About Us

Building pathways towards Women’s Leadership

Our Story

Incubated at Climate Asia, EquiLead connects women professionals with jobs, mentorship, and networks while helping organisations advance gender equity. Our journey began in 2020 with research on barriers to women's leadership in the social impact sector. In 2022-23, we engaged 70 organizations to embed gender equity into workplace cultures, culminating in the She the Change conference. Realising the need for a dedicated platform, we launched EquiLead to bridge the gap between women and leadership opportunities. We started with a question: Why aren’t more women leading? With EquiLead, we are shaping the answer.

How will we do it?

Anchored in the values of Equity and Leadership, we are building an ecosystem where women’s leadership isn’t just supported—it’s central. We see a future where social impact institutions don’t just talk about inclusion but live it through workplaces that empower, leadership pathways that uplift, and structures that make gender equity the norm, not the exception. Because when women have equal opportunities, organisations succeed.

Leading with Women

EquiLead accelerates women's leadership by connecting mid-to-senior professionals with career-advancement opportunities - jobs, mentorship and networks.

Equity in Action

We strive to equip organisations with the tools and knowledge to embed gender equity in their culture, enabling lasting, transformative change across workplaces.

Our Impact

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Women placed in mid-senior to leadership roles

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Women provided training through webinars and masterclasses

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Women provided mentorship opportunities through AMAs and matchmaking initiative

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Equity Champions “Open for networking”

Our Team

Vanisha Tiwari

Assistant Manager - Organisation Development Program, EquiLead

Vanisha is a dedicated advocate for gender equity and workplace inclusivity, with over a decade of experience in the impact sector. At EquiLead, her work focuses on enabling organisations to build inclusive workplaces where people from gender minorities can thrive in leadership roles. She believes in the power of narratives and learning experiences to drive meaningful change. EquiLead is not just about policy recommendations—it’s about turning intent into action. She is excited to be part of this journey, collaborating with organisations to create sustainable and inclusive leadership pathways for women in the social impact space.

Anchal Kakkar

Founder - EquiLead

Anchal Kakkar is a founding member of EquiLead, bringing 17+ years of experience across the development, consulting, and corporate sectors to the initiative. With a strong background in spearheading strategic initiatives and fostering high-impact partnerships, she is passionate about building inclusive workplaces where everyone feels safe and thrives. EquiLead was founded with the intention of advancing women in leadership while enabling a conducive ecosystem for their growth. Through this platform, she aims to amplify the need and narrative for more women in leadership, acceptance of alternative styles of leadership, and the need for inclusive and gender transformative workspaces. Anchal is also a co-founder of Arthan, which incepted the concept of EquiLead. Prior to this, Anchal honed her expertise at the Boston Consulting Group and Dasra. She holds an MBA from Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, is a Shell Foundation/Impact Business Leaders Fellow, and is a seasoned Chartered Accountant by profession, having worked with Pricewaterhouse Coopers.

Harshita Umrao

Consultant - Organisational Development - EquiLead

Harshita is a Consultant at EquiLead, where she works to strengthen gender-inclusive leadership and enable gender-transformative workplaces in the social impact space. Her passion lies in integrating gender, caste, and climate intersectionality into policies and practices to drive meaningful, systemic change. With a background in chemical engineering and management, Harshita brings a unique perspective to her work in strengthening civil society, advancing sustainable livelihoods & governance, and advocating for climate resilience. Being part of EquiLead allows Harshita to collaborate with mission-driven leaders - challenging structural biases and enabling transformative ecosystems where diverse voices are truly valued.

Anshul Bhatt

Senior Consultant - Organisation Development Program, EquiLead

Anshul is a gender and child rights professional with extensive experience in advancing gender equality, child protection, and workplace safety across the development sector. At EquiLead, she brings her expertise to the Organisation Development (OD) program, supporting social impact organisations to become more inclusive and women-led. What drew Anshul to EquiLead was its distinctive approach—using OD not just to strengthen organisations, but to embed gender equity at their core. With a postgraduate degree in development and a specialisation in gender rights, she is also a certified participatory trainer on the PoSH Act and has trained Internal and Local Committee members, along with over 1500 professionals across sectors. EquiLead offers her the space to merge her deep grounding in gender justice with a growing interest in OD—creating lasting, gender-transformative change in the sector.

Sneha Churiwal

Lead-DEI Implementation and Community Engagement - EquiLead

With over a decade of experience across Credit Rating, Investment Banking, and HR, Sneha brings diverse expertise to EquiLead. Holding postgraduate degrees from XLRI and Manchester Business School, she's driven by a human-centric approach rooted in empathy and intercultural sensitivity. Sneha joined EquiLead to empower women leaders and bridge leadership gaps through meaningful initiatives. She believes true organizational transformation happens when the dignity of each life is embraced and respected. When not 'breaking barriers' in DEI, Sneha enjoys photography, travel, and connecting with nature.

Ritu Singh

Director - Climate Asia

Ritu is dedicated to advancing women’s leadership in the social impact sector. At EquiLead, she works to break barriers and create opportunities for women to step into leadership roles and accelerate their careers. With expertise in strategic planning and project management, she designs programs that equip women with the skills, networks, and confidence to lead. Passionate about fostering inclusive leadership and driving systemic change, she believes that empowering underrepresented professionals creates lasting impact across communities and sectors.

Ridhi Sethi

Research Associate - EquiLead

Ridhi is a Research Associate at EquiLead, with a strong background in conducting and drafting research reports, designing and implementing MEL frameworks and data analysis. After her graduation in Economics Honours, Ridhi worked with Sattva Consulting where she conducted multiple impact evaluation studies across different thematic areas such as Education, Health, Livelihood, etc. She also provided consulting support to multiple non-profit organisations, closely working on Gender & Education. Her passion of working towards gender equity grew through the course of her professional journey and Ridhi is now committed to driving meaningful change through her work, in the social impact sector. At Equilead, Ridhi aims at contributing to building more inclusive workforces and supporting the team in building more avenues for women professionals to step up in their leadership journeys and drive systemic change.

Devleena Chatterji

Lead - Research and MEL - EquiLead

Devleena is a researcher specializing in gender, education, and development, and currently leads the Research and MEL vertical at Climate Asia and EquiLead. With a PhD from the University of Minnesota and a Master’s from the Delhi School of Economics, she has previously worked with ASER Centre, J-PAL, and Ashoka University. Deeply drawn to gender issues from a young age, she sees EquiLead as the perfect space to advance that commitment alongside like-minded women. For her, the best part of EquiLead is working with a team of smart, driven, empathetic women who bring both talent and heart to the work they do.

Saili Chavan

Senior Associate - EquiLead

Saili’s journey in journalism and public policy has always been about bridging the two—using the power of storytelling to make complex policy ideas accessible. From sharpening her journalistic skills at Bloomberg Quint to researching policies at think tanks like CitySpeaks and the Institute of Governance, Policies, and Politics, she has seen how narratives shape opportunity—and exclusion. That’s why she wants to shape conversations that show why inclusive workplaces aren’t just about fairness—they make work better for everyone. At EquiLead, she isn’t just telling stories—she’s part of one. By creating spaces where career opportunities are truly accessible, she sees EquiLead as more than an initiative—it’s a way for her to actively build the kind of workplaces where she and other women can thrive.

Pallavi Khare

Chief of Staff - Climate Asia and Arthan

Pallavi is the Chief of Staff at Climate Asia and Arthan, focusing on gender equity and climate change, with EquiLead as the flagship intiative. Previously, she worked as a Policy Specialist at the University of California San Diego's Center on Gender Equity and Health, holding a Master's in Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School. She was also a Fulbright Nehru and recipient of Social Innovator Fellowship at Harvard. With a strong background in strategic consulting at Bain & Company and a B.Tech. from IIT Delhi, she has made significant contributions during her five years at the Gates Foundation, focusing on public health in India. Pallavi also co-founded WeUnlearn, an NGO addressing bullying and gender stereotypes among Indian youth. Pallavi is an Artist, Author, Actor, Director and a Queer Feminist. Pallavi has been a passionate advocate for Gender Equity which reflects in her endeavour to set up an organization focusing on gender equity. Through her current role, she is able to carry forward the work on empowering women leaders in social impact space.

Meghana Rao

Gender Advisor - EquiLead

Meghana (she/ they) identifies as an intersectional feminist, learning and advocating for gender equity and justice. They have been engaged with diverse organisations (CSOs, Network partners, INGOs, UN agencies, donors, women’s funds, and philanthropists) for the last two decades in roles of a gender programme strategy director. They have worked and led / co-led streams with gender rights and justice organisations like Breakthrough, URJA Trust; Azim Premji Foundation's Gender Justice Grant Making strategy; and led/co-led multiple strategy development processes. She brings in a keen eye to detail, an inquisitiveness for inquiry, while being compassionate to lived and adapted realities and experiences. They have a Masters in Communication from Mumbai University ; have a diploma in Gender Studies and a certified trainer in Hatha Yoga.

What Our Community Says

The job fair created a safe space for interacting with organisations without the pressure of being judged or assessed. It was a good initiative to understand the needs of the organisations as well as to share our interest areas to see if there is a match.

Khanjan Ravani

EquiLead is more than a platform,it’s a steady movement encouraging women to step into leadership with clarity and confidence. I’m glad to remain part of this community and excited to see how it continues to grow

Richa Shukla

Quite helpful and thoughtfully designed, would appreciate invites of such workshops moving forward.

Ayushi Khare

The webinar was insightful in strengthening the belief around the necessity of Gender Policy in the organisation

Aditi Gupta

Thank you for hosting such an insightful and empowering webinar on gender policy. The depth of knowledge shared by the speakers was truly impressive, and the discussion was both enlightening and thought-provoking. Your commitment to promoting gender equality is evident and deeply appreciated. This webinar has not only raised awareness but also inspired action towards creating more inclusive and equitable policies. Kudos to the entire team for organizing such a valuable event

Nandita Banerjee

The networking session was a great step to understanding the social impact space in India. Transitioning roles while moving countries can be difficult, and job fairs such as these can help form connections and open possibilities which otherwise seem difficult to access

Anjana Narayan

The team helped from the very first call. They provided all the relevant information and kept me informed about the next steps along with tips. I found the whole process to be extremely helpful in making my final decision

Richa Ramela

The event was unique in that it brought together mid-senior level women on the same platform. This provided a valuable experience, and events like this can help identify strong and promising candidates in a short time.

Pooja Sharma

Equilead and Arthan have taken an excellent initiative by bringing together organizations and potential women candidates, creating a platform that supports diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Many organizations in this sector are deeply committed to promoting DEI and have a strong focus on hiring women, making this event a significant step in the right direction

Anushree Singh

The session organised by Equilead team was a refreshing experience that fostered open dialogue between potential employers and candidates. The welcoming environment allowed for authentic conversations, free from pressure, and helped me feel more connected to both the incredible individuals present and the broader sector. It also gave me an opportunity to understand more about the vision and culture of various organisations while also finding potential opportunities. It was a fantastic opportunity to connect and engage in a meaningful way

Surabhi Jain

I was truly inspired by Equilead. It felt like the missing puzzle piece for an underserved market need. I had the privilege of attending an Impact Connect event, where I experienced firsthand the power of learning and connection in a more authentic, informal setting than traditional interviews. The timing was perfect, as a conference followed immediately after, featuring insightful speakers who shared their wisdom in a relaxed, engaging way. I left feeling deeply connected to the space.Equilead’s LinkedIn presence is another standout. They consistently share valuable insights and keep me updated on upcoming events. I look forward to the future opportunities Equilead will create for women in the sector

Sahaana Krishnan

Lead With Equity

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