Module 10 Session 5 Materials
Mrs. Meenakshi Gopinath,
Founder-Director of Women in Security, Conflict Management and Peace (WISCOMP)
Dr. Meenakshi Gopinath is the Founder and Director of WISCOMP. She is Chair, Board of Governors, Centre for Policy Research (CPR), and Principal Emerita of Lady Shri Ram College, New Delhi, where she served as Principal for 26 years (1988-2014). She has been a member of the Advisory Board on the Planning Commission of India and the University Grants Commission. Dr. Gopinath was the first woman to be nominated to the National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) of India. She is a member of multi-track peace initiatives and people-to-people dialogues in South Asia. She serves on numerous Boards, including the United Nations Peace University in Costa Rica, the Geneva-based Nonviolent Peaceforce, Asian University for Women in Bangladesh, among others. Dr. Gopinath has written and lectured across the world on issues of Conflict Transformation, Peacebuilding, Women’s Leadership, Education for Peace, International Relations, and Diplomacy. She serves on the governing boards of prominent research institutes, NGOs, and educational institutions and has developed programs and curricula on educating for peace in several universities, colleges, and schools. In recognition of her contribution to the field of women’s education and empowerment, she has received several awards, including the Padma Shri Award from the President of India, the Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi Award, Rajiv Gandhi Award for Excellence in Education, among others. She was awarded an Honorary Doctorate Degree by La Trobe University, Australia; the Distinguished Alumna Award by Lady Shri Ram College for Women, for meritorious contribution in the field of Education; and the Nirbhaya Puraskar 2017 by OYSS Women (Odisa Yuva Sanskrutik Sansad) for exemplary courage and accomplishment in the field of Education.
