Dasra, India’s first venture philanthropy organization (featured in Alliance in October 2009), now in its tenth year, recently launched the Indian Philanthropy Forum (IPF) at a conference in Mumbai on 18-19 March. IPF aims to build a dynamic community of philanthropists who are committed to developing high-impact solutions to poverty in India.

The forum will bring together donors, social sector experts and entrepreneurs with a passion to make a difference and inspire a new generation of leaders in philanthropy. A critical role of the forum is to dispel myths about India’s social sector and create a platform for philanthropists to learn, pool funding and connect to the breadth of talent that exists in the non-profit arena.

IPF will offer an annual programme that will bring members together to develop strategies for effective funding, meet leading philanthropists, visit non-profits, and collectively lobby for relevant regulatory changes. In addition, IPF will establish ‘giving circles’ where members can pool funds to leverage their impact.

To date, IPF has 88 members including Indian business leaders such as Anu Aga, Adi Godrej, Ajay Piramal, Rohini Nilekani (pictured) and Anand Mahindra; a number of international donors; and some key ‘next generation’ philanthropists such as Nisa Godrej, Nandini Piramal and Aalika Mahindra.

For more information
Contact Alison Adnitt at alison@dasra.org or visit  http://www.dasra.org

See Rohini Nilekani’s opening speech to the conference at https://www.alliancemagazine.org/en/content/philanthropy-india