Arunima Malik

Arunima Malik is Professor of Sustainability and Interdisciplinary Research at the University of Sydney. She holds joint appointments in the Integrated Sustainability Analysis group in the School of Physics, Faculty of Science, and the Discipline of Accounting, Governance and Regulation in the Business School. Malik's research specializes in using advanced big-data modelling and input-output analysis to quantify the environmental, social, and economic impacts embodied in international supply chains. Her work addresses critical issues including carbon and nitrogen emissions, modern slavery risks, trade inequalities, and their implications for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. She has pioneered methods to track spillover effects from consumption and trade, informing policy for sustainable global practices across sectors such as health care, tourism, food systems, and renewable energy.

Malik has authored over 138 publications, garnering more than 11,700 citations. Key works include "Polarizing and equalizing trends in international trade and Sustainable Development Goals" in Nature Sustainability (2024), which earned her the 2025 Frontiers Planet Prize International Championship and a US$1 million award for advancing sustainability science; "The carbon footprint of Australian health care" in The Lancet Planetary Health (2018); "Drivers of global nitrogen emissions" in Environmental Research Letters (2022); and "The environmental footprint of health care: a global assessment" in The Lancet Planetary Health (2020). She served as a Lead Author for Working Group III of the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report and works with the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network on supply chain spillovers. Named a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher in 2025, her interdisciplinary contributions significantly influence policy-making on climate change, inequality, and sustainable development. The Frontiers Planet Prize will fund further research into tools for assessing trade impacts in climate-vulnerable contexts.

Professional Email: arunima.malik@sydney.edu.au