Rajni Bakshi

Rajni Bakshi

former Gandhi Peace Fellow

Rajni Bakshi was the Gandhi Peace Fellow at Gateway House from 2011 till 2017. A Mumbai-based author, she published a Research paper in October 2012 titled Civilizational Gandhi. Rajni has a BA from George Washington University and an MA from the University of Rajasthan. She is the author of Bazaars, Conversations and Freedom: for a market culture beyond greed and fear (Penguin, 2009), which won two Vodafone-Crossword Awards. Her earlier book, Bapu Kuti: Journeys in Rediscovery of Gandhi (Penguin, 1998) inspired the Hindi film Swades starring Shah Rukh Khan. Her other books include: Long Haul: the Bombay Textile Workers Strike 1982-83 (1986), A Warning and an Opportunity: the Dispute over Swami Vivekananda’s Legacy (1994), Lets Make it Happen: a backgrounder on New Economics (2003) and An Economics for Well-Being (2007). Rajni serves on the Boards of Child Rights and You (CRY) and Citizens for Peace. She is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti, an autonomous body under the Ministry of Culture and a long term associate of Centre of Education and Documentation (Mumbai & Bangalore). Download high-res bio image
Expertise

Peace, Economic democracy, electoral politics, social protests, climate change and sustainable development

Last modified: December 11, 2017

Recent projects

People’s SAARC: a valid agenda
24 November 2014 Gateway House

People’s SAARC: a valid agenda

Rajni Bakshi, Senior Gandhi Fellow, Gateway House reports from People’s SAARC, a motley gathering of NGO workers and members of the village communities they work with. PSAARC will compile a memorandum – a wish-list of demands and aspirations – on November 24 and present it to the heads of SAARC nations
Obama Xi Courtesy: Andy Wong/AP/wired.com
14 November 2014 Gateway House

Challenging the climate change deal

The U.S.-China deal on climate change and clean energy is too little too late. Instead of radical transformation, it is business-as-usual, setting a sub-standard benchmark for others to follow. Will the Indian government play within this framework, or challenge it?
edurado Courtesy:
12 November 2014 Gateway House

Green Party speak

The Green Party in Brazil is a small but significant presence, whose ideas of reform and conservation are gaining wider acceptance. In this interview, Eduardo Jorge, the party’s leader, discusses what BRICS represents, his views on India, and the response of governments and business to climate change
Expensive shortcuts: mining
3 November 2014 Gateway House

Expensive shortcuts: mining

Investors have welcomed the dilution in government regulations that currently require companies to seek the consent of local communities for industrial projects in tribal areas. We analyse the outcome of this development.
Correa’s Latin legacy of peace
31 October 2014 Gateway House

Correa’s Latin legacy of peace

Rajni Bakshi, Senior Gandhi Peace Fellow at Gateway House, was recently invited to Brazil and Colombia to speak about Gandhi, her book ‘Bazaars, Conversations and Freedom’ and her forthcoming paper on Trusteeship. She reports on the longing for non-violence in these societies and the groups working to make it real
rajni 4 Courtesy: RajniBakshi
22 October 2014 Gateway House

Latin longing for non-violence

Rajni Bakshi, Senior Gandhi Peace Fellow at Gateway House, was recently invited to Brazil and Colombia to speak about Gandhi, her book ‘Bazaars, Conversations and Freedom’ and her forthcoming paper on Trusteeship. She reports on the longing for non-violence in these societies and the groups working to make it real
Sustainable gardening Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
10 October 2014 Gateway House

The UN and sustainability

The UN and the global finance industry are making gradual but concerted efforts to align business interests and ecological sustainability. A growing number of companies are combining profit-making with social responsibility. There is still a long way to go, but the UN system has created useful mechanisms of change
ED Courtesy:
30 September 2014 Gateway House

Defining de-growth

Current forms of economic growth are widening disparities, leaving millions of people to live in poverty. While there is widespread awareness about these realities, there is no agreement on how to tackle them. The de-growth platform aims to counter the dominant idea of our times that economic growth is the only way to end poverty.
Social Media Week
25 September 2014

Social Media Week

Gateway House hosted a session for Social Media Week on the topic - Protests in the Age of Social Media. The speaker was Rajni Bakshi, Senior Gandhi Peace Fellow at Gateway House, who examined how the growing popularity of social media platforms has affected the outcome of protest movements worldwide and they are likely to evolve with the changing communication technologies in the digital age.
Leipzig Courtesy: wikimedia
19 September 2014 Gateway House

Leipzig: from darkness into light

Rajni Bakshi, Senior Gandhi Peace Fellow, was recently at Leipzig in Germany to attend the 4th International Conference on Degrowth. She writes about why Leipzig is reassuring for more than its economic growth