Meet OUR ADVISORY BOARD

The CSR and sustainability Expert who has his liaisons across national boundaries in grant making foundations, Non-profits and corporate. His efforts bring together the help seeking International social cause related organisations with Indian corporate entities and Non-profits. His 13 years of experience in the industry makes him the go-to person for the international entities and Corporate who want to empower Non-profits in India and Asia.

With 29+ years of experience in media marketing, event management, and social development sector, Debangshu is sharing his expertise (with us and our partner NGOs) in creating social enterprises and lead them to sustainability. In the past, he has worked with like several NGOs like SAAHASEE, Caritas, REACH, VOICE, and Don Bosco. He helped them connect with corporate like GIVO, Clothsline, etc.

Dr. Gaurav Kapoor is a distinguished educationist with over two decades of experience in transforming educational landscapes across India and beyond. His career spans working with global corporate giants such as IBM, Mphasis (Bengaluru), Aspire Human Capital, and Chrysalis. Dr. Kapoor's expertise has reached over 200 schools in India, the UAE, and Singapore, where he has played a pivotal role in advancing educational standards and strategies.

As a CBSE resource person, Dr. Kapoor has been instrumental in training educators, guiding school management, and developing strategic frameworks. His training by NITI Aayog on the Atal Tinkering Lab reflects his commitment to integrating innovation and creativity into school curriculums. Through his work, he has empowered teachers to foster a culture of curiosity and critical thinking among students.

Dr. Kapoor's consulting experience is extensive, encompassing strategic planning for school admissions, increasing institutional visibility, and conducting impactful parent orientation programs. He has collaborated with renowned schools, including DLF World School, the Sapphire International group of schools, New Era Public School, and Shree Vidya School in Ghaziabad, among others, helping them achieve new heights in academic excellence and community engagement.

Currently, Dr. Kapoor leads the Spoken Tutorial Program (ICT) in collaboration with IIT Bombay, focusing on enhancing digital literacy and technical skills among educators and students. He is also actively engaged with various EdTech initiatives and NGOs, driving positive change in the education sector. His passion for education is evident in his dedication to uplifting schools and communities, ensuring that they remain aligned with contemporary needs and future aspirations.

Dr. Kapoor's contributions to education have earned him recognition and accolades from several national and international forums. His strategic vision, coupled with his ability to connect with educators, parents, and students alike, makes him a sought-after leader in the eld of education. With a profound belief in the transformative power of learning, he continues to inspire institutions to strive for excellence and adaptability in an ever-evolving world.

Ms. Stuti Narain Kacker- Smt. Stuti Narain Kacker was an IAS officer (1978 batch) and retired as the Chairperson of the National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights. Smt. Kacker has worked extensively in the areas of social justice and empowerment, information and broadcasting, and industrial development including several years in the MSME sector, both in the State and Central Government.

She is particularly well known for her contribution to the social sectors, including the protection of child rights and empowerment of persons with disabilities. As Secretary to the Government of India, she established the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India. Under her leadership, the Department’s innovative “Niramaya Scheme” (Health Insurance Scheme for Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities) was awarded the Times of India Social Impact Award in 2009.

Drawing on her vast experience of the SME sector she consistently strived for the economic empowerment of the vulnerable and marginalized section of society she firmly believes that it is the SME and Khadi sectors which hold the key to alleviation of poverty of the country. During her tenure as Chairperson NCPCR, she therefore initiated a collaboration with KVIC, to set up a looming and weaving centre in Delhi’s Children Home for children in conflict with law , for their economic as well as mental wellness. Smt. Kacker served as Joint Secretary and then Additional Secretary to the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting along with Director of the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC).

She was the key driver for the formulation and implementation of several policy measures to strengthen the print media industry and IIMC in particular. She was also Joint Secretary in the MSME Ministry and CVO for both the Departments of SSI and KVIC. Kacker has also worked extensively in Uttar Pradesh as Commissioner of Jhansi; Commissioner and Director of Industries; District Magistrate of Ghazipur.

Pooja Grover comes with 13 years of experience in CSR domain, working across multiple sectors including healthcare, child development, education, rural development, environment, transgender rights, and women rights.

She started her career working with a public sector enterprise and over the course of last few years have worked with large CSR organisations, private sector as well as grassroots organisations. At different points of time she has managed end to end project deliveries, scoping, agency selections, fund allocations, monitoring, execution and reporting.

She is passionate about building scalable solutions in CSR domain which bring real grassroots impact.

Ms. Dasgupta has over 13 years of experience of working with NGOs to lead large-scale programs in education and learning. She possesses an in-depth understanding of multi-thematic approaches in the education and skill development verticals, including Transformative programme planning and implementation, Operations management, Team building, Fundraising and Driving stakeholder consensus.

In her career growth trajectory she has played multiple roles to provide strategic leadership and oversight to program management and implementation of transformative Learning projects aimed at bringing about systemic improvements in classroom-based assessments and student learning outcomes for Government schools across multiple states in the country.

She believes that the route to social justice, equality and equity has to pass through classrooms. A yoga and nature enthusiast, she remains passionate about bridging equity gaps in education and skill development.

Merchant Navy officer Cdt Ayush Khare is a sports enthusiast and an elite mountaineer holding three world records including a Guinness Book of World Records, 1 Asian Record, and 1 National Record. He has been recommended for the Chief Minister Award and Youth Icon Award by the state of Uttar Pradesh. As a mountaineer, he has scaled the heights of various mountains in the Western Ghats, Stok Kangri mountain- the world's highest trackable mountain in Leh Ladakh, Mt Kilimanjaro- the highest peak of Africa and one of the 7 world's highest volcanic peaks in Tanzania.

He now looks forward to climbing the rest of the peaks in the queue to break another Guinness World Record.

Cdt Ayush utilized his technical skills to create a patented model of a bladeless propulsion system of a ship, which got exhibited in the International Maritime Exhibition in Mumbai- Inmex- 2019.

Dr. Melanie van de Velde is a dynamic entrepreneur and thought leader in the areas of sustainability and impact entrepreneurship. She has an extensive and diverse background, having run an impact business for young women without an education in a Nairobi slum, managed Asia Pacific markets at a multi-billion dollar tech company, and worked in senior management at various IT start-ups. She holds an MBA with distinction and an MSc in Industrial Engineering, in addition to her Ph.D. in Social Innovation from Cambridge University, for which she was awarded the prestigious Adam Smith Prize for Ph.D. Excellence. Through her company, Big Tree Global, Dr. van de Velde offers practical tools and insights to business leaders to build more powerful sustainability practices into their strategies.

Her thought-leading framework has underpinned some of the globe's most successful impact strategies, and she is sought-after as a speaker and advisor by organizations around the world. In addition to her work with Big Tree Global, Dr. van de Velde is also the founder of B Journeys, a start-up that aims to create economic opportunities through ethical travel in some of the world’s poorest, most remote, but beautiful areas. She is the author of two books, LEAD LIKE A GENIUS and LOVE YOUR LEGACY, which offers actionable insights and strategies for building successful impact strategies in business.

Dr. Palisetty holds a Ph.D degree in Rural Development and having more than 30 years of works experience. Her unique combination of academic exposure relating to agriculture, social sciences and rural development; Dr. Palisetty’s edge over the other competent professionals was her proven track- record of meaningful application of her knowledge to a wide variety of issues, ranging from natural resource management, agriculture & watershed-development, poverty & rural livelihoods, food security, gender equity & participation of women, labour-markets, migration, girl child education, and local governance.

She was associated with many State Governments (AP, Telangana and Chhattisgarh), National (NIRDPR& GoI) International Organisations (UNDP & GIZ), and Corporate Agencies (Indian School of Business, Irrigation Engineering, Ananta Agro Farms, Indian School of Business) and have been exposed to global work culture. She also provided documentation support to few reputed NGOs of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana states.

Dr. Leelavathi Palisetty’s has vast experience in implementation of donor-funded projects such as the UNDP- funded ‘Sustainable Dry Land Agriculture by Mahila Sanghams in Andhra Pradesh’, the DFID- funded ‘Andhra Pradesh Rural Livelihood Program’, and the NABARD-funded Comprehensive Land Development Programme. She handled amicably and deal with self-help groups, civil society activists, elected representatives of Panchayats, as well as on-field and off-field government functionaries.

Dr. Palisetty has rich experience in research-publication, documentation, program execution, project administration, and capacity building – at the State-level, as well as nationally.