The Philanthropy Insights Hub marks a significant step forward in GivingPi’s mission to strengthen and amplify family philanthropy in India. Designed as an integrated intelligence platform, the Hub brings together strategic knowledge, communication, and storytelling into one cohesive, curated destination - serving as the central source for the voice, thought leadership, and growing influence of Indian family philanthropy.
By seamlessly consolidating GivingPi’s flagship assets - including The Philanthropist magazine, the Let’s Talk Philanthropy video series, the Catalyzing Change podcast, the network’s monthly newsletters, and a rich repository of proprietary reports and sector insights - the Hub transforms how knowledge is accessed, engaged with, and shared. It creates a more connected and discoverable ecosystem where ideas, evidence, and lived experience come together to inform action.
At its core, the Philanthropy Insights Hub is built to deepen learning, expand strategic access, and strengthen collaboration across families, foundations, and the broader philanthropic ecosystem. By elevating credible voices and surfacing timely insights, it supports more thoughtful decision-making and enables philanthropists to move from intent to impact with greater clarity and confidence. As a live platform, the Hub will continue to evolve - reflecting emerging priorities, spotlighting leadership, and reinforcing a shared narrative that advances collective momentum towards meaningful, systemic change. To access the Philanthropy Insights Hub, click here.
GivingPi, in partnership with LGT Venture Philanthropy & LGT Wealth India, recently hosted an inspiring evening in Mumbai that brought together leading philanthropists, thinkers, and funders to explore how India can build a more collaborative and future-forward philanthropic ecosystem. The evening opened with a keynote dialogue between Ajay Piramal, GivingPi Member and Chairman, Piramal Group, and Paula Mariwala, Founding Partner, Aureolis Ventures.
This theme continued through a dynamic panel moderated by Supriya Balakrishnan, Investment Director & India Head, LGT Venture Philanthropy, which featured Radha Goenka, GivingPi Member and Director, RPG Foundation & Founder, Pehlay Akshar Foundation, and Arnav Kapur, Deputy Director, Gates Foundation. Radha spoke about directing philanthropy to underrepresented spaces such as English language education and storytelling, while Arnav underscored that even large philanthropic spending is tiny relative to government budgets - making partnership fundamental, not optional.
Supriya closed with a powerful framing on early bets, sharing: “Our early bet in India is clear: the greatest long-term return comes from investing in India’s youngest citizens - children under six, caregivers, frontline workers, and the ecosystem shaping the first 1,000 days, when 90% of the brain is formed.
The evening also featured a compelling lightning talk by Smita Godrej Crishna on stewardship, legacy, and building impact that extends across generations. “Our actions today must serve the generations that follow,” she reminded the room. An immersive Impact Pavilion showcased the work of Rocket Learning and ARMMAN, offering firsthand insight into scalable, community-rooted innovations in early childhood learning and maternal health.
During the course of the evening a strong consensus emerged: the future of Indian philanthropy demands cross-sector partnership, humility, data-backed action, and deep listening. By pooling resources, working with government systems, and investing with patience and integrity, philanthropists can help shape a more equitable and resilient India. Together, philanthropy can become legacy - and legacy, lasting impact.
GivingPi Founders Circle Member Tara Singh Vachani, through her leadership at Max India Foundation, has helped shape a strategic, systems-focused approach to philanthropy centred on strengthening India’s school education ecosystem. Over the past decade, the Foundation has evolved from program implementation to strategic grant-making - partnering with high-performing organizations to deepen impact and enable scale. At the heart of this work is a clear conviction: lasting improvements in learning outcomes require sustained investment in teachers and the ecosystem around children. Max India Foundation supports organizations working closely with educators through training, mentorship, and classroom-level support, helping build the institutional capacity needed for long-term change. Partnerships with organizations such as Teach For India and Simple Education Foundation have reinforced the role of teacher-led transformation in improving student learning and well-being. The Foundation’s approach combines patient capital, trust-based partnerships, and a strong emphasis on learning and evidence. Recognizing that population-scale change cannot occur without public systems, it also supports initiatives aligned with government education efforts to ensure durability and reach. By investing in people, institutions, and systems closest to children, Max India Foundation continues to contribute to more equitable, resilient pathways for education - strengthening the foundations required for meaningful and lasting social impact.
GivingPi Founders Circle Member, Gurpreet Sunny Singh, Founder of the Roundglass Foundation, continues to advance community-led development through a new partnership with the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI) in India, Nepal, and Bhutan. This initiative is focused on empowering 100 women in Punjab’s SAS Nagar district through targeted training in financial literacy and capacity building - equipping them with the knowledge, confidence, and skills to shape their own futures. Rooted in villages across Punjab, the program supports women to better understand financial systems, step into leadership roles, and drive collective action within their communities. By strengthening agency at the grassroots, the initiative seeks to build long-term self-reliance and resilience, recognizing that when women are empowered, entire communities thrive. Speaking on the partnership, a senior representative from CFLI shared that Canada is proud to support Roundglass Foundation through CFLI, reflecting a shared commitment to inclusive development, gender equality, and sustainable, community-led solutions. The collaboration underscores the importance of working alongside local leaders to strengthen community engagement and build a more equitable future. Vishal Chowla, representing Roundglass Foundation, emphasized the organization's long-term vision: empowering women with knowledge and confidence as a foundation for transforming rural communities. Through partnerships such as this, Roundglass is not only building skills but also nurturing leadership and resilience at the grassroots. Together, this collaboration is laying the groundwork for generations of women leaders who will uplift and transform their communities through informed action and collective strength.
GivingPi Member Amit Varshneya transitioned to the social impact space in 2020 after a 23-year corporate career in leadership roles across enterprise and startup companies. Raised in the small town of Roorkee and shaped by an IIT-IIM education made possible by public subsidy and collective investment, Amit credits his journey to the scaffolding of opportunity created by society. While economic disparity in India continues to grow (between urban and rural regions, and between the privileged few and the underserved majority), he feels that India also has the potential to resolve its deep economic disparities and become a leading example for inclusive global development. A deep commitment to be part of the solution led him to serve as Secretary and Executive Director of The Goonj Foundation.
“It’s a privilege to be associated with Goonj. I continue to learn and draw inspiration from the vision of its founders, Anshu and Meenakshi Gupta, and equally from the stories of change that unfold across thousands of villages where communities act as equal stakeholders, contributing with their own spirit, wisdom, and resources into the collective journey of development.”
Goonj is on a mission to create a new circular economy, rooted in self-reliance, wisdom and collective possibility. For over 26 years, Goonj has pioneered one of the world’s most innovative models for global development, rooted in the belief that community ingenuity, surplus, and labor are legitimate currencies of change.
By transforming urban surplus material into curated, dignified kits, Goonj catalyzes community-led rural development projects at a massive scale. In just the last year alone (2024-2025), the organisation has mobilised 8 million kilograms of urban surplus material to spark 19,000 community projects. These projects have had a positive impact across what may seem like strikingly diverse areas: Infrastructure, health, education, climate, livelihood, gender equality, and self-worth among marginalized groups. Goonj’s scale could well place it among the most prolific national-level actors globally in terms of number of distinct interventions per year. The Goonj Way is not just participatory, but also inherently sustainable and circular, preventing waste from entering landfills and leveraging local wisdom and solutions to contribute to significant climate action.
To learn more about Goonj’s work, click here.
GivingPi Member, Dr. Huzaifa Khorakiwala, CEO of Wockhardt Foundation, continues to strengthen last-mile healthcare delivery with the launch of two new Mobile Medical Clinics (MMCs) in Delhi, further expanding the Foundation’s national footprint. The clinics were inaugurated by Hon’ble MP Smt. Bansuri Swaraj, in the presence of Mr. Vikas Singh, President & GGM – CSR and Shipping, Petronet LNG Ltd. These new units are supported by Petronet LNG Ltd., which has partnered with Wockhardt Foundation to enable a total of 14 Mobile Medical Clinics, reinforcing a shared commitment to improving access to primary healthcare for underserved communities. With this addition, Wockhardt Foundation now operates 191 Mobile Medical Clinics across 21 states, delivering free primary healthcare services, diagnostics, and essential medicines to thousands of people every day. By taking healthcare directly to communities with limited access to medical facilities, the Foundation continues to address critical gaps in India’s healthcare ecosystem. The partnership with Petronet LNG reflects the power of sustained collaboration in advancing equitable healthcare access. Together, these efforts are helping ensure that quality medical care reaches those who need it most - when and where it matters.
Mukul Madhav Foundation of which GivingPi Member Ritu Prakash Chhabria is the Co-founder and Managing Trustee, marks a significant milestone with ten years of Mission Cerebral Palsy (Mission CP) - a program dedicated to ensuring that children with cerebral palsy receive the care, dignity, and opportunity they deserve. What began in 2015 with a simple request for 100 specialized chairs in Satara, Maharashtra, soon revealed a much deeper and more systemic gap in care for children with cerebral palsy. In response, Mukul Madhav Foundation, in partnership with Finolex Industries Ltd, launched Mission CP - transforming an initial act of support into a sustained, mission-driven commitment. Over the past decade, Mission CP has empowered more than 1,000 children through nine rehabilitation centres across Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Goa. These centres provide comprehensive, long-term care, including physiotherapy, speech and occupational therapy, medical assessments, orthotics, corrective surgeries, assistive devices, and skills training - enabling children to move, communicate, and grow with confidence. This ten-year journey has been made possible by the dedication of doctors and therapists, the commitment of partners and centre teams, the resilience of families, and the generosity of volunteers. Together, they continue to turn possibility into progress.
By Raj Mariwala and Nidhi Goyal | The Wire
This article examines how disability - shaped by intersecting identities such as gender, caste, class, and sexuality - remains deeply underfunded and marginalized within philanthropy, particularly in the Global South. Calling for a shift from charity-driven approaches to rights-based, intersectional funding, it urges funders to invest in disability-led leadership, accessible grant-making, and systemic change that centres agency, power, and lived experience.
By Shweta Sood and Zoë Sigle | Alliance Magazine
This article makes a compelling case for ending industrial animal agriculture as one of the most high-impact, underfunded opportunities for philanthropy - linking animal suffering to climate, health, equity, and justice. It argues that strategic funding to reform food systems can dismantle factory farming at scale, delivering planetary stability and moral progress far beyond individual acts of compassion.
By Radhika Jain and Rashmi Bansal | Forbes India
This article explores how a new generation of Indian philanthropists is shifting from short-term charity to strategic, systems-focused giving - investing in data, institutions, and long-term reform. By strengthening public systems rather than creating parallel solutions, strategic philanthropy is emerging as a powerful tool for lasting, nation-scale impact.
