Bibhu P. Nayak is an Associate Professor at the School of Public Policy and Governance, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Hyderabad Campus. An economist by training, he specializes in environmental and resource economics and decentralised governance, and teaches courses in Ecological Economics, Development Economics, Public Economics, Financing Cities, and other courses at the intersection of institutions, environment, and development.

Before joining TISS, he held faculty positions at The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), New Delhi, and the Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC), Bengaluru. He was also associated with the Institute of Economic Growth (IEG), New Delhi, and the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP), New Delhi, as a research fellow. 

His research spans local government finances, the economics of conservation, community-based institutions, and social capital and collective action. He has led and contributed to numerous research and consultancy projects funded by national and international agencies, bringing an interdisciplinary lens and extensive fieldwork experience across multiple Indian states. His work has been published in national and international peer-reviewed journals, and he has presented at leading international conferences, workshops, and summer schools.

In 2013, he was awarded the First Prize in the Global Development Network (GDN) Medal for Research on Development, one of the most prestigious recognitions in development research.

Dr. Nayak is an active member of several professional and academic bodies, including the Indian Society of Ecological Economics (INSEE), the Odisha Economics Association (OEA), the South Asia Network for Environment and Development (SANDEE), the Green Growth Knowledge Platform, the Climate U Network, and the Ronald Coase Institute Alumni Network, among others.

He has also served in significant advisory and policy roles, most recently as a Member of the 6th State Finance Commission, Odisha (2025–26), and as Chair of the Working Group on Enhancing Financial Capacity and Own Source Revenue for Local Governments under the Chhattisgarh State Planning Commission (2022–23).