Age: 27
Home Town: Burtonsville, MD
Education: BS in Communication Studies, NYU
Specific Field Interests: Social entrepreneurship, rural livelihoods and gender relations.
Placement: Khamir, Bhuj, Gujarat
Area of Focus: Livelihoods

Highlights: Jilna spent the first half of her life in Nairobi, Kenya, and then moved to the suburbs of Washington DC for high school. New York City was home for five years as she worked towards fulfilling her dream to work in the entertainment business. A career in television led her back home to Maryland, and her involvement with South Asian organizations--both personal and professional--remained a constant through these transitions. Additionally, she spent her spare time volunteering with small organizations, and also joined the board of a local non profit for the chance to aid a group with a different mission. Despite having deep connections to her culture, Jilna has never visited India, and is thrilled with the opportunity to live and work in India supporting Khamir's initiatives for the coming year.

Posts by jilnakothary

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  My time in India has come to an end. It has been a wonderful […]

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What the future holds

The past few weeks have included a healthy dose of self reflection, especially as people […]

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What’s in a bell?

On a recent field visit, I went to a town called Jura, where a large […]

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Teamwork at its best

Working in a project management capacity with very exact, tangible results has several benefits, as […]

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The Bandhani of Kachchh: Ties Across Time

  I haven’t written much about my project on this blog, so I’ll take this […]

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Travels across Kachchh

  After living here for three months, I can confidently say that Kachchh is a […]

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Living in the moment

  I’ve been in India for well over a month. Whoa. Time flies when you’re […]

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A Series of India “Firsts”

After almost two weeks in India, I am happy to report that I am settling […]

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Discovering India

As I talk about and prepare for my fellowship, I have been asked the same […]

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