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Our Story

In 2018, we planted the seeds for the foundation for Indian School of Democracy in the hope that it would eventually become an institution that nurtures principled leaders. The people at Indian School of Democracy come from politically and socially diverse backgrounds, but we share the same unwavering principles, vision and values that reside in the idea of sarvodaya.

We are passionate about nation-building and carry an unflinching commitment to India and its people.

We are looking for teammates for 4 new positions.

All the details mentioned in the JD found here:

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Meet the Team

CO-FOUNDER

Prakhar Bhartiya

Prakhar Bhartiya is a Teach for India 2009 Fellow and founder of the grassroots leadership organization Youth Alliance (YA). He built YA from the ground up and created immersive journeys into rural India for the youth. A mentor to multiple social entrepreneurs, Prakhar also serves on the board of other non-profits such as Kat Katha that works with sex-workers in Delhi and Shikshartha that works on contextual education in tribal Chattisgarh.

In 2018, he transitioned from Youth Alliance to co-found, Indian School of Democracy. He did his MPA from Columbia University. He makes work fun for himself and for those around him. Conversations over coffee are his food for thought. Inspired by Vinobha, he wants to walk across India and commit his life towards connecting hearts.

CO-FOUNDER

Hemakshi Meghani

Hemakshi Meghani graduated from Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) with a Master’s in Public Policy as a World Bank Graduate Scholar. She started her journey as a Teach For India fellow, has worked with Boston Consulting Group (BCG), and was a part of two start-ups in the education and socio-political consulting space. Hemakshi is among the 18 social entrepreneurs selected globally to be a 2022 Echoing Green Fellow.

Hemakshi has attended and facilitated various leadership forums across the world, and is a trained coach in adaptive leadership. She is very passionate about politics, bottom-up social reform and making democracy work for every citizen of the country. She enjoys travelling to remote parts of the country, and going on outer and inner journeys. Hemakshi’s dream is to become a farmer someday.

PROGRAM LEAD

Anita Manoharan

Anita Manoharan holds a Masters in Public Administration & International Development (MPA-ID), from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and is a graduate of Lady Shri Ram College in Delhi. She is a Teach For India fellow, and has worked with their Program Team as well. Her core experience is in program design, training and facilitation, and her passion is leadership coaching and working with children and young people. Anita is an environmentalist, believes in sustainable living and wants to open animal rehabilitation centres across the country in the future.

ASSOCIATE, OUTREACH

Sagar Nain

Sagar helps us find participants from across the country.
In 2020, he graduated from Ashoka University's Young India Fellowship. He has completed his B.Com(H) from Delhi University.

He enjoys reading books, jogging and interacting with people from different walks of life.

NETWORK ACCELERATOR

Shaguna Kanwar

Having worked in the development sector for over 8 years, Shaguna likes to call herself a practical idealist. She has worked on issues of urban poverty—homelessness, right to housing, informal labour rights and gender issues and believes that change is a slow process, but inevitable. She is a quiet observer and a keen learner. You can identify find her with a big basket full of healthy food items in the office. In case you want to play badminton, she is usually just a call away.

Sr. ASSOCIATE, PROGRAM

Shruti

Shruti graduated from Delhi school of Social Work with a Master's in social work. She has worked with National Rural Livelihood Mission, Rajasthan with women at the grassroots for their social and financial inclusion for two years. She is passionate about issues related to women and the environment and believes in sustainable living. She believes that we need more women in politics.

She likes to travel, and explore different cultures. Her dream is to live in a world where no one is discriminated against on the basis of their caste or gender.

PROGRAM MANAGER

Ankit Navasha

Ankit has worked as a Right to the City activist, and primarily advocated for housing and social security of informal workers. He has studied journalism and Social Work from University of Delhi and has written extensively for news portals. He has previously worked with Youth for Unity and Voluntary Action (YUVA) and National Hawker Federation.

Sr. ASSOCIATE, PROGRAM

Pousali Sarkar

Pousali is a graduate of political science from University of Delhi and a Young India Fellow. Her work lies at the intersection of political literacy, active citizenship and delivery of government schemes to the most vulnerable sections of the society. She has worked on a project with Azim Premji University on service delivery of MGNREGA and PDS entitlements to the migrant workers from Jharkhand. Alongside this, she enjoys theatre, art and connecting with people through literature and songs.