Mallika Dutt is the founder of INTER-CONNECTED and program director of gender, equity, and governance at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. She provides approaches and tools to strategically shake up and re-envision the world by bringing together self, community, systems, and the earth. She has honed this approach through decades of experience leading culture change in entrepreneurial, nonprofit, and philanthropic fields. Mallika is also founder of the global human rights organization Breakthrough, whose mission is to build a world in which violence against women and girls is unacceptable and all people enjoy their full human rights.
In a world of division and isolation, Mallika invites us to see our shared well-being with people and planet. She asks us to embrace collaboration and cultivate a world where we can flourish and thrive together. Mallika’s wisdom is born from decades on the frontlines, championing human rights in local and global contexts. Her unique methodology combines ancient wisdom, contemplative practices, and social justice activism, using her skills as a multimedia curator and storyteller.
Prior to founding Breakthrough, Mallika served as Program Officer for Human Rights and Social Justice at the Ford Foundation’s New Delhi Office. There, she initiated the Foundation’s work on police reform and forged unique partnerships among police, NGOs, and civil society groups. Mallika acted as associate director of the Center for Women’s Global Leadership at Rutgers University, working at the forefront of the global movement for recognizing women’s rights as human rights.
Mallika has served on numerous boards and committees, including Planned Parenthood of America, Peace is Loud, World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Social Media, the Open Society Institute’s U.S. Programs, Human Rights Watch Asia, Sister Fund, Asian American Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy, and WITNESS. She graduated from NYU Law School, received a Masters in International Affairs and South Asian Studies from Columbia University, and an AB in International Affairs from Mount Holyoke College.
