Malini Mehra is an Indian businesswoman and civil society leader based in London. She is the Chief Executive Officer and Non-Executive Board Member (India) of the Global Legislators Organization for a Balanced Environment (GLOBE). On March 6, 2023, a video of Malini Mehra went viral on the internet in which she was seen asking questions to Rahul Gandhi about the current situation in India during the think-tank Chatham House interaction in London.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Malini Mehra was born in Punjab, India. Malini grew up in the northern and eastern parts of India, primarily in Kolkata, West Bengal, where she did her schooling at Calcutta International School. She attended Smith College, USA to pursue BA in Government and Women’s Studies. Subsequently, she obtained an MA in Gender and Development from the Institute for Development Studies, University of Sussex (1991). A political scientist and gender specialist by training, Malini has done postgraduate work on population policy and politics in India.
Physical Appearance
Height (Approx): 5′ 5″
Hair Colour: Brown
Eye colour: brown
Family
Malini’s family has its roots in Lahore, Amritsar, Delhi, Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) and the Himalayan region of Himachal Pradesh.
parents and siblings
Malini Mehra’s father, Dr. Madhav Mehra, was an IAS officer and entrepreneur who worked in the Indian Railways. Later, he founded and led the Institute of Directors (IOD) of India. According to Malini, her father was associated with RSS. However, his father has no connection with the RSS.
husband and children
Malini Mehra is married to Nick Mabey, LSDC Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer of E3G. Together, they have three children.
Malini Mehra with Nick Mabey
Malini Mehra with her child at her workplace
other relatives
Malini’s maternal side of the family actively participated in the struggle for India’s independence. His maternal grandfather Pyarelal Nayyar was the personal secretary and biographer of Mahatma Gandhi. His aunt, Pushpa Anand, Reverend Mother, is the founder of Arpana Trust, a worldwide religious centre. The Trust runs some of the largest social welfare programs in North India.
livelihood
In November 2014, Malini Mehra, a member of the Royal Society of Arts, joined the GLOBE International Secretariat as Chief Executive, a cross-party network of parliamentarians dedicated to improving governance for sustainable development. While working at Globe, Malini developed new initiatives such as treaty coherence and convergence, citizenship education, youth engagement, legislative-judiciary dialogue on climate change, democracy and governance, gender equality and citizenship education. A civil society leader, Malini has won various awards for raising issues for the benefit of society.
Malini Mehra as Corporate Board Member
He has nearly 30 years of experience in sustainability, climate change and human rights. Malini has led various international campaigns for Oxfam and Friends of the Earth International, including the UN Beijing Conference on Women (1995), the UNFCCC Kyoto Climate Conference (1997), and the OECD Multilateral Agreement on Investment. While serving as Director of the People’s Decade for Human Rights Education, Malini led a team at the World Trade Organization (WTO). He also worked in the infamous ‘Battle of Seattle’ (1999). In 2000, Malini Mehra founded the Indian NGO Center for Social Markets (CSM), working on corporate responsibility and climate change; She is also the chief executive officer of the organization.
Malini Mehra during a campaign for Kyoto COP3 1997
In the mid-2000s, Malini led projects on international sustainable development in the UK government. While working in the UK Government, Malini also established intergovernmental partnerships with India, China, Brazil, Mexico and South Africa. Working with the United Nations for more than 25 years, Malini served as an advisor to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on UN-civil society reform. While she was with the UN, Malini campaigned on the Commission on Sustainable Development, co-authored the influential UN Human Development Report and advised UN bodies such as UNICEF and UNCTAD.
Malini Mehra addressing a conference at the United Nations
He has served on the boards of several international non-profit organizations, including China Dialogue, Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and Ragmark International. Additionally, Mehra has also been a part of the advisory boards of some of the world’s leading companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Kimberly-Clark, Tetra Pak and BHP Billiton. He worked in Unilever’s top sustainability organization for almost 10 years.
Malini Mehra explained the importance of swimming to the girl students
In 2017, Malini was appointed as the Mayor of London’s Sustainable Development Commissioner Sadiq Khan. A year later, Malini launched the ‘Teach a Girl to Swim’ campaign to save lives, empower girls and tackle climate change. He swam over 500 km around the world (including India, Bangladesh, China, Vietnam, the Philippines and the UK) and completed an Ironman triathlon to raise awareness of the hidden global epidemic of drowning.
Malini Mehra promoting her Teekaji A Girl to Swim campaign with Sadiq Khan
Malini has worked with many NGOs in London. Previously, he served as ambassador for Sweden’s Global Challenges Foundation. She is an ambassador for London Climate Action Week. Malini is also the ambassador of the Archbishop Desmond Tutu Foundation UK. As of 2023, she is Chair of the Board of Trustees of the UK-based European Environmental Policy Institute.
Malini Mehra as an ambassador for London Climate Action Week
Malini also works at the Sir Heinz Koppler Trust and advises Ecopeace Middle East. He has given various lectures at the United Nations Knowledge Center for Sustainable Development. As of 2023, Malini serves as an advisor to the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General on Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR). Mehra has published numerous articles on topics such as women’s reproductive rights, climate change, business and human rights, and sustainable development for local authorities. His pamphlet ‘Climate Change: Why India Needs to Take the Lead’, published in 2007, argued for a proactive leadership agenda for the country. Malini also released a film In Good Company (2009) at the World Business Summit on Climate Change in Copenhagen. The film highlights the contributions of Indian companies and entrepreneurs to climate action.
Awards and Honors
- World Economic Forum Young Global Leaders
- asian woman of the year
Malini Mehra posing with the award
- Asia 21 Young Leaders of Asia Society
- CNN/Time Magazine Principal Voice
Rahul Gandhi’s Chatham House session
During Rahul Gandhi’s session at Chatham House in London on March 6, 2023, Malini Mehra questioned Rahul Gandhi about reinvigorating Indian democracy and said that she was sad to see the current state of India. Identifying himself as an Indian citizen he asked,
I am saddened by the condition of my country. My father was an RSS man, I am proud of that; He will not recognize the country, bless his soul. How can we engage, reinvigorate our democracy?”
Furthermore, when Malini said that she is one of the millions of Indians who do not recognize which country they were born and brought up in, Rahul asked her,
Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”
Malini replied,
What do you think? Why am I here today? I am feeling very bad…”
Soon, the video clip of the session went viral on the internet. While some people praised him for his act, others criticized him for his comments on India. After the video went viral, former Infosys director TV Mohandas Pai strongly condemned it on Twitter. Calling them ‘economic refugees’, Pai tweeted,
Nonsense These economic refugees left India many years ago, we stayed here, worked hard, paid taxes and built our country! Now they talk nonsense. We don’t want them to abuse India. Stay away, we are better off without you and people like you! Just stop this abuse.”
Malini Mehra in conversation session with Rahul Gandhi at Chatham House
Facts/General Knowledge
- Malini Mehra is multilingual and speaks six languages.
- Malini Mehra is passionate about history, mainly political and women’s history.
- A keen runner and swimmer, Malini has completed several marathons, triathlons and 10km swims for charity. In his spare time, he enjoys gardening and spending time outdoors.
- Malini is a marathon swimmer.
Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn