EVENTS
EdelGive is committed to contributing to knowledge available on CSR in the Indian space. We are working with a range of partners to develop papers and publications, to host events and workshops, as well as to participate in various forums to build information, show case exemplary work by visionaries in the field, and share expertise and insights gained from direct on field experiences.
Using Technology to build grassroots leadership for Women Empowerment
The session brought together representatives from the business and philanthropy to deliberate on Using Technology to build grassroots leadership for Women Empowerment. The session concluded with a consensus that one shouldn’t be deterministic about technology and that as long as its “appropriateness” is contextual, its existence and sustenance community-owned, and its adoption steered by women themselves; it has high potential to change the narrative of women empowerment at the grassroots.
Capacity Building: Critical Enabler of Social Development Programmes
The Bridgespan Group and EdelGive Foundation hosted At The Same Table™ in Mumbai, where organisations shared their insights on the value of strategising and supporting capacity building as a critical enabler of social development programmes. Traditionally, funders have been investing in program delivery and services, while the underpinnings of those programs—organisational capabilities and financial health—are mostly neglected. The participants agreed that investing in capacity building of organisations enables them to create efficiency in their programme creation and delivery and build sustainability of the organisation as it continues to grow.
Collaboration in Education – Pune
EdelGive hosted its first At The Same Table in Pune, the 16th edition which brought light to the ways and means to achieve large scale sustainable improvement in the education system through Collective accountability for improvement in education. The conversation stemmed from the insights shared by Gyan Prakash Foundation (GPF) on transforming prevalent primary education system in Maharashtra by improving the existing rural Government education system and then creating sustainability through community participation and ownership.
Breaking the Cycle of Vulnerability- Hyderabad
EdelGive hosted its first At The Same Table in Hyderabad on the causative and preventive factors that are significant in helping women to break the cycle of vulnerabilities they face in their personal and professional lives. The conversation that stemmed from the context of #metoo, saw representation from corporate, non-profit and Government sectors with participants voicing views on the different connotations men and women associate with ‘empowerment’ of women.
Bold Philanthropy in India - Mumbai
EdelGive hosted a dynamic conversation on trends, trendsetters and indicators of Bold Philanthropy in India, in its 14th edition of At The Same Table™, conducted in partnership with the Bridgespan Group and discussed highlights of its recently released report also by the same name; which profiled eight exemplary social change initiatives. The event saw the presence of eminent leaders from corporate, non-profit and the consulting sectors, who shared actionable insights on the need and means to bridge the demand-supply gap of philanthropic capital which has the potential to fund critical solutions to development concerns.
Investing in Capabilities through Philanthropy - Kolkata
EdelGive hosted its first At The Same Table™ in Kolkata, where our State research paper Philanthropy for Impact in West Bengal was released at the event that highlighted the need for and the status of philanthropic investments in West Bengal. Key highlights of the conversations included building capabilities of community to access developmental opportunities through quality education (in the context of Samaritan Help Mission’s work on promoting access to education in Tikiapara slum); and enabling community-based rehabilitation for the survivors of trafficking towards reintegrating them into the mainstream (in the context of Sanjog’s work in South 24 Parganas on building the leadership capabilities of survivors of trafficking) The participants acknowledged the need for multiple players from the philanthropic ecosystem to collaborate for enabling sustainable impact; and working at the source to address the cause and working with communities as a win-win strategy.
Growing Rural Economy - Ahmedabad
Focus on Women Collectives ATST, Ahmedabad: EdelGive hosted its first At the Same Table™ in Ahmedabad on 28th June, on Growing Rural Economy: Focus on Women Collectives, which was supported by the Centre for Innovation, Incubation and Entrepreneurship (CIIE), IIMA. The convening witnessed strong representation especially from the business community of Ahmedabad, who joined the conversation with CSR Foundations, non-profit organisations and senior delegates of the IIM-CIIE.
Systemic Response for Women Empowerment - Delhi
EdelGive hosted its first At the Same Table™ in Delhi on 18th May, on Systemic Response for Women Empowerment, which was co-curated with Oxfam India and supported by International Innovation Corps (IIC), University of Chicago. The convening was attended by representatives from eminent Foundations, corporates, funding agencies, research organisations and academic institutions who shared perspectives on the relevance and efficacy of the systems approach in women empowerment initiatives.
Collective Impact Focus on Collaborations and Coalition - Mumbai
The session commenced with the launch of a paper on Collective Impact (CI) developed by EdelGive in partnership with Sattva Consulting which validated the relevance of collectives as an avenue available to funders desirous of creating systemic impact, for shared learnings as well as shared risks.
Fragmented, isolated efforts haven’t resulted in much traction to date. The need of the hour is the coming together of multiple players who are: committed to investing long-term and willing to absorb the costs of risky investments aimed at returns/impact greater than the investment.
Developing Grassroot Leadership as the Vehicle of Empowerment and Change in Society - Bengaluru
This edition of At The Same Table™ was on ‘Developing Grassroot Leadership as the Vehicle of Women Empowerment and Change in Society’ w.r.t the Sustainable Development Goal No. 5 – to ‘achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls’.
Given that women’s empowerment programs are long term but have immense capacity to effect a change at the system level, significant funding is required from informed donors, who have the capacity and the willingness to invest long term. At present there are similar programs being run in different locations without knowledge of each other and there is a need to collate information on these programs, so that there is optimum gain from the programs and minimum wastage of resources.
Developing Grassroot Leadership as the Vehicle of Empowerment and Change in Society
ATST, Mumbai: It was jointly curated by Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiatives (APPI) and EdelGive Foundation. Characteristics that help identify potential leaders, such as the ability to put community good before self-good, individual risk taking ability, being well informed, and the ability and will to challenge paradigms were discussed.
Key thoughts and learnings from At The Same Table:
- Denied right is taking away a right
- Every person is a potential leader if given the right opportunity
- Learning by doing
- Staying power is consistency to think, feel, say and do
- To be able to lead you need: to focus on the power within; to power with (other people); and the power to (change).
Women Empowerment
ATST, Mumbai: In this edition of ATST, two grassroots NGOs talked about adopting approaches on opposite ends of the spectrum while addressing the common goal of empowering women.
The contrast between Samaritan Help Mission who has identified the ‘family’ as the crucible of change, empowering women financially to enable them not only to make better economic decisions but also make active reproductive choices and become aware of their social rights and AALI who emphasizes access to Rights and Justice using the law with a collaborative yet at times confrontational approach was very interesting. Their work is a storehouse of great courage and resolve.
Therefore, as responsible funders we need to balance our investments and support both approaches to influence systemic change given that they complement each other.
EDGE 2018
On October 24th, EdelGive Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Edelweiss Group of companies flagged off its annual conference, EDGE, on the theme Leadership – A key vector for change. The event brought together the funding fraternity and the NGOs on a common engagement platform and facilitated conversations on fostering partnerships for collective impact.
Click here to view highlights.
EDGE 2017
EDGE 2017 focused on very eminent people from the corporate and the NGO sector, sharing their stories, experience and expertise in co-developing solutions for sustainable development growth.
EDGE 2016
The fifth edition of our forum EDGE- EdelGive Engage was centered on the theme of Why Collaborations Do Not Work. A part of the two days was dedicated to enable interactions between donors and NGOs from across the country through breakout sessions. Additionally, one day was devoted to knowledge sessions for all NGOs that are part of the event.
EDGE 2015
EDGE is a journey of collaborative philanthropy with participation from exceptional grassroot organizations, corporate, philanthropist and social development experts. This engagement platform attempts to understand the challenges faced by our partners and hence facilitate discussion, insights sharing in the true spirit of collaboration.
Menstrual Health and the Role of Corporate Social Responsibility
“Why is it that a girl is shamed into believing that the power that she holds within herself is to be embarrassed about? While CSR proposals need to be tangible and talk about mechanisms of awareness building, service to access a basic human right should be brought back into the narrative while making a grant. It is high time we call the bias out and reiterate the fact that menstrual health is not a woman’s issue. It is a basic Human Right,” - Naghma Mulla during the round-table discussion by CSR Advisors in partnership with Wockardt Foundation and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
6th Indian Families in Business Conference by Campden Family Connect
Today, business houses and foundations alike have a responsibility, through CSR and philanthropy, to contribute much more towards nation building. Vidya Shah talked about how important is it to find what touches us and what we are passionate about, and use that as the first step towards creating change. She was in conversation with Radhika Gupta, CEO, Edelweiss Asset Management Limited.
The Role of Philanthropy in India’s Human, Social and Economic Progress
At the Aksha panel discussion, Vidya Shah discussed the role of philanthropy in India, and the potential of visionary leadership combined with strategic partnerships, to drive greater social and economic impact. The panel was moderated by Shereen Bahn (Managing Editor, CNBC-TV18), and was also attended by Rodger Voorhies (President, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation), Amitabh Kant (CEO, Niti Aayog) and Ashish Dhawan (Chairman, Central Square Foundation).
2nd Annual “Women in Finance” Leadership Summit India, 2019
At the summit, Vidya Shah, CEO, EdelGive Foundation, was invited to speak on the topic “Leading with Purpose”, where she addressed the group of women on how the ‘sense of purpose’ is the biggest driver of happiness and well-being.
She was also conferred with the award in the Guiding category for playing an active role on various Boards, committees, think-tanks and policy Groups.
Kalaari Annual Summit 2019, Bangalore
Kalaari Capital, an early-stage technology-focused venture capital firm hosted a summit that highlights the India opportunity and the impact of start-ups on accelerating our economic objectives. Vidya Shah, CEO was invited to speak at one of panels centred around the role of women empowerment and how women in workforce and entrepreneurship is critical for India’s economic aspirations.
Chaupal 2019, Mumbai
Goonj celebrated its 20th year anniversary and dedicated this event, an annual no agenda conversation, to reflect back and share some highlights of their 2 decades journey. Naghma Mulla, COO was part of the panel discussion on “The Power of One” where she spoke on the importance of collaboration to achieve greater impact alongwith other co-panellists, Satyajit Bhatkal, Avinash Das, Ruby Ahluwalia and Ashu Gupta.
ET Women’s Forum 2019
Vidya Shah, CEO, EdelGive Foundation, was a part of a panel discussion, “Sheroes of Philanthropy” at the ET Women’s Forum in Mumbai where she spoke on how her journey in philanthropy is shaped by her identity as a woman. The panel focussed on the challenges faced by successful female entrepreneurs in the patriarchal society.
Out of the Box 2019
Naghma Mulla, COO EdelGive Foundation, was part of the panel “Driving systemic change in India’s social impact sector” organised by Toolbox India in Mumbai. She emphasised on the value of striving for unified, combined efforts from organisations to scale overall impact. The session also saw discussion on the role of the government, public policies and community engagement to drive systemic change.
OECD netFWD Gender Working Group, Paris
The Gender Working Group brought together members of netFWD working on gender equality, and a few selected foundations and experts, in order to discuss how philanthropy can help challenge gender norms and empower women to achieve SDG5. Naghma Mulla, COO was part of the panel: “Unlocking barriers to women’s economic empowerment: the case of unpaid care work” to discuss how women use their time and what can impact its distribution such as public services, social protection, infrastructure (and mobility) and shared responsibility in the household.
J-PAL South Asia – Gender Sector Launch
Naghma Mulla was a part of a panel discussion on ‘Investing in Equality, Empowerment and Agency at Scale. She along with her co-panellists discussed on the current strategies and priorities utilised by the organisations in the field, and the kind of research and solutions that has the potential to attract investment to scale in future.
2nd Sustainable Development Goals Summit 2018
UN Global Compact Network India organized its 2nd SDGs Summit on the crucial theme of “Leveraging Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for SDGs” to provide a platform for insightful discussion on how CSR can be integrated with the SDGs. Naghma Mulla, COO was part of the panel discussion on “Strategic Financing on SDG’s” where she spoke about the absence of partnerships and the need to tap into collaboration among small and mid-size foundations.
AVPN India Summit 2018
EdelGive COO, Naghma Mulla was part of the interactive showcase on Policy Initiatives at the AVPN India Summit 2018. AVPN held their 1st India Policy Forum, a half-day forum and workshop along the themes of Education, Livelihoods & Nutrition. They also launched the Asia Policy Forum Exchange (APFx) - an interactive, digital platform that showcases curated policy-driven initiatives with actionable opportunities for the social investment community to participate in.
Vidya Shah at Singapore Annual Forum 2018
Vidya Shah, CEO, EdelGive Foundation, was a part of a panel discussion on “Why Diversity Matters” at the AIMA Singapore Annual Forum. The panel discussed the importance of having a robust dialogue about the successes, opportunities, and challenges of Diversity in the workplace including how far we have progressed in integrating women in the financial workplace, the initiatives that are working and how we can further empower women in the workplace.
EdelGive celebrates the power of Collaborators in Transforming Education in Maharashtra
EdelGive Foundation held the Collaboration for Transforming Education event to showcase the progress and achievements achieved over the past 2 years. State Education Minister Shri. Vinod Tawde also graced the event with his presence to encourage this initiative. Phase I of the Coalition has resulted in -
- Improvement in the average learning outcomes of students
- Students scoring above the National & State Average in Mathematics and Language (NAS 2018)
- Reduction in the drop-out of students from schools that happens due to seasonal migration every year
Emerging Investment Ideas - Edelweiss Global Wealth and Asset Management Investor’s Theme Day 2018Emerging Investment Ideas - Edelweiss Global Wealth and Asset Management Investor’s Theme Day 2018
EdelGive COO, Naghma Mulla addressed a gathering on Emerging Investment Ideas - Edelweiss Global Wealth and Asset Management Investor’s Theme Day 2018, at Taj Santacruz. The conversation elicited great interest on the operations aspects of philanthropy.
India-UK Leadership Conclave
The British Asian Trust invited Vidya Shah to be a panellist at a high profile and influential event at the centre of UK-India Week. One of the main events within the Conclave, entitled “Multiply your social impact in India”, Vidya was joined by business leaders, entrepreneurs, CSR leaders and other key British Asian Trust supporters.
AVPN 2018, Singapore
EdelGive Foundation was additionally invited on the panel of ‘Innovations in Collaborative Funding’. The session brought together experts on innovative funding models to explore the pros and cons of each constellation with focus on sustaining social impact and scale of the funded SPOs. It examined giving circles and collective impact across India, South East Asia and Hong Kong.
AVPN 2018, Singapore
The Conference opened with a plenary on Accelerating Women’s Empowerment where a diverse panel shared their experiences and initiatives related to streamlining gender in programs and the challenges faced by women globally. This esteemed panel was moderated by Vidya shah, CEO, EdelGive Foundation, who opened with how issues surrounding gender equity and accelerating women’s empowerment are at the front and centre to EdelGive’s work.
GSIF - When Corporates Collaborate
Rashesh Shah, Edelweiss Group & Amit Chandra, Bain Capital Ventures at the GSIF Event – When Corporates Collaborate. GSIF is a yearlong fellowship program, jointly managed and implemented by Genpact and Edelweiss. It deploys process excellence experts to work on high impact projects to bring systemic change in the development sector. The event showcased the power of partnership between two or more entities, who uses their collective strength to achieve a larger sustainable impact.
Round Table Conference, Rockefeller Foundation
Vidya Shah, CEO, EdelGive Foundation, attended the round table with Rockefeller Foundation & Partners
TOI Global Sports Business Show
Naghma Mulla, COO-EdelGive Foundation, speaking at TOI Global Sports Business Show
AVPN Conference, Bangkok
Collaborating for Impact at Leading the panel on two discussions at AVPN‘s annual conference in Bangkok with the theme “Collaborating for Impact” to reflect the importance of partnership across sectors, Naghma Mulla, COO, EdelGive Foundation, spoke on ‘Social Investing in Education’ & ‘Unlocking the Potential of Children through Quality and Inclusive Education’.
IACC CSR Conference – Partners for Change: Leveraging Leadership, Teamwork and Technology for Effective CSR
At the 4th Annual Indo American Chamber of Commerce CSR Conference, Naghma Mulla moderated a panel on ‘Are For-Profit Social Enterprises ands Non-Profit NGOs implementing CSR at Opposing Ends of the Spectrum?’ Co-panelists included Avijeet Kumar of Charities Aid Foundation India, Puja Marwaha of Child Relief and You (CRY), Rachita Misra of SELCO Foundation and Harsha Mukherjee of MBA-CSR, MIT Pune.
