Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies

Home
India
Bangalore
Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies

Quest for a Strong Samaaj. Only official account of RNP.

06/07/2026

“Adaptation looks more like a mangrove than a sea wall,” writes Tanya Kak in “Climate Adaptation Means Building Social Infrastructure,” Stanford Social Innovation Review.
It is not concrete, not engineered from the outside, but rooted, flexible, and built through relationships that hold under pressure.

The trust, networks, and institutions that exist within a community long before a disaster strikes, and that often determine how well it recovers, is social capital. It’s one of the least visible forms of resilience, and as a result, one of the hardest to support because it doesn’t show up as tangible infrastructure or a line item. But it is often the difference between a community that recovers together, with agency, and one that doesn’t.

Read Tanya’s full piece: [link in our nightlights titled articles]

24/06/2026

Communities across India have always built their lives around the natural systems in their surroundings. Planting mangroves along coastlines, protecting sacred groves, building agroforestry practices that fed families and held the soil together, and maintaining watershed systems that sustained life through the harshest droughts. This wasn’t just ecological practice. It was cultural knowledge that had been accumulated, refined, and passed down over generations.

The global conversation is turning towards building climate resilience against recurring disasters. And the question we’re working with is whether we’re building systems and investments that allow communities to continue stewarding natural capital, recognizing it for what it truly is: our oldest and most adaptive foundation for resilience.

Read the report to know more. [link in our bio]

Source: Mangrove wave reduction data: McIvor et al. (2012), The Nature Conservancy / Cambridge Coastal Research Unit, via UNESCO Tsunami Programme.
Urban tree cover cooling data: World Resources Institute, “Cooling Potential of Urban Trees”, April 2026.
Agroforestry income data: Grow Billion Trees Foundation, citing scientific studies on agroforestry systems in India.

13/06/2026

What happens in Arctic doesn’t stay in Arctic!

In this travelogue, Rohini Nilekani explores the interconnected realities of climate change, conservation and responsible tourism in one of the world’s most vulnerable regions.

Here are some glimpses of the landscape that is both breathtaking and deeply consequential!

Find the full article published in Mint Lounge today. Link in our bio.

Photo credit: Rohini Nilekani

09/06/2026

We’ve added new words to our everyday vocabulary. AQI. Heat index. UV advisory. We check them before stepping out and plan our days around them.

What we’ve been slow to name is what they point to. Climate disasters aren’t isolated events anymore; they are recurrent, cascading. And heat is not just a seasonal inconvenience; it is now a climate disaster, demanding a response that matches its scale.

Our latest report with explores why climate disasters require moving beyond reactive responses toward building community-centric resilience. Resilience rooted in the knowledge, networks, and adaptive capacity that communities already possess.

Read the report to know more about what this shift looks like (link in our bio).

28/05/2026

The last day to submit proposals for – National Mental Health Festival 2026 is fast approaching! ⏳

If you know individuals, collectives, practitioners, artists, educators, or organisations working at the intersection of mental health, community, art, research, lived experience, wellbeing, or social change — please share this with them.

We’re looking for ideas for panels, workshops, sharing circles, and stalls that can spark conversation, reflection, and connection. 🙌

📅 Submit by: May 31, 2026
Apply here: link in our bio

23/04/2026

Some journeys are shaped as much by where we begin as by what we choose to do with it.

From medicine to public health to participatory research, Dr. Anita Patil-Deshmukh’s work is anchored in dignity, equity, and listening deeply to communities. As she reminds us, “the only way I can pay that debt back is that I go back and I do something for them.”

21/04/2026

, NIMHANS ( ) and are excited to share that - India’s National Mental Health Festival - is returning for its third year on December 5–6, 2026 in Bengaluru! 📢

We invite anyone working on mental health and at its intersections through art, music, advocacy, research, performances and other mediums, to co-create Manotsava 2026 with us.

Submit your programme proposal by May 15, 2026 - form in the bio.

[mental health, wellbeing, call for proposals, community wellbeing]

25/02/2026

We’ve all heard that climate disasters are the new normal in India. But what does that really mean for communities living through repeated floods, heatwaves, droughts, and cyclones?

Over the past year, in partnership with Dalberg, we explored what it would take to move beyond episodic relief toward long-term, community-centred resilience.

The report was launched at at a roundtable organised by the , bringing together foundations, CSR leaders, and climate funders to ask:

What would it mean to fund resilience as seriously as we fund response?

Because climate shocks are here to stay and resilience cannot remain a side conversation.

[Link to report in the bio]

29/01/2026

✨ We’re thrilled to share this feature on Rohini Nilekani (Chairperson, RNP), published by The Philanthropist — an endeavour of GivingPi.

“A Joyful Responsibility: Rohini Nilekani’s Philanthropic Journey through White Spaces and Hopeful Futures” reflects on her 35-year journey as a funder, her belief in bold philanthropy, and her focus on underfunded “white spaces” with the power to drive systemic change 🌱

Catch the full story now 💭 Head over to the link in bio! 🔗

22/01/2026

Last week, Rohini Nilekani (Chairperson, RNP) launched The Playbook of Play at the Makkala Habba (supported by Bachpan Manao), reminding us that play shouldn’t be optional, but essential.

This book breaks convention by leaving most pages empty, underscoring the idea that play doesn’t need formal rules or fixed outcomes.

It’s a call to give children the space and time to explore freely — as decades of research prove how free play strengthens focus, problem-solving, and cognitive, emotional, and social growth.

When we honour play, children thrive. 🧠 🤩

.blr.hubba

Address

Bangalore

Website

http://www.rohininilekaniphilanthropies.org/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies:

Want your organization to be the top-listed Non Profit Organization in Bangalore?