The Inclusivity Board of DirectorsBoard Member
N. Paul Divakar
Executive Director
The founder of TIP, Paul is a national and international advocate for Dalit rights, an economic rights expert, and a human rights defender. He is the Convenor of the Global Forum on CDWD (Communities Discriminated Based on Work and Descent), a platform that collectively represents Dalits (Asia), Roma, Cinti, Gypsies (Europe), Haratine, Gaboye, Ñeeño (Africa) Quilombola (Brazil) Communities. He is also Co-Chair of Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP). He is one of the founding members of the National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights (NCDHR).
Paul also serves as the Chairperson of the Asia Dalit Rights Forum, which works in the South Asia region to ensure inclusion and to address issues of “untouchability” and caste-based discrimination. He has spearheaded efforts to raise the issue of inclusion of discriminated people in the new development paradigm and particularly with regard to the Sustainable Development Goals. In 2017, he was voted by Outlook Magazine as one of the 50 most influential Dalit Leaders in the country.
For several decades, Paul has been actively engaging with the communities that face discrimination due to work and descent (DWD) in strengthening access to justice, promotion of gender equality with particular emphasis on the intersectionality of gender and caste, financial accountability, transparency and participation. He has also engaged with the Indian state on issues of targeted budgeting, governance and accountability. His deep interest in the economic empowerment of Dalits has been the reason behind his initiating a campaign to ensure equitable access to government budgets and has been instrumental in advocating for equitable budgeting from the perspective of the marginalized.
Lucille C. Atkin
Board Member
A social psychologist whose career has spanned over 40 years in the field of sexual and reproductive health and rights in Latin America, Africa and South Asia. She has directed diverse research, clinical and education programs. Lucille is specialized in stakeholder-friendly project evaluation, gender equity promotion and strategic organizational development. Currently she consults with diverse international agencies. Lucy holds a Ph.D. in human development from Cornell University.
Joel Guyton Lee
Board Member
Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Williams College, Massachusetts, USA, Joel Lee teaches and conducts research on religion, the state, and caste in South Asia. In particular his work concerns the strategies and tactics of Dalits to combat structural deprivation, navigate the politics of religious majoritarianism, and contend with the sensory and environmental entailments of sanitation labor in colonial and postcolonial India. His research and teaching interests also include linguistic anthropology, semiotics, popular Hinduism and Islam, and Urdu and Hindi literature. Joel holds a Ph.D. in anthropology from Columbia University.
Rose Nierras
Board Member
The International Budget Partnership's Director of Country Strategies, Rose is responsible for leading and directing the implementation of country programs. Rose has extensive experience in supporting and building civil society organizations and managing multiyear, multi-country programs on participatory governance. She has worked extensively with civil society organizations in Africa, South and Southeast Asia, and Latin America. She also has deep knowledge and experience in developing and strengthening organizational systems, especially for monitoring, evaluation and learning. Rose holds an MA in Development Studies from the University of East Anglia in the U.K.
Sanessa Griffiths
Board Member
A tax attorney at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom; Sanessa (Sa-knee-sa) has a long-abiding social commitment to helping the less fortunate and erasing racial discrimination. In addition to her work as counsel to fortune 500-companies, she dedicates a substantial amount of time conducting pro bono work ranging from providing guardian ad litem representation to children to serving as an attorney in asylum cases and assisting non-profit entities obtain tax exemption status. Sanessa holds a law degree from The George Washington University Law School.