Born in Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh, and an alumnus of the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, Amar is a champion of cultural democracy, cultural rights, gender mainstreaming, inclusive and deep ecology demonstration projects, arts policy development, Intangible Heritage, World Heritage, indigenous peoples, intercultural dialogue and UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and now the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He conducted extensive field work in Australia, Vietnam, Afghanistan, India, The Netherlands and South Africa during the past three decades. He is currently Chief Curator for Amaravati Heritage Town and International Heritage Adviser to the AP Government, India, on HRIDAY, PRASAD, Smart Cities and other Schemes. He is an Honorary Professor at the Global Change Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane and Visiting Professor in History, Gender and Buddhist Studies at the Acharya Nagarjuna University, AP. He is one of the few accredited mentor/trainers of UNESCO for the 2003 Convention on the Safeguarding of Intangible Heritage. Recent capacity building work locations on intangible heritage include Afghanistan, Australia, Barbados, Ethiopia, Fiji, Georgia, Guam, Indonesia, Myanmar, Korea, India, China, The Netherlands and Bangladesh.
Amar has been the Editor-in-Chief of several prestigious refereed academic journals dealing with Sustainable Heritage Development case studies: International Journal of the Inclusive Museum; International Journal on Environmental, Cultural, Economic and Social Sustainability; (4 pillars), (2005- Oct 2015); and Co-founder and 2nd & 3rd Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Intangible Heritage (2005-2011). Amar’s extensive publication record includes several reports and refereed articles dealing with indigenous and multicultural engagement in museums and heritage management. He was the producer of the flagship project and publication to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the UNESCO 1972 World Heritage Convention. World Heritage: Benefits Beyond Borders, Cambridge University Press & UNESCO Publishing, November 2012. French & Korean versions in 2013). He has been honoured internationally with several awards for the recognition of his service to locating culture and heritage in sustainable development and poverty alleviation.