network