GIS Manager. Research Consultant. Author. A working geospatial scientist who runs a small studio out of Nagercoil, supports PhD scholars through Scopus-indexed publications, and trains the next cohort of GIS professionals across South India.
I came to GIS the long way around. My doctorate is in Applied Geology, completed over years of field-based coastal research where the maps lived on paper and the analysis lived in spreadsheets. The first time I traced a shoreline through DSAS instead of by hand, I understood that the bottleneck for most Indian PhD scholars was not intellect or effort — it was the gap between knowing a research question and being able to execute it geospatially.
Geospatial Campus grew out of that realisation. The studio runs three things in parallel: hands-on training in GIS and remote sensing for students and faculty, end-to-end research support for PhD scholars publishing in Scopus and SCI journals, and consulting engagements for institutions that need decision-grade coastal, hydrological or LULC outputs. The work is grounded in academic rigour and the operating hours of a working researcher — not the production calendar of a content factory.
Beyond the practice I sit on academic Boards of Studies, deliver Faculty Development Programmes at nationally recognised institutions, and write — three books so far, and a fourth in slow motion. Everything I publish is anchored in primary research or hands-on practice. If a workflow appears in our training, it is because we used it on a real project the week before.
Coastal geomorphology and shoreline-change analysis. Field-based research across the south-east Indian coast.
Geospatial Campus operates as a registered MSME unit. PAN: BCVPA3800L · Proprietor: Dr. Aran Castro A J.
Day-to-day: scope, methodology, analysis, manuscript support, mentorship. Hands-on, not advisory-only.
Reviews from training cohorts, FDP participants, and research-support engagements. Updated continuously.
Curriculum review and scope-setting for the Department of Physics' geospatial pathway.
Department of Civil Engineering · IEEE GRSS & Geospatial Campus joint programme.
Marthandam, Tamil Nadu. Geospatial methods for environmental research.
Department of Applied Geology, Chennai.
Resource person for the Department of Physics National Science Day programme.
Two-day intensive workshop on hands-on GIS and remote sensing.
Geospatial reflections on conflict, recovery and the cartography of post-conflict landscapes.
How great GIS researchers think — a playbook for moving past button-clicking into spatial reasoning.
Processes, landforms, and human interactions. A field-and-lab reference for geomorphology researchers.
Press list in preparation. When journalists or outlets feature the studio's work, links land here. To collaborate on a feature or interview request, WhatsApp me or email.
Brand notes: name renders Dr. Aran Castro A J in body copy and Dr Aran on the MSME register. Trading name: Geospatial Campus.
