Jebaraj Asirvatham

Jebaraj Asirvatham is an Associate Professor in the Department of Agribusiness Economics at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. His research focuses on the intersection of health economics, consumer behavior, and agricultural policy, particularly analyzing childhood obesity determinants and dietary outcomes.

• Ph.D. in Agricultural and Applied Economics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• M.S. in Agricultural Economics, Rutgers University
• M.Sc. in Agricultural Economics, Punjab Agricultural University
• B.Sc. in Agriculture, Kerala Agricultural University

His work explores causal relationships between school food environments, social networks, and health behaviors, with significant contributions to understanding peer effects on childhood obesity. Recent grants include funding from the Arkansas Biosciences Institute and NIFA.

Scientific recognitions include the

• Best Student Paper award (IAREP/SABE 2009)
• William Applebaum Memorial Scholarship

He has mentored students on diverse topics ranging from microfinance impacts to agricultural software evaluation, with conference presentations at Missouri Valley Economics Association and Southern Agricultural Economics Association meetings.