Season of Giving: Farida Kathawalla Shares Her Inspiring Philanthropic Journey with World Education, Circle of Hope, and Nonprofit Consulting
“Having had such amazing life experiences, my need to find a way of giving back became even stronger.” We are excited to continue the Season of Giving with today’s woman dreamer, Farida Kathawalla, who brings tremendous energy and dedication to giving back and changing the world around her. A passionate nonprofit consultant and philanthropist, Farida is the Co-founder of Circle of Hope, a giving circle bringing together women philanthropists to aid in causes for women and girls. She is also on the Board of Trustees of World Education, an active member of Global Women’s Forum, and many more wonderful organizations. We are honored to share her story!
1) You have a wide breadth of philanthropy experience, both in India and the U.S. Tell us your story, what inspired your interest in philanthropy and giving back?
“Be the change you want to see in the world” a quote by Mahatma Gandhi, has influenced me since I was a little girl . Having grown up in Mumbai, India, I have seen class differences very vividly and it was always something that made me wonder why it existed.
The foundation of my values comes from seeing my parents give support and resources to the underprivileged. I have been very fortunate to have lived all over the world and in 2010 we repatriated to Boston after spending 4 years in Paris, France as an expatriate. Having had such amazing life experiences, my need to find a way of giving back became even stronger.
I started my non profit journey with World Boston, a non-profit that fosters engagement in international affairs and cooperation with people of all nations where I helped develop the international visitors program.
Currently I am a member of Global Women’s forum and the charter circle of The United Nations of Greater Boston, where I have focused bringing attention to the Boston community, impacting women and girls via lectures, documentary films and conversations.
I am also an active member with the New England International Donors (NEID), an organization that facilitates international philanthropy. I am on the program committee for NEID,
I have been on the World Education Board for the last 3 years which focuses on improving the quality of life through education for half a million children in 20 countries. I have also been involved as an advisory Board member of the Bantwana initiative which improves the wellbeing of vulnerable children, their caregivers and families affected by HIV, AIDS and poverty.
Being on the advisory board of New Repertory theatre , a theatre based in Watertown, Ma, was something I wanted to get involved in locally . While this is not in my normal realm, it has been extremely rewarding to learn as well help them with strategic development.
I am also the chapter leader for dining for women which educates and engages people to invest in grassroots programs that make a meaningful difference for women and girls in developing countries. This has been truly fulfilling since it is a small giving circle with my close knit friends.
My newest board position is with the Woodlands which is in the community that we live in, Belmont. This is truly an educational experience for me as I am learning about shingles, roofs, downspouts and gutters . This again is a need to give back locally, to the community I live in.
Lastly , I am pursuing a position with Care where I lead, energize and build resources for a shared vision in investing in women and girls as multipliers for change. Care works around the globe to save lives, defeat poverty and achieve social justice. The Boston Committee for Care is part of that mission.
2) You are also a co-founder of Circle of Hope, under the umbrella of AIF, a group of women philanthropists. What inspired you to launch that, and what was that need you saw for something specific to women philanthropists?
I have been involved with the American India Foundation for the last 9 years and I wanted to create something that would be innovative and focus on my lifelong passion to empower women and girls and hence The Circle of Hope was launched in 2017.
My co-founder Nirmala Garimella and I spent 9 months and long hours at our kitchen table making this baby come to life. It is truly a labor of love and incredibly satisfying to see it thrive
Most giving circles are groups of women who are grounded in a tradition of volunteerism and sharing. At a time when individuals seem increasingly disconnected from each other, giving circles promote collective learning, decision-making and giving. They build community by rallying individuals who, over the course of their work together, have meaningful conversations and make real-world decisions. Through giving circles, donors learn about community issues and become deeply involved in nonprofit organizations they may never have known existed.
Since its founding, AIF’s Circle of Hope has launched three chapters in New England, Chicago, and San Francisco. Collectively, the chapters have granted out more than $175,000 and impacted the lives of over 1,000 women and girls in India.
3) You are also on the Board of Trustees for World Education, an organization that is helping over half a million children and adults in 20 countries. They work on many important causes, such as adult education, help displaced peoples, stem the tide of HIV, and reduce violence through conflict resolution. Tell us about your work there and your interest in education equality. Which cause(s) are close to your heart?
My journey with the World Education and Bantwana Initiative which sits under the umbrella of World education has been extremely rewarding.
If World Education is a tree, with branches currently reaching out all over the world, then its root, buried deep in the soil of Lucknow, India, is the Literacy House. The light, heat, and water that nurtured its growth was Welthy Honsinger Fisher, the founder of Literacy House and World Education. The fact that an American woman campaigned for women's literacy and women's independence in India in the 1950s, is extraordinary. Welthy Fisher began the enterprise which would become World Education, at the age of 73, in the midst of her life which would include teaching and traveling on almost every continent for the next eighteen years. This sheds light on just how extraordinary she was. I was so fortunate to visit the literacy house during my visit to Lucknow.
I soon realized that World Education needed help with board development, fundraising and strategy. I created and chaired the first annual Global voices Gala and helped them strategize their fundraising goals. Everything is in place now and we look forward to the next global voices gala post COVID.
4) As #Dreamcatchers, we have to ask, what is your next big dream?
There is so much more work needed to improve the lives of women and girls all over the world and I want to continue doing that. I would love to see Circle of Hope expand to the other AIF chapters so that we can empower and change the lives of many more women and girls in India. Post COVID, I would like to do more field visits to all the different countries that I am involved in. I am also looking into different avenues locally as well as domestically to get involved with especially causes like Black lives matter. Lastly, I never want to stop learning and keep my passion of empowering women and girls going!
We would love to share some beautiful letters on Farida and her philanthropic work:
Farida’s co-founder of Circle of Hope, Nirmala Garimella, writes, “there is so much I would say of Farida Kathwalla. She is a dear friend but also a long-time active supporter of AIF and a very committed and generous supporter. I would call her 'a philanthropist with a heart' who goes to the core of any cause and translates into action. Passionate about women's causes, she came up with the idea of a giving circle at AIF, bringing a network of women philanthropists together to pool resources and support programs in India impacting women and girls. We call it the Circle of Hope. Today Circle of Hope has expanded to Chicago and San Francisco and we are very proud that we piloted here in Boston and raised almost $175,000 through this initiative. The energy and enthusiasm she brings to the group are really amazing! Farida also brings with her passion, her network of friends, ideas, and strategy to collectively enable change in communities. That is her biggest strength and she does it with the sole purpose and belief that that world will be a better place if we work together. So grateful that she is a part of the AIF community.”
Penelope Riseborough, Director of communications and Fundraising, World Education writes, Farida Kathawalla brings a tremendous level of energy to everything she’s involved with. She joined the World Education board in 2016 and immediately pushed us to think bigger than we had been! While we do some fundraising and have a small event every year, she helped up shift our thinking to make that event a full-on fundraiser. She’s a woman who brings both ideas and enthusiasm to her role as a board member. Her commitment to girls’ and women’s education is what first attracted her to World Education, and she has gone as far as visiting our original program site in India, Literacy House, which was launched in 1952 by our founder, Welthy Fisher, and still is teaching adults to read today! Her commitment to girls and women and to helping groups like World Education is noteworthy. I’m so glad she’s on our board.
Bio: Farida Kathawalla is a passionate non-profit consultant and philanthropist with a breadth of international and philanthropic experience. Born in India, Farida came to the U.S. for college in 1984 but has enjoyed giving back to her native country through her long-term engagement with the American India Foundation (AIF) She is the co-founder of AIF Circle of Hope , a women based funded philanthropic giving circle.
Farida is on the board at World Education and is also an active member of the New England International Donors (NEID). She is a member of the global women’s forum and a charter circle member at the United Nations of Boston where she has focused bringing attention to the Boston community issues impacting women and girls. Farida previously served on the Board of Primary Source. She is also on the advisory board at The New Repertory theatre and the Bantwana initiative. She is currently a member of the Boston committee for Care which works around the globe to save lives, defeat poverty and achieve social justice.
Farida’s dedication to the many charitable causes she supports was recently recognized when she was nominated for 2016 Woman of the Year by INDIA New England.