Shashank Vura | Oceana

Shashank Vura

Law Fellow

Oceana Staff

Shashank joined Oceana as Law Fellow in September 2024.

Always avid about biodiversity conservation, he is privileged to support Oceana’s efforts to protect coastal communities and preserve the “blue planet:” combating overfishing, marine habitat destruction, oil and plastic pollution, and the decimation of wildlife like whales, sharks, and sea turtles.

Shashank holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School, where he concentrated in natural resources law and policy. He has experience with domestic statutes, such as the Magnuson-Stevens Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act, and global treaties, like the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species. During law school, he externed for Earthjustice’s Oceans Program, NOAA’s Office of the General Counsel, and the International Fund for Animal Welfare. He also researched the intersection of Indigenous rights and sawfish preservation in northern Australia, as well as the legal framework of Hawai’i’s saltwater aquarium fish trade.

Shashank previously received his B.A. in Government and History from Cornell University. In college, he interned for U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth through the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS). After graduation, he worked for several ecological organizations, including the United Nations Environment Programme.