Rajesh Tandon
Website: Personal profile at PRIA
Rajesh Tandon (India) founded and continues to be the chief executive of the Society for Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), a voluntary organization providing support to grass roots initiatives in South Asia since 1982.
Tandon specializes in social and organizational change. He is an internationally acclaimed leader and practitioner of participatory research and development. He serves on the governing boards of many civil society organizations as wells writing articles, books and manuals on participatory research, participatory training, NGO-government relations, NGO management, the role of civil society, and voluntary organizations in development.
Tandon holds a PhD from Case Western Reserve University, USA, a degree in electronic engineering from the India Institute of Technology, Kanpur, and a postgraduate degree in management from the India Institute of Management, Kolkata. Tandon has advocated a self-reliant, autonomous and competent voluntary sector in India and abroad. He is currently promoting local government bodies (Panchayats and municipalities) as institutions of local self-governance in South Asia, with a special focus on women and marginalized groups. He is also working to build alliances and partnerships among diverse sectors in societal development.