Office hours: Assistant Professor Teevrat Garg

The GPS faculty member opens up about some of the dearest objects that adorn his office, painting a picture of his professional backstory and personal interests

By Sarah Pfledderer | GPS News

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With a stroll by the office of Teevrat Garg at the UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy (GPS), you probably can gather at least two fun facts about the assistant professor: His favorite color is likely green, and he has a sense of humor.

But walk through his office door decorated with comics, then gaze beyond his green wall. You’ll see there’s more to his room than meets the eye.

A peculiar clock with the words “publish or perish,” for instance, indicates he’s among the younger faculty members at the School. And thank you cards from students imply he’s made appreciated impressions since joining GPS just a few months ago. 

“Publications take a long time to provide gratification, but teaching provides more immediate gratification,” he said, rereading the cards.

A development and environmental economist, Garg joined the School after completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the London School of Economics’ Grantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment, where he evolved his dissertation research about the effects of ecosystem degradation on public health in Indonesia. Now at GPS, he maintains this motivation to offset the impacts of climate change on the poorest people in the world—but with a better window view, among other benefits.

During winter quarter, we swung by Garg’s office and asked him to point out a couple of meaningful objects in his workspace that correspond to his professional backstory and personal interests. Hover over the image above for the big picture.

3 questions with Assistant Professor Teevrat Garg 


What are the real-world impacts of your research?
 The relationships between environment, climate change and the poor are complex, and uncovering those mechanisms is key to designing climate policy that incorporates the impacts on the most marginalized groups in the world.

What skills or understanding do you hope students leave your class with?
 I hope my students develop the ability to separate evidence and noise when understanding public policy.

What is your academic focus?
 Environmental issues in developing countries.

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