Pratyusha Kiran

Research interests

Dr. Kiran’s interdisciplinary research lies at the nexus of science, technology, and society (STS), with a particular emphasis on sustainability, public health, and community-driven innovation. She brings extensive methodological expertise in ethnography, participatory design, and mixed methods research, enabling her to study complex issues from multiple perspectives.

Her scholarship includes ethnographic fieldwork in India on global fast-fashion supply chains, where she examined structural and cultural barriers to sustainable industry transitions. Building on this work, her current research investigates the health consequences of chemical exposure from textiles and clothing. At SMU, she contributes to collaborative, community-based engineering initiatives in Tanzania, focusing on the design and integration of sustainable systems for water, sanitation, and housing. In this context, she also studies how engineers learn and adapt in community settings, with particular attention to co-design, local knowledge, and long-term sustainability.

Representative publications

Kiran, P. (2025). Barriers to sustainable transition in the fashion industry: insights from India. Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy, 21(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2025.2466286

Kiran, P. (2024, November 28). Underneath it all: Unveiling the toxic reality of fast fashion underwear and the social dimension of health. CASTAC Blog. Retrieved from https://blog.castac.org/2024/11/underneath-it-all-unveiling-the-toxic-reality-of-fast-fashion-underwear-and-the-social-dimension-of-health/

Kiran, P. (2023). Frictionless design: Unintended discrimination in the Airbnb platform. Tech for Humanities. Center for Humanities, Virginia Tech.

Froio, Z., Kiran, P., Mir, H., & Volpe, L. (2018, May 2). At what cost? Incorporating the social cost of carbon into state-level policies in New Jersey. Edward J. Bloustein School for Planning and Public Policy, Rutgers University.

Supplementary

Dr. Pratyusha Kiran is a Postdoctoral Fellow jointly appointed at the Lyle School of Engineering and the Simmons School of Education & Human Development at Southern Methodist University. She is supported by the SMU–Bush Institute Postdoctoral Program, which fosters interdisciplinary research addressing global challenges in sustainability and community development.