Inland lakes, rivers, streams, reservoirs, wetlands, and estuaries cover less than 4% of Earth’s surface. But recent estimates suggest that freshwaters may emit almost as much carbon that the vast oceans absorb. And yet how inland aquatic environments respond to future stresses and influence our climate crisis is not well appreciated or even understood.

Dr Samraat Pawar is leading efforts to address this gap in our understanding through the study of field data analysis, mathematical modelling and even computer games. He is particularly interested in microbial communities, which play a key role in the global carbon cycle.

Growing up in a military family that moved around in the Indian countryside far from the city lights, his innate love of nature flourished from an early age. Today Samraat is helping predict the future of some of the most important and yet complex ecosystems on Earth. For this Day in the Life event, Samraat will fill us in on his career, hopes and fears for our environment