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Board of Directors
The Board of AIACA comprises of senior figures in the
Crafts sector in India who provide guidance to all AIACA
initiatives. AIACA has strived to have a Board that is
representative of both the private and the NGO sector
organization working with craft workers across India.
Currently, the AIACA governing body comprises of the
following members:
President |
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Ms. Rathi Vinay Jha
Director General, Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI)
Mrs. Jha retired as the Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Union Government
in 2004. Prior to that she has held many positions related to the crafts
sector. She was also one of founders of NIFT and served as its Executive
Director from 1987-93. She was also the Managing Director - Tamil Nadu
Handicrafts Development Corporation and CMD - COOPTEX from 1985-87. |
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Vice President |
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Mr. William Bissell
Managing Director, FabIndia Mr. Bissell has
overseen FabIndia's expansion into a leading crafts retail chain with 60
stores across the country. Prior to joining FabIndia he founded and was the
Managing Director of Desert Artisans - a cooperative of craftspeople based
in Jodhpur - from 1990-99. He also started the Bhadrajun Artisan Trust,
which runs schools in the Jodhpur district of Rajasthan. |
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Secretary |
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Amita Puri
Executive Director Amita Puri has worked both for the for-profit and not-for-profit sector. After completing her Masters in Business Management, Amita joined Standard Chartered Bank where she worked for
eight years across retail and corporate banking functions. She joined CRY, India's leading child rights organization and worked with them for nine years first as Head of Global Operations and then as General Manager, Resource Mobilisation. She was CEO of Charities Aid Foundation from April 2009 - April 2012.
She is an advisory group member of Asian Venture Philanthropy Network and a frequent resource person for South Asian Fund Raising Group and Resource Alliance.
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Treasurer |
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Mr. Adarsh Kumar
Adarsh Kumar is a
post-graduate from Harvard University. His previous work experience includes
stints at the World Bank, the Ford Foundation and Urmul Marusthali Bunkar
Vikas Samiti (UMBVS), a handloom weaver’s society located in Phalodi,
Rajasthan. Adarsh has also been a founder member of AIACA and served as the
Executive Director for 6 years.
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Members |
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Ms. Roopa Mehta
Roopa Mehta is the CEO of Sasha Association for Craft Producers ("Sasha") and the Secretary of Sarba Shanti Ayog (SSA) its associate development organisation. Sasha/SSA provides business support inputs and market access for sustainable livelihoods to artisan groups based largely in rural communities and semi urban areas. She is on the Board of Sadhna, the handicrafts and income augmentation programme of Seva Mandir, Udaipur and the Managing Trustee of Ruro Agro Services Association, a registered trust which develops natural agro based products, trains producers and identify suitable markets. She is also on the Board of COMMACT International and World Fair Trade Organisation.(WFTO).
Roopa Mehta is an MBA from Delhi University with further professional qualifications in Social Communication. In the earlier part of her professional career, Mrs. Mehta worked in hospitality and merchandising sector and she was the Chief Executive Officer of a renowned textiles manufacturing & retailing company before joining Sasha. |
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Mr. Vipin Sharma
Vipin is the founding CEO of ACCESS, set up to promote the organized
growth of microfinance and to support sustainable livelihoods options for
the poor in India. Vipin started his career in 1980 with the RBI, from where
he moved to NABARD in 1983. In 1996, he was seconded to the Government of
Rajasthan as Executive Director to set up the first of its kind "Rural Non
Farm Development Agency". In 2000 Vipin joined CARE India as Programme
Director, heading the Microfinance programmes in the region. In 2006, ACCESS
was spun out of CARE, which Vipin set up. He is also the Chief Advisor to
ACCESS ASSIST, a new affiliate set up by ACCESS. Vipin has a Masters Degree
from Delhi University and has attended several programmes at Cranfield
Institute of Management, UK; Boulder University, USA and School of
Management, Yale University USA. |
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Ms. Vibha Pingle
Vibha
Pingle is President and Founder of Ubuntu at Work. Ubuntu at Work evolved
out of her research on women micro entrepreneurs in South Africa, Egypt,
Nigeria, India, Indonesia and Nepal. Her research examined why only a few
women micro entrepreneurs are able to develop their businesses, while most
remain survivalist businesses. After completing her Ph.D. in sociology at
Brown University, Vibha lectured in social studies at Harvard University,
was a visiting professor at Brown University, an assistant professor at
Rutgers, and a fellow at the Institute of Development Studies. She has been
a consultant to the World Bank, DFID, the Aga Khan Foundation, UNDP, and
Fidelity Investments. Her publications include: Rethinking the
Developmental State: India’s Industry in Comparative Perspective (St.
Martin’s Press, NY, 1999), Identity Landscapes, Social Capital, and
Entrepreneurship: Small Business in South Africa.
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Mr. Madhukar Khera
CEO, Bharat Carpet Manufacturers Mr. Madhukar
Khera is the CEO of Bharat Carpet Manufacturers, one of the leading
manufacturers of carpets in India. |
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