Article
Seva is the Secret to a Good Samaj
An op-ed published in The Economic Times A few months ago, my team and I joined some flash volunteering to do a quick cleanup right outside our office. Arun Pai, an enthusiastic volunteer with Ugly Indian, a nonprofit that inspires ordinary people to develop civic pride, showed us how to roll back our sleeves, pick […]
Keynote
Samaaj, Sarkaar, Bazaaar – Role of Active Citizenship in a Democracy
Rohini Nilekani’s keynote address at Volcon – India’s flagship national conference on volunteering. This is an edited version of Rohini Nilekani’s keynote address at Volcon – India’s flagship national conference on volunteering. * Like so many of us, I grew up on stories of volunteerism in my family because my paternal grandfather, Babasaheb Soman (Sadashiv […]
Report
Report: Understanding Discourse Around Active Citizenship in India
Key Questions What are the major interests and online discourse around the four pillars of active citizenship—volunteerism, co-creation, claim-making and resistance & mobilisation in India? What are the key influences and impacts of online and offline volunteering? Which topics in citizen-led co-creation are dominant on social media, and what platforms are citizens and CSOs using […]
Report
Report | Hum Log: Active Citizenship and Civic Engagement in India
Key Questions What is active citizenship and how do members of society participate in civic issues in big and small ways? How do different stakeholders interact one another and what are some positive outcomes of such civic expressions? How can it be catalysed in the Indian context? What can the state, philanthropies, and civil society […]
Article
Putting Samaaj on top for Positive Collective Action
This is the third book by philanthropist and civil society leader Rohini Nilekani, the founder of Arghyam, a foundation that works towards sustainable water and sanitation goals, and Pratham Books, a publishing nonprofit that helps millions of children to read books. Samaaj Sarkaar Bazaar is a collection of Nilekani’s articles, speeches, and interviews, which offers […]
Report
Report: What’s it like being a young man in urban India today?
Beneath the apparent privileges that boys enjoy, there is immense pressure to perform. The societal expectations are set for them, irrespective of economic background. Men are an equal half of the societal dynamic. For behaviour to shift, we need to acknowledge the anxieties and motivations that propel actions. This understanding is relevant not just for […]
Panel
Impact/Failure Conference | The Decade of the Bold: Failures in Philanthropy
Speakers: Rohini Nilekani, Philanthropist | Carol Gribnau, DOEN Foundation Moderated by: Harish Hande, SELCO Foundation Many would believe that philanthropies are at the top of the food chain in the development sector. Some of the critical junctures in history, from independence movements, critical innovation pathways, all have been driven by philanthropic monies. How do we […]
Interview
Philanthropy can provide ‘patient funding’ to boost science
Industry leaders and philanthropists Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Kris Gopalakrishnan and Rohini Nilekani have made individual and collective contributions towards furthering science and research in the city and outside. They told TOI’s Chethan Kumar in an interview that philanthropy could help provide the ‘patient funding’ that is needed to boost science and also help liberate science from […]
Interview
#IIMChat with Rohini Nilekani
This is an edited version of a conversation with Rohini and Nandan Nilekani as part of the #IIMChat series hosted by IIM alumni in Singapore. The event was moderated by Sonia Gupta, Vidya Vasania, and Suresh Shankar. Like all of us in this room, while I didn’t grow up rich, I still grew up very […]
Article
A Call to Action: Why We Need a Citizen-First Approach
Recently, unseasonal rains flooded the city of Bengalaru. Visuals of privileged citizens living in upscale independent bungalows, riding tractors to get away from their inundated spaces, as their luxury cars lay submerged in the water, flooded our phones. Delhi is choking. As I write this, there are alarming newspaper reports of the rise in pollution […]