Aliasgar Huseini Janjali
Chief Executive Officer
Aliasgar Huseini Janjali
A former Vice President, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Ali is a career finance professional having worked with some of the largest financial intermediaries in India. After spending more than 23 years in the financial sector, Ali switched over to the development sector in early 2015 by joining the Teach For India Fellowship in Mumbai. After completing 3 years of fellowship where he served as a full time class leader in a government school in Mumbai, he joined Sunbird Trust in July 2018. He served as a School Leader at Paangkriang Friendship Academy, a Sunbird Partner School, in the remote of Ijeirong in Manipur.
Overcoming challenges in a remote, conflict-affected rural community, he helped build up structures and processes in the then-fledgling organization.
Transitioning out for a brief period from Sunbird Trust in July 2019 for personal reasons, he returned to the organisation in July 2021 to assume the leadership role as Chief Operating Officer. During this period between Aug 2021 and Dec 2023, Ali oversaw all the critical aspects of the organisation right from the flagship programmes of Access to Education, Community & Stakeholder Outreach, Fund raising, Finance & Accounts and M&E.
Taking over as the Chief Executive Officer from January 2024, Ali now leads a team of dynamic education and social development specialists to build on the success of the first decade.
Apart from being a Hindi movie buff, Ali likes to read history in his free time.
A former Vice President, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Ali is a career finance professional having worked with some of the largest financial intermediaries in India. After spending more than 23 years in the financial sector, Ali switched over to the development sector in early 2015 by joining the Teach For India Fellowship in Mumbai. After completing 3 years of fellowship where he served as a full time class leader in a government school in Mumbai, he joined Sunbird Trust in July 2018. He served as a School Leader at Paangkriang Friendship Academy, a Sunbird Partner School, in the remote of Ijeirong in Manipur.
Overcoming challenges in a remote, conflict-affected rural community, he helped build up structures and processes in the then-fledgling organization.
Transitioning out for a brief period from Sunbird Trust in July 2019 for personal reasons, he returned to the organisation in July 2021 to assume the leadership role as Chief Operating Officer. During this period between Aug 2021 and Dec 2023, Ali oversaw all the critical aspects of the organisation right from the flagship programmes of Access to Education, Community & Stakeholder Outreach, Fund raising, Finance & Accounts and M&E.
Taking over as the Chief Executive Officer from January 2024, Ali now leads a team of dynamic education and social development specialists to build on the success of the first decade.
Apart from being a Hindi movie buff, Ali likes to read history in his free time.
Michelle Markos
Chief Operating Officer
Finance
Michelle Markos
Michelle originally hails from Kerala but has spent the last 13 years in multiple places across the country for work and studies including North East India working on what she is most passionate about – Education in remote and challenging areas.
She is a Teach For India Fellow and has completed her Masters in Education from Azim Premji University, Bangalore during which she interned with Sunbird Trust’s partner Ayang Trust in Majuli, Assam. She resonated strongly with Sunbird Trust’s vision of ‘Peace through Education’ and joined the organization in 2019 where she was an assistant school leader in partner Sungcham Friendship School at Puichi Village in Noney District of Manipur.
Michelle worked briefly with the Government of Arunachal Pradesh in Education before she joined back at Sunbird Trust as the People & Partnerships Lead. She lives in Imphal, Manipur and travels to all the sunbird project locations across North East. She is currently working as the COO looking into the operations across the organisation.
Ravi Kumar K
State Head (Assam & Nagaland)
Ravi Kumar K
Sunil Vijayan
Head Accounts
Sunil Vijayan
Sunil joined Sunbird Trust in January 2022 and was placed in Sunbird Trust’s Head Office, at Bangalore as the organization’s accountant. He has the challenging task of raising the accounting practices of a still fledgling but rapidly growing organization to best practices.
Sunil believes that an accountant who is loyal to his organization should be guided not by subjectivity, but strictly by rules, cold facts and scrupulous documentation.
Ajinkya Hande
Director of Community Development and Program Head, Arunachal Pradesh
Ajinkya Hande
Hailing from Mumbai, Ajinkya holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management (PGDBM) from NMIMS, along with dual graduate degrees in Commerce and Hotel Management. He has worn many hats in his decade long career – from mortgage underwriter to chef, and trek leader, before finding his calling in the social development sector.
His forays into the North East started out with a volunteering opportunity to help an underserved school in Sikkim in 2016 as a teacher. Ajinkya went on to join the school full-time to lead and streamline their finance and operations, and thus began a long-term association with the NorthEast, its diverse communities, and vibrant, majestic mountains. He was an integral part of Sunbird Trust since the time he joined in 2018 as an Administrative Coordinator, until he transitioned out in 2022 as General Manager – Admin and Projects.
Ajinkya worked with a national non-profit as Program Manager in the Built Environment division, overseeing projects across India, before returning to Sunbird Trust in 2024 as Director of Community Development and Program Head, Arunachal Pradesh. Ajinkya is a certified mountaineer and loves a good expedition into the wilderness. An avid traveler, and a passionate rider, he can be found backpacking through new geographies globally, or riding his bike through the country whenever he gets the opportunity and time!
Amghali Achumi
Lead Teacher
Amghali Achumi
During this introspective period, Amghali’s commitment to fostering a sustainable and inclusive community solidified. This led her to embrace the Teach for India Fellowship, where she gained firsthand insights into educational disparities and the significance of equitable education at the grassroots level.
Driven by her purpose, Amghali embarked on a transformative internship with Sunbird Trust. Here, she found resonance between the organization’s mission and her own values, motivating her to become an integral part of Sunbird Trust.
Beyond her professional pursuits, Amghali is an avid reader and an enthusiastic explorer of various art forms.
Anjali Barla
Sponsorship Coordinator
Anjali Barla
Anjali Barla comes from the state of Assam and belongs to the Munda tribe (locally known as Adivasi in Assam). Being born and brought up in a small tea estate in Sonitpur district of Assam, Anjali closely noticed the hardships of women and children living in tea estates. After finishing her Masters from Bosco Institute, Jorhat in 2021, she started working with an NGO, to study women’s and children’s entitlements and benefits in her community, who lived in tea estates and villages in rural Assam.
Anjali loves playing basketball, kho-kho, kabaddi, and badminton; and enjoys listening to music. Anjali believes that self-realization and self-nourishment are the first steps to bring about a change and make a difference. She takes inspiration from her lived stories and experiences in the community to work for righteousness and growth.
Anjali Yadav
Sponsorship Coordinator
Anjali Yadav
Hailing from a small village called Fatehganj in the Rohtas District of Bihar, Anjali spent a lot of time self-introspecting before taking the plunge of making a career in rural management. She decided that she wanted to connect with her rural roots and make an impact on the lives of the least fortunate communities.
Soon after her MBA, Anjali worked with Bihar Rural Livelihood Promotion Society (BRLPS) through her campus placements, wherein, she worked in various capacities on numerous government projects that included, inter alia, increasing livelihood opportunities of the community.
With a focus on becoming a CSR professional, Anjali decided to explore all the aspects available in the development sector, and later joined Sunbird Trust as Sponsorship Coordinator. At Sunbird Trust, Anjali looks into the day-to-day sponsorship process as well as explores potential future partnership opportunities for the organization.
In her spare time, Anjali loves travelling to uncharted territories and connecting with people from esoteric and varied cultures. She also likes to ride bikes, travels solo often and enjoys reading.
Ayushi Pandey
Assistant School Leader
Ayushi Pandey
Ayushi is interested in conflict management. She is experienced in working with women and children, especially in the fields of human rights, education, and livelihood.
Ayushi is particularly interested in the role that education plays in developing certain dispositions for peaceful living and wishes to learn more about that at Sunbird. Her other interests are literature, music, dance, cooking, and traveling. Ayushi is all set to work on the school systems at Sunbird Trust’s relatively new partner school at Kachai in Manipur.
Baruisalu
Junior Sponsorship Associate
Baruisalu
Baruisalu Onrwan hails from beautiful Makuilongdi village in Manipur. She recently completed her Masters in Political Science from St Joseph’s College Bangalore, under the sponsorship of Sunbird Trust.
Baruisalu finds immense joy in music, and one can usually find her singing her worries away. Sports also hold a special place in her heart and she indulges in sports whenever the opportunity presents itself. According to her, it helps her foster discipline and teamwork in her daily life.
Furthermore, the evergreen Baruisalu is captivated by the richness of diverse cultures and languages and believes that understanding and appreciating different cultures enhances her worldview and enables her to connect with people on a deeper level.
“As I continue to embark on this journey of self-discovery and personal growth, I am eager to contribute to causes that make a positive impact in society. Whether through my academic pursuits or exploration of different cultures, I aspire to inspire others and foster a sense of unity and understanding”, says Baruisa.
Bruno Kachua
Community Development Co-ordinator
Bruno Kachua
After his post graduation, Bruno worked in different Non-Governmental organisations for 5 years interacting with rural communities in fields of Community Development and Skill Development related to Government projects. While working with the community, he used his spare time to take tuition classes for the village students. With this, he realized his potential as a teacher to ignite the minds of young children. He found much happiness in this as it not only helped his personal growth, but also helped him empower others.
Joining Sunbird Trust in January 2020, Bruno took on the responsibility of being a warden to the children at the Paangkriang Friendship School Hostel at Ijeirong. He also took on the responsibility of community outreach in and around the village. Doubling as the Sunbird Farm Manager, Bruno has endeared himself to his young wards at the school and hostel and to the village community with his infectious zeal and affable nature. He is an avid footballer and a drummer.
Chitra Suvarna
Manager – Fundraising and Donor Engagement
Chitra Suvarna
Even though Chitra grew up in Bangalore, she feels most at home in her hometown Mangalore, by the beach, with a good book in hand.After completing her under graduation, she took up the Teach for India (TFI) fellowship and taught English to 8th, 9th, and 10th graders in an Akanksha school in Pune. During her two years with TFI, she understood the importance of making students independent learners and that sustainability in education was the need of the hour. She joined Sunbird in August 2020 with the intention of exploring the education sector further.
Chitra never says no to doing something (responsibly) adventurous. A bibliophile, she loves indulging in high adrenaline activities, traveling to new places, understanding different cultures, and exploring various cuisines. All of these likings seem to have come together at the remote village of Aben, Tamenglong District where she served as an ASL for a year. She now works at the idyllic Kachai Village, located among verdant hills in the Ukhrul District of Manipur.
Greeshma Mohan
Lead Teacher
Greeshma Mohan
She delved deep into this matter, when she applied for a Teach for India fellowship, to get a grassroot level knowledge on education structure in India. In the fellowship, she taught Government School students from classes 8 and 9 in Bangalore. This experience was a game changer for her and she decided to stay on in the education sector with a hope to create an impact, and thus joined Sunbird Trust.
When she is not with her students, Greeshma loves to discuss films, reads and draws.
Harsha Kulkarni
Assistant School Leader
Harsha Kulkarni
Hailing from Pune, Harsha completed her master’s in physics wherein she received a scholarship from padmashree Lila Poonawala.With a strong desire to bring change in the education field, she applied for the teaching fellowship (during her master’s) at Science for All and was placed at low income schools in Pune. Prior joining Sunbird Trust, Harsha has worked for over 6+ years with various organizations. Harsha resonates to the vision of Sunbird Trust – Peace though education. She was awarded as a Peace Ambassador in United Kingdom and now looks forward to grow her knwloedge and share her learnings by working with the communities in North Eadt India. Astronomy, Solo traveling, Trekking, Storytelling are some of her hobbies.
K. Richard Luihing
Community Development Associate
K. Richard Luihing
Richard joined Sunbird Trust as an intern at the Langmei project in February 2022. He joined Sunbird Trust as an employee in April 2022 and is currently posted in Oinam Hill Village in Manipur as a Community Development Associate. Given the unfortunate history of the village commencing from the violence that erupted here in July 1987, his mandate is to partner with the local community in furthering peace and amity and helping build livelihoods.
Richard credits his fieldwork and internships to his overall grooming and people centric personality. He looks to completely immerse himself in his work and grow and flourish within Sunbird. In the future, he aspires to qualify for a Junior Research Fellowship.
Keziah Serto
Lead Teacher
Keziah Serto
Born in a multicultural Mizo-Kom family in the vibrant city of Imphal, Manipur; Keziah Serto has always been fascinated with the nuances of different cultures shaping her perspective and understanding of the world at large.
When Keziah was still in school, she discovered that education as a subject was instrumental in helping her appreciate every individual’s uniqueness and complexities, and hence decided to study it in depth. Keziah holds a BA in Education from St. Mary’s College, Shillong; and an MA in Education from Azim Premji University, Bangalore.
During her MA; Keziah got the opportunity to travel to various remote regions such as Vijayapura in Karnataka, Hazaribagh in Jharkhand, and Barmer in Rajasthan, where she had the privilege to observe and partake in government schools and Anganwadi centers, and help formulate lesson plans and teacher learning materials. This was her entry to working in the space of education in the social sector.
As someone from Northeast India, Keziah says that she has always felt alienated from her own culture due to the lack of inclusivity in the education system. At Sunbird Trust, Keziah hopes to explore the education system of the North-East and have a deeper understanding of various communities here at the grassroots level.
Keziah is also a sports enthusiast, and enjoys swimming, basketball, football, kho-kho, and kabaddi, among others.
Khangembam Malemthaba
Project Engineer
Khangembam Malemthaba
Graduating with distinction, he interned with Prestige Foundation, Bangalore, where he imbibed skills in construction supervision. Post this, he joined Sunbird Trust as an engineer-intern helping supervise the organisation’s construction projects in partner locations before joining the organisation in February 2022 as a Project Engineer.
Now a full-time employee of Sunbird Trust, Malem sees himself as a perfect example of a fruit-bearing tree that grew from the seed Sunbird Trust had sown a few years ago. Being brought up in challenging circumstances in a rural area, he seeks to use his knowledge, experience and work to make a difference for the lesser privileged. Malem is a football and sports enthusiast.
Kholi Anthony LP
Community Coordinator
Kholi Anthony LP
A “Sunbirder” since his college days, Kholi Anthony LP, hailing from remote Laii Village in Senapati District in Manipur, belongs to the Poumai Naga tribe.
Through the sponsorship programme of Sunbird Trust that serves underserved children of Northeast India, Anthony was admitted into the prestigious St. Joseph University, Bengaluru for his meritocracy. With a degree in Chemistry, Environmental Science and Botany from the Department of Life Science from the said university, Anthony interned at Sunbird Trust for a period of 19 months. During his 19-month long internship, he worked and received guidance under Soil Professor, David Gandhi, for eight months at Aben village in Tamenglong district of Manipur and then under team members Ringkila and Sunil for 13 months at Sunbird Trust’s Head Office in Bangalore.
So far, Anthony has also presented two research papers – “Slash and Burnt Cultivation”, and “Water Snake” under the guidance Prof. Dr. Wilson of St. Joseph University. He has also written another research paper on “Microbial present on fruits and vegetables” under the tutelage of Prof. Nilam Mishram of the same varsity.
Currently designated as the Community Coordinator at partner location Ijeirong in Noney District, Anthony is highly skilled and has also completed a course on “traditional healing using plants” from the University of New Mexico. He is also well trained in rearing of goats, is good at T- budding and loves gardening. During his spare time, Anthony loves playing football and has represented his club, Netaji FC, Bengaluru, at the Karnataka State District League in 2019. Anthony also played for his university’s football team.
Khuraijam Banty Singh
Community Development Coordinator
Khuraijam Banty Singh
Banty joined Sunbird Trust in February 2022 as our Community Development Coordinator. His area of interest is in working with lesser privileged people and helping improve their socio-economic conditions and elevating the standard of living. He believes that enhanced and empowered community spaces help individuals and communities to grow, develop and feel empowered within themselves.
Banty seeks to give agency to the voiceless and marginalized people and is a strong supporter of women’s issues and rights and is a strong votary for women’s rightful shareholding in their communities.
Banty is a travel enthusiast, patient, empathetic, with good communication skills. Being culturally empathetic and tolerant, he easily builds rapport with people especially in Manipur, a melting pot of people of myriad cultures and traditions.
Lalcha
B.A. Honours
Lalcha
Lalcha is from Kangpokpi District, Manipur. He holds a B.A. Hons from DM College Imphal under Manipur University and Post Graduate Diploma in Development Leadership from Indian School of Development Management (ISDM), Noida. He has 5 years of experience in the development sector where he has worked with several organisations such as Integrated Rural Management Association (IRMA) Manipur, Seven Sister Development Assistance (SeSTA) Assam, Church’s Auxiliary for Social Action (CASA) Manipur and Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platform (C-CAMP) Manipur.
He loves Music and Sports and stands for Compassion, Equality through Equity and Humility for himself and others.
Meenatchi Prabhu
Assistant School Leader
Meenatchi Prabhu
administration, she worked on establishing the Gap year programme, a one-year bridge course between Grade 12 and college. She also headed the community’s social media and marketing initiatives. She is now joining Sunbird as an Assistant School Leader in a remote village in eastern Arunachal Pradesh, called Pape Krung.
Meenatchi loves reading extensively and writing, be it short stories, novellas, or feature articles, and enjoys storytelling! The prospect of capturing the uniqueness of every individual in the form of words, art, music, or pictures excites her. She loves playing the ukulele and is happiest when surrounded by books, good music, and scintillating conversation. She enjoys the thrill of the unknown and loves a good challenge, be it an arduous trek or a complex math problem. She wants to start a community of her own someday; a creative, organic space that focuses on quality education, sustainable and mindful & peaceful living practices, and the power of collective action.
Nepuni
Sponsorship Co-ordinator
Nepuni
Nepuni Kayio was born in a family of cultivators with limited means. Belonging to the Mao Naga tribe and hailing from a quaint, little village called Shajouba, in Senapati district of Manipur, Kayio has always been inclined and motivated towards the idea, power and accessibility of universal education for every child.
Through benefactors, who helped him finance his education, Kayio earned a Bachelors’ degree in Physics from Don Bosco College, Maram, Manipur and went on to work as a Mathematics and Physics teacher in two different schools in Manipur.
As a teacher, Kayio was convinced that he was giving back to society by imparting education. After three years into the profession, he realized that his fellow people needed more than just a good teacher. So, Kayio took the plunge to change his course of action and pursue a Master’s degree in Development Studies from the prestigious Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai. His area of discipline provided him a clearer picture of the varied facets of developmental frameworks, and societal issues plaguing the society, especially in the tribal communities and the Northeast region at large.
Kayio aspires to be the voice of the voiceless, especially, the marginalized population and mentor children coming from lesser fortunate families. He dreams of becoming a scholar someday and strives towards making a better society through the powerful medium of education. Nepuni Kayio is currently the Sponsorship Coordinator at Sunbird Trust.
Nikita Ann Paul
HR and People Practices Associate
Nikita Ann Paul
Nikita Ann Paul hails from Kochi, Kerala. She has a diverse educational background, having done her schooling in Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. Holding an MBA degree, she has a background in Consulting, Electronics and Communication Engineering, and People Management. From her early engineering days, she has actively participated in various NGO and CSR initiatives, demonstrating a commitment to social welfare.
Beginning her career at Infosys Ltd, she had the opportunity to take up leadership roles for projects with international clients. Seeking to enhance her expertise in people and performance management, she pursued MBA at TAPMI, Manipal, where she also spearheaded empowerment initiatives with the Social Endeavour Group.
Post her graduation, she transitioned to EY as a Cybersecurity Consultant. Recognizing her passion for people-centric roles and her drive to engage in positive societal change, she embraced the opportunity to join Sunbird Trust as a Human Resources and People Practices Associate. She is eager to bring her dedication, skills, and passion to Sunbird Trust and contribute to its noble mission. Furthermore, Nikita has a keen interest in art and craft, which she integrates into her personal and professional endeavors, adding a creative dimension to her contributions.
Priyanuj Sharma
Assistant School Leader, M&E Incharge
Priyanuj Sharma
Priyanuj moved to Delhi in 2019 to join Teach for India as a Fellow where he taught children of Grade 3 and 4 in a government school in a low-income community in Munirka. He believes the Fellowship was a lesson in the importance of empowering the community at the grassroots and working with key stakeholders in creating a sustainable impact towards enabling an excellent education for children. He explored this idea by founding a project around empowering the women of the community to enable them to take charge of their lives and in the process steer their children in becoming more independent and able.
Priyanuj joined Sunbird Trust to understand the role rural communities can potentially play in enabling excellent learning outcomes for children. He is a strong believer in the values of empathy, excellence, and resilience and enjoys spending time writing, singing, and playing football.
Ringkila J Tainamei
Sponsorship Manager
Ringkila J Tainamei
When her younger sister Suinila, an employee of Sunbird Trust revealed the impactful work of the organisation, Ringkila herself decided to join the organisation and was selected as the Executive Assistant to the CEO. Being from the North East herself, she felt that this would give her an opportunity to indirectly serve the lesser privileged people of her state. Ringkila’s work also includes mentoring of Sunbird Trust’s sponsored students in and around Bangalore.
In her free time, Ringkila creates exquisite arts, crafts, and apparel designs. Being an outdoor enthusiast, she enjoys traveling and exploring architectural beauty and scenic destinations.
Siam Paite
Program Coordinator (Sports & Music)
Siam Paite
Hailing from Tamenglong District of Manipur, Siam is a self-trained musician. He joined the Paangkriang Friendship School as a Sports and Music teacher and also taught students in Classes IX and X. He has recently completed advanced Audio Mixing training and has helped produce masterful music videos for Sunbird Trust.
Sam is an ardent sportsman having represented Manipur state in badminton and football at the Junior level. He is much loved especially by the hostel students of the hostel at Paangkriang Friendship School for who he is a sports and music teacher. After the raising of the Furtado – Sunbird Trust Music Academy at Ijeirong, Siam is now majorly involved in teaching music to the school children while steadfastly improving his own skills. He aspires to help Sunbird harness the vast musical talent of the youth around Ijeirong by raising a recording studio. Siam’s major desire is to be a leader and changemaker wherever he is positioned.
Sonali Uppar
Lead Teacher
Sonali Uppar
Sonali hails from Pune, Maharashtra and has been actively involved in the field of education for the past seven years. Her journey began as a personal tutor, where she had the opportunity to make a positive impact on the lives of individual students. She then broadened her horizons by organizing and conducting various programs, including a Young Scientists Program, robotics workshops, and summer camps. These experiences not only enriched her teaching skills but also deepened her understanding of diverse learning needs.
Sonali’s dedication to education led her to become a 21er TFI alum, further honing her skills and expertise as an educator. With a strong desire to make a difference, Sonali chose to become a lead teacher to extend her impact beyond the confines of her own classroom. Her approach to education is characterized by values such as persistence and open-mindedness, which she applies to create an engaging and inclusive learning environment.
Beyond her professional achievements, Sonali possesses a cheerful and compassionate personality, making it easy for her to connect with others. She finds joy in reading books, listening to music, and traveling. With her extensive experience, passion for education, and personal qualities, Sonali will undoubtedly bring a fresh perspective and innovative ideas to our team. Her commitment to student growth and development aligns perfectly with our organisation’s mission.
Srinivasan
Finance and Administration
Srinivasan
Srinivasan is a native of Tamil Nadu, now settled in Bangalore and working in Finance and Administration in the social sector for the last 18 years. He started as an Accountant with Navjeevan Seva mandal, an NGO working to eliminate poverty from underprivileged community and later joined World Vision India as Finance Officer for more than 9 years. Post World vision, he joined Development Focus a Bangalore based NGO as Senior Finance and Administrative officer and Association People with Disability (APD) and TIDE as Senior Manager, Finance and Compliance. He’s also worked with Caritas India & AFWA.
Srinivasan believes that an Accounts Associate who is loyal to this organization should uphold the all systems from time to time.
Srinivasan holds a BCom & an MBA in Finance and ICWAI. Reading books and traveling are two of his favourite hobbies.
Vishwas Patel
Manager – M&E
Vishwas Patel
A keen student of social issues and development policy, Vishwas pursued a master’s in public policy and governance at Azim Premji University. He is trained in the methods of quantitative and qualitative social research and has conducted qualitative research on M&E practices in India, besides helping develop an M&E system for an education nonprofit. At Sunbird Trust, he aims to develop robust monitoring and evaluation systems and practices.
A believer in continuous learning, Vishwas holds dear the value that general literature adds by distilling knowledge from different disciplines. He likes to complement the reading with traveling to appreciate the lives lived in different cultures.