Who we are

The people behind the platform.

Grassroot activists, regional coordinators, legal researchers and UN advocacy leads - working across four continents to advance the rights and dignity of CDWD.

Core team

Leadership and staff

Thirteen team members, across continents.

Paul Divakar Namala
Paul Divakar Namala
Chief Executive Officer
Global
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A globally recognised human rights advocate with nearly four decades advancing the rights of Dalits and other Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent. He is CEO of The Inclusivity Project and Convenor of the Global Forum of Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent (GFoD), and Global Co-Chair of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP). A founding member of the National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights (NCDHR), he was instrumental in establishing the Stakeholder Group of CDWD within the UN High-Level Political Forum and led delegations to the 2001 UN World Conference Against Racism. In 2017, Outlook Magazine named him one of India's 50 most influential Dalit leaders.

Beena J. Pallical
Networking & Advocacy Advisor
South Asia
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A prominent Dalit women's rights leader and advocate for economic justice and gender equality, with over a decade advancing Dalit and Adivasi rights through policy advocacy, budget accountability and grassroots mobilisation. She leads regional initiatives on Dalit women's economic empowerment across South Asia through the Asia Dalit Rights Forum, and engages global platforms including the UN High-Level Political Forum and the OHCHR on inclusive implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Aloysius Irudayam S.J.
Aloysius Irudayam S.J.
Research Advisor
India
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A seasoned human rights researcher, educator and grassroots activist with decades in Dalit and Adivasi rights advocacy. Co-author of influential publications including Dalit Women Speak Out: Caste, Class and Gender Violence in India, he has taken evidence to UN Treaty Body sessions in Geneva and the World Social Forum. He serves as Programme Director of the Research, Advocacy and Human Rights Education Unit at IDEAS, Madurai.

Johannes Butscher
Johannes Butscher
Global UN Engagement Coordinator
Americas
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UN Advocacy Officer for TIP and the GFoD, based in the Americas. Since 2021 he has supported global advocacy at the United Nations and other multilateral platforms. He holds a Bachelor's in Economics and Politics and a Master's in Peacebuilding, and previously supported peace initiatives in Colombia, including the CAPAZ Institute.

Dr. Vinayaraj V. K.
Dr. Vinayaraj V. K.
Senior Research Coordinator
India
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Senior Research Coordinator at TIP, with a PhD in International Politics from Jawaharlal Nehru University and over a decade in development programming, research and project management. A former consultant with the International Labour Organization, he has published widely on social justice, development and public policy.

Simona Torotcoi
Simona Torotcoi
UN Programme Specialist, Europe
Europe
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A Roma rights advocate from Romania specialising in public policy and minority rights, with a PhD in Public Policy from Central European University. Her work addresses antigypsyism, education access, employment and the political participation of Roma communities, in collaboration with the Roma Education Fund, the OSCE and others.

Naveen Gautam
Naveen Gautam
Senior Legal Researcher
India
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A social justice lawyer specialising in Dalit and Adivasi rights, constitutional law and human rights advocacy, with a postgraduate degree in International Human Rights Law from the National Law School of India University, Bangalore. With over seven years' experience, he works on legal research, constitutional literacy and grassroots mobilisation.

Queen Bisseng
Queen Bisseng
UN Programme Specialist, Africa
Africa
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UN Programme Specialist for Africa at TIP, based in Cameroon. She leads TIP's engagement with African partners and regional mechanisms to advance the recognition and protection of CDWD, and has represented these issues at UN forums including the Human Rights Council and the High-Level Political Forum.

Dinesh Jonnakuty
Policy Officer
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Dinesh supports TIP's global interventions, keeping community voices central to policy outcomes. With postgraduate degrees in Public Policy and Communications and extensive experience working with marginalised and Indigenous communities, he leads organisational strategy, theory of change, and monitoring, evaluation and learning.

Paulo Lugon Arantes
UN Advocacy Officer (HRC)
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UN Advocacy Officer for the Human Rights Council with TIP. A seasoned human rights advocate with a PhD in international law, he focuses on racial equality, indigenous rights and social justice, advising NGOs, governments and indigenous leaders across global institutions.

Carla Forneri
Carla Forneri
MIS & Communications Coordinator
Europe
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An activist, interpreter and communications specialist based in France, working to advance the global recognition and protection of CDWD. She coordinates interpretation and translation for the GFoD and supports the Rights Experts Programme. In 2023 she supported the first united delegation of CDWD women to CSW67.

SK Das
Finance Manager
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A finance professional with extensive experience in financial administration, compliance and management in the development sector. Finance Manager at TIP since 2021, he supports the organisation's financial systems, budgeting, reporting and compliance.

Shallini Sikka
Shallini Sikka
Admin & Finance Officer
India
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An accounts and finance professional with over seven years across the manufacturing, consulting and development sectors. At TIP she oversees financial management, budgeting, compliance, statutory audits, donor reporting and administrative coordination.

Governance

Board of Directors

The directors who steward TIP's mission and accountability.

Lucille C. Atkin
Chair
Colibri Consulting, Oaxaca, Mexico
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A social psychologist with over 40 years in sexual and reproductive health and rights across Latin America, Africa and South Asia. She specialises in stakeholder-friendly project evaluation, gender-equity promotion and strategic organisational development, and holds a PhD in human development from Cornell University.

Paul Divakar Namala
Secretary
The Inclusivity Project
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A globally recognised advocate for Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent, founding member of the NCDHR, and Convenor of the GFoD - connecting Dalit, Roma, Haratin, Quilombola and other communities across four continents. As a founding member of NCDHR, he was part of the organisation awarded the 2007 Rafto Prize.

Joel Guyton Lee
Treasurer
Williams College, Massachusetts, USA
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Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Williams College, researching religion, the state and caste in South Asia, and the strategies of Dalits to combat structural deprivation and the entailments of sanitation labour in colonial and postcolonial India. He holds a PhD in anthropology from Columbia University.

Rose Nierras
Member
International Budget Partnership
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Director of Country Strategies at the International Budget Partnership, with extensive experience supporting civil society and managing multi-country participatory-governance programmes across Africa, South and Southeast Asia, and Latin America. She holds an MA in Development Studies from the University of East Anglia.

Corey Washington
Member
Latitude Health Innovations & Heart Origins, USA
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Former Director of Analytics in the Office of Research and Innovation at Michigan State University, educated at Amherst and MIT, with PhDs in Philosophy (Stanford) and Neuroscience (Columbia). He co-hosts the podcast Manifold, and in the early 2000s worked with Dalit activists and artists on a documentary on the contemporary anti-caste movement.

Class of 2025

Rights Experts

Seven grassroots advocates trained to engage with national and international human rights mechanisms - the latest cohort in our Community Rights Experts programme.

Sergen Gul
Vienna
Kunjini Pariyar Pyasi
Nepal
Alima Taal
Gambia
Ephraim Ogwu
Nigeria
Zeinabou Almansour Galis Soun
Niger
Ibrahim Oumarou Yacoubou
Niger
Cheikh Sidati Mohamed Hamady
Mauritania
Learn about the Rights Experts programme

Want to join this team?

We hire Rights Experts and welcome interns who are passionate about equity and justice. Send your CV with "Internship" in the subject line.

Open positions Email us