We, at Project Neysa, have always believed in giving back to society by all means. Our newest blog series titled ‘Changemakers’, promises to empower those who create a difference and spread their goodwill further.
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| Ms. Kirthi Jayakumar |
Our guest today is a peace educator, a women, peace, and security practitioner, lawyer and writer. She is a Commonwealth Scholar, a Vital Voices (VV) Lead Fellow, a VV Engage Fellow, a Local Pathways Fellow, and a World Pulse Impact Leader. She is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. She is Kirthi Jayakumar. “May you always have enough”, a deceptively simple wish that speaks volumes about her as an individual, and of the goodness she embodies. She is a prominent public figure and yet was the most gracious in accommodating our interview into her busy schedule, even during these trying times. Read on to find out more about her.
In conversation with Kirthi Jayakumar -
Could you tell us more about yourself ?
“I am a lawyer by training, but wandered away from traditional legal practice into peace and conflict studies and gender and security issues. I used to run a non-profit called The Red Elephant Foundation until COVID-19 wiped out any possibility for it to stay afloat. I taught myself to code and created an app for survivors of gender-based violence, called Saahas. I also founded and run The Gender Security Project, which is currently a digital space that addresses gender, peace, security, transitional justice, and feminist foreign policy through research, reportage, and documentation.”
How did you reach the idea of establishing The Gender Security Project? Could you tell us more about it?
“I think it was an idea in the making, honestly. My MA degree in peace and conflict studies was the actual catalyst, because it taught me a lot - the most prominent being the invisibility of voices from the "global south" in areas of gender, peace, security, transitional justice, and feminist foreign policy. There's so much good work happening on ground but not enough of it is documented or written about loudly enough. The main motive of this project really is to centre these voices and to shine a spotlight on the work of amazing women and non-binary folk.”
How has your project program impacted society? Is there a particular memory that stands out for you?
“Honestly, I don't have many stories around GSP yet because it's a younger organization. But Saahas has helped close to 40,000 survivors in its almost five years of existence. The most powerful memory that stands out for me is how bystanders have come together to co-create some of the most powerful solutions to support survivors around them and among the groups and networks they're part of.”
That sounds inspiring. What does the future look like for your organization?
“Honestly, I don't know! COVID-19 has taken all of us by surprise, hasn't it? I won't be surprised by the possibility of having to put things on hold or to close things down because the pandemic does bring a lot of challenges to fore. That's definitely a negative picture to bear in mind, but somehow it also makes me want to work harder.”
How can our readers contribute to your program?
“Let's find ways to work together! These are chaotic times and asking or forcing anyone to contribute in one way alone especially during such times is not ideal - so, if you feel like you want to support something we do, how about you reach out to us and we figure the way out ahead?”
We sure will! As we conclude, do you have any message for our youth?
“May you find all the support, resilience, and strength to get through any and all challenges you're dealing with, and may you always have enough.”
-Arka Gohil
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