Bhawna Solanki
Bhawna Solanki
Academic Background: Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry. Masters of Business Administration in Social Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Management.
Areas of Interest: Social entrepreneurship, sustainable development, research, ethical business, workplace safety, decent work, monitoring & evaluation (M&E).
Languages Spoken: English, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Marwari, Mandarin (Beginner)
Bhawna is a CSR & Sustainability professional and has spent 13 years of her life devoted to the development sector playing various roles in NGOs, MNC and Business School. After undertaking voluntary social work roles during her Undergraduate, Bhawna worked with a grassroots level organization working towards educating street children. While undertaking the role of a documentation specialist she learned the importance of stakeholder relations and her passion for social development and sustainability amplified.
As an ethical business specialist at International Resources for Fairer Trade, Bhawna undertook marketplace initiatives by setting up management systems for safeguarding labour rights in supply chains. To facilitate sustainable labour practices, she undertook a comparative study of the workplace Code of Conduct of major brands, International Labour Standards of ILO, the Ethical Trading Initiative code and Indian Labour Laws. As an outcome of the study, she created a localised decent work protocol – a ready reckoner, to demystify complex concepts and expedite implementation of ethical labour practices. She was chosen by the Fair Labour Association (FLA) as a national NGO representative for the Workplace Fire Safety Initiative - Trainer the Trainer programme, accredited by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH).
She became a certified Master Trainer by further undertaking a NEBOSH certification on International General/Fire Safety Management. She conducted multi-stakeholder trainings to advance fire safety culture in factories of India, Bangladesh and China. She has also served as a certified decent work specialist of Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) for safeguarding workplace human rights while promoting sustainable farming. She excels in reaching the last mile via capacity building, risk assessments, third party audits, and continuous improvement monitoring projects.
As a CSR executive at Crompton Greaves Ltd. she focussed on community initiatives to promote social equity. She designed community led initiatives for rural and urban stakeholders. She undertook project management, and M&E for women empowerment, creating access to quality healthcare, children’s education and employee engagement.
After gaining years of field experience she moved into a research role at Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS), Mumbai. As a Research Officer she undertook research projects and guided MBA students (future corporate leaders) to understand the nuances of social development and SDGs. She has worked as a co-editor for We Care Civic Engagement Anthologies focussing on peace & partnerships, skill development and entrepreneurship, health, rural & agriculture development and the impact of Covid-19.
As a facilitator, capacity building expert, consultant and researcher she has consolidated her convictions about the power of public private partnerships to achieve sustainability.