Back to resources

India’s NGO Sector is the most diverse in the world

Civil Society | Aug 1, 2008

Writer and philanthropist Rohini Nilekani, wife of Infosys co-chairman Nandan Nilekani, has been deeply involved in development issues for many years now. She is the trustee of Akshara Foundation, which works to bring literacy and teaching programmes to poorer children; she co-founded Pratham Books, a non-profit publishing enterprise to produce high-quality, low-cost books for children in several Indian languages; end, with a private endowment, she started Arghyam, an NGO committed to sustainable water for all, in 2001.

View PDF

More like this

Active Citizenship  |  Civil Society

Daan Utsav: Investing For A Better ‘Samaaj’

From the beginning of October and through the end of December, our minds are more attuned to giving and sharing. The giving season starts with Gandhi’s birthday and goes on well past Christmas. In between, there are many festivals of sharing, and gratitude, including Dassera and Diwali.India’s Daan Utsav is well-timed to enhance the feeling […]
Oct 5, 2020 |

Strategic Philanthropy  |  Civil Society

Impact and Failures | Opening Keynote at Impact Failure Conclave, 2018

Rohini’s opening keynote delivered at the Impact Failure Conclave 2018 This is an edited version of Rohini Nilekani’s opening keynote delivered at the Impact Failure Conclave 2018. When we think about failure, the way it’s received by samaaj (society), bazaar (markets), and sarkaar (state) are quite different. In the social sector, we have realised how […]
Apr 13, 2018 | Speech

Civil Society  |  Strategic Philanthropy

The Architecture of Good Markets

This is an edited version of Rohini Nilekani in conversation with Naushad Forbes, business leader and ex-President of the Confederation of Indian Industry, for an episode of India Development Review’s podcast, On the Contrary. Along with Arun Maira, the host of the show, they discuss what markets must include, whom they should serve, and the […]
Apr 14, 2021 |

Civil Society  |  Societal Thinking

Understanding Movements

We often hear of the word “movement” in social change but what we have struggled with is the depth of the idea. A movement is much more than collective confrontational action. A movement offers an approach to social change that is different from and complementary to programs and collective impact. It encompasses shared, bottom-up action […]
Dec 3, 2021 |