India

Vivek Anandan has experience in the field of ophthalmology as a surgeon for 12 years. He has been working at Aravind Eyecare System where he has done more than 25000 cataract surgeries to date. Vivek’s main interest lies in doing complex surgeries and training residents and junior surgeons. He currently heads the cataract department at Aravind Eye Hospital in Pondicherry. He has worked with hospitals in Cambodia, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Tanzania in training their surgeons and also in capacity building of those hospitals.

Sankar Ananthan is an ophthalmologist working in one of the world’s largest not-for-profit organizations – Aravind Eye Hospitals, which provides close to 1 million ophthalmic surgeries a year. The institution has given him ample opportunity to demonstrate his strengths. He would like to continue developing his skill set to become a good leader.

Saumya has over seven years of experience in the field of marketing, communications, and social impact. After working with corporates for three years, Saumya transitioned into the development sector as a Youth for India Fellow with the Aga Khan Foundation. The 13-months fellowship provided her the opportunity to work with a tribal community in western India to establish a for-profit social enterprise to provide a sustainable source of livelihood for the tribe. Having gained substantial insight into the gravitating issues in the development sector along with project management, capacity building, and community mobilization skills after the fellowship, Saumya co-founded a social enterprise, Tales & Treasures, that works to promote and establish micro-entrepreneurs. Currently, Saumya is working with the Ministry of Health, Government of India, on the strategy and implementation of the National Digital Health Mission. Prior to this, Saumya led the communications vertical of the Indian School of Business & Finance, a teaching institution of The London School of Economics, bringing international education to Indian students at an affordable cost. She has worked with multiple startups in the domain of e-commerce and technology on crafting their communications, public relations, and social media strategies. She has also been a volunteer with youth organizations, such as AIESEC and SPIC MACAY, leading university-level campaigns and events. Professionally and personally, Saumya aspires to take up roles in the area of communication for development and social entrepreneurship to contribute to some of the most pressing issues of her country.

Ankita Saha is a Development Professional with over four years of experience in the non-profit sector, specifically in the field of Education. She earned a Master’s degree in English Literature from Visva Bharati University in India. She is a passionate advocate of every child’s fundamental Right to Education. To help the primary grade students continue their learning process during the Covid-19 pandemic, Ankita developed a digital learning curriculum of Environmental Science while working as a Curriculum Developer in an EdTech organization. Previously, Ankita worked with Kaivalya Education Foundation as a Program Leader in Delhi for two years. There, as an Instructional Design Specialist, she developed numerous pedagogy-based learning modules for students; and facilitated multiple andragogy-based Capacity Building workshops for teachers to improve students’ foundational literacy and numeracy skills with the integration of 21st-century skills. She was closely associated with NITI (National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog’s ‘Transformation of Aspirational Districts’ program. There, she was responsible to lead the ‘Accelerated Learning Program’ in the underdeveloped districts of Uttar Pradesh, India by developing and implementing activity-based learning modules to enhance students’ foundational literacy and numeracy skills. Ankita additionally pursued the Gandhi Fellowship program and spent two intensive years in rural Rajasthan to spread awareness on different social issues. She immersed herself with the village community to understand and empathize with the rural problems and identify solutions through a participatory approach. She worked closely with the education system of Rajasthan to bring a sustainable impact on the school learning environment and the learning outcomes of students. Through these experiences, she developed meaningful communication, design thinking, technology, documentation, data analysis, and facilitation skills. She aims to continue her work as a Catalyst for Social Change for underprivileged children, by developing and implementing impactful Learning Experiences.

Benny Katta is a Scholar of “Rural Economy and Digital Tools” with a study on Digital Agriculture, Rural Economy and Social Development. He has 17 years of professional experience in program management and project implementation on rural & social-economic development, corporate social responsibility projects, sustainable livelihood, women empowerment, digital agriculture, capacity building, and commercializing the FPOs. He is a good strategic planner, conflict manager, and social impact player. He has displayed skills in decision making, critical thinking, and demonstrated persuasive communications, team management, and leadership skills. He was recognized with the “Sitara Award” for setting up a benchmark for clean finance handling by Tata Group for DFID Project.

Bikash has 20 years of experience in the humanitarian and development sector with significant achievements in leading large scale multi-country humanitarian response programs, developing/institutionalizing humanitarian policies and strategies, leading organizational and community-centered Emergency Preparedness Plans, mainstreaming DRR, climate resilience, Comprehensive Safe School programs, and linking relief, rehabilitation and development (LRRD). He has led and supported more than 70 emergencies in several countries across the globe with Action Aid, LWS, CARE, ADRA, Tdh, and HelpAge International, as a humanitarian focal person and commendable technical experience in cash-based programs, nutrition, protection, education, WASH in emergencies, and food security & livelihoods in emergencies. Bikash has facilitated more than 100 training on various areas. He is a seasoned professional with expertise in PCM such as needs assessment, proposal development, log frame & budget preparation, monitoring and evaluation. Bikash currently working with HelpAge International as Emergency Response Manager. The key responsibilities are coordinating and managing the Global Emergency Fund (GEF) and supporting country offices, partners, and network members for humanitarian crisis response. Bikash received a Bachelor’s degree in Law from Utkal University in Odisha, a Master’s degree in History, and a Master’s degree in Social Work from the Utkal University of Culture in Odisha.

Dr. Sushmita Parai is Veterinarian from New Delhi, India having done her post-graduate studies in Vet. Surgery with the dream of helping poor farmers in the villages managing their livestock. She has been with Heifer International for seven years, where she focuses on improving goat, pig, and poultry husbandry practices to increase incomes and food security of smallholder farming families. She is passionate about supporting women smallholder farmers to build safe and sustainable farm businesses through livestock rearing by building biosecurity practices, training farmers in delivery mechanisms, and linking them to markets. She is also an accomplished trainer with key capacities in building curriculum, designing conventional and e-modules and materials for the training of last-mile service delivery entrepreneurs along with Farmer Field School Approach for the adoption of good practices by the community and building resilience in the livestock system through the adoption of principles of LEGS (Livestock Emergency Guidelines and Standards). In her diverse 16 years of work experience, she has also championed the cause of working equines who belong to marginalized communities and have to face social stigma many times. Working bullock issues have also been close to her wherein she initiated mechanization of carts to give relief to these animals cruelly treated as beasts of burden. Street Dog Welfare has been her regular calling for volunteering.

Vinnie has seven years of experience in the field of Marketing and Communications, and Information Technology. She has earned an MBA in Communications Management from Symbiosis International University, India and a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science Engineering from Visvesvaraya Technical University, India.
Vinnie has worked with several nonprofits and foundations in multiple capacities. Having volunteered as an educator to adolescents through Make A Difference nonprofit; a climate change and community warrior through Extinction Rebellion and Bangalore Eco Team; a mental health champion through White Swan Foundation; and a campaign specialist with Deepalaya nonprofit, she brings in tremendous experience from across the social sector. She has also created awareness regarding prevention from sexual abuse among the children through Parwarish Institute of Parenting, and had the opportunity to work with SAP, India on a pro bono basis to facilitate multiple employee volunteering and donation drives at various shelter homes.
Vinnie’s story of being a ‘responsible citizen’ was featured in the #ProfessionalsOfLinkedIn and #GivingTuesday campaign. For her initiatives, she had also been recognized as one of the Global Goodwill Ambassadors from India in 2018. Previously, she contributed to the production of ‘Everyday Giving in India’ report, a first-of-its-kind study on India’s Everyday Giving Market. For her exceptional work in the communications industry, she also made it to PRmoment India’s Top 30 Under 30 PR Professionals 2020 list. Given her passion for volunteering, she now continues to use her skills to support various nonprofits during the pandemic.

Host Organization: SAP

Role at Host Organization: At SAP, Vinnie will serve as the Communications and Program Management Fellow: She will primarily focus on the development and facilitation of training sessions in support of one of CSR EMEA’s signature initiatives: Africa Code Week. In this role, Vinnie will be part of the EMEA CSR team and align with the SAP CSR lead, as well as various implementing partners in the EMEA region.

Quaifa Andaleeb has a strong passion for women empowerment. She has more than four years of experience of working with and in the Indian government departments/ organizations. She holds two master’s degrees in Gender and Development and Women’s Studies from the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex (UK) and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai (India), respectively. Quaifa worked in the UNV/ UNDP India and held the position of District Youth Officer under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India. She was the district nodal head for the implementation of all the programs as per the Ministry’s approved Annual Action Plan. She had also worked closely with two of the Bihar government’s programs namely, the Integrated Child Development Scheme and the Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotional Society. She assessed the training needs of the ‘barefoot’ functionaries of these programs and developed self-explanatory training modules and capsules for them. Previously, she has worked as a Young Professional at the Maharashtra State Rural Livelihoods Mission (Rural Development Department, Government of Maharashtra) where she was entrusted with the end-to-end management and implementation of a state level pilot project on mobilization and institution building of community resource persons. She has also contributed in drafting the organization’s policy for its community-based trainers. Quaifa is a feminist and aspires to achieve gender equity and human well-being in this resource constrained world. Her professional experiences have equipped her with a strong skill set in project management, implementation, coordination, and communication.

Host Organization: SAP

Role at Host Organization: AT SAP, Quaifa will serve as a Code Unnati Fellow: Quaifa will support and coordinate with stakeholders involved in the initiative, coordinate the employee engagement opportunities for Code Unnati (digital literacy/skilling) Document Communications and Report writing for initiatives

Daliya Manuel has been working as a Brand Manager at Vyakta, a workplace learning company based in India, for over four years. Daliya has been instrumental in managing Vyakta’s branding and marketing communication activities. Her learnings from the PG Certification program in Digital Marketing with a specialization in Branding and Communication at MICA has given a deeper understanding of the nuances of the digital media space. She traces her alma mater to the Asian School of Business, where she successfully pursued a Postgraduate Diploma in Management, with a specialization in Human Resource Management and Marketing. Daliya, being a people person, has donned the role of English Teacher at Nirmala School, bringing about a drastic change in the students’ spoken language capabilities. She constantly endeavors towards making the world a better place in her own small way. In pursuit of this goal, she worked on an app that integrates farmers, under the mentorship of Ranveer Chandra, Chief Scientist, Azure Global at Microsoft. She is extremely passionate about people development and mental health. She considers emotional first aid as a vital, yet highly underutilized tool in addressing mental health wellbeing.

Host Organization: SAP

Role at Host Organization: At SAP, Daliya will serve as CSR Communications and Marketing Fellow: Daliya will lead marketing and communication efforts for the three strategic CSR pillars (building digital skills, accelerating best-run non-profits and social enterprises, and connecting employees with purpose) and for strategic partnerships as needed. She will also act as the brand ambassador for the SAP CSR team and represent CSR as an extended member of the sustainability efforts at SAP.

Sana Salah is a water and sanitation expert with five years of experience in the implementation of sanitation projects and programs. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Zoology from the University of Calcutta in India and a Master’s degree in Environmental Studies from Nalanda International University. While working with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs with the Government of India as a WASH and Knowledge Management Specialist for Swachh Bharat Mission, Clean India Mission, she helped in the drafting of national-level policies, guidelines, capacity building of government officials, and the improvement of the solid waste management, and sanitation practices in over 4,200 urban local bodies of India.

Ananya Banerjee is from India and has over seven years of entrepreneurial and advisory experience. She completed a double Bachelor’s degree in Law and in Arts from the University of Calcutta and a MicroMaster’s degree in Business Management from the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore. She has completed various certification courses related to entrepreneurship, design thinking, and strategy to help her navigate through the entrepreneurial world smoothly. She has recently exited her latest venture, Earnyt, a marketplace for the gig economy where she was the chief visionary, designer, and idea developer. She is simultaneously working with start-ups, incubator managers, and the Wadhwani Venture Fastrack team as a Start-up Fellow. Ananya has published her first book on how to achieve operational excellence for early-stage start-ups, based on a 6S framework she devised from her knowledge of lean six sigma and agile methodologies. Ananya ran Unico Legale and was the Founder (and later, Founding Partner) for more than 3 years. Her philanthropic venture “Know Your Business Better” helped many start-ups and traditional businesses become more data-driven. Her areas of interest include entrepreneurship and economic and leadership development. She has actively been a part of the entrepreneurial development sector and wishes to contribute continuously towards helping founders working with sustainable development goals.