CITTA India aims to promote gender parity and improve the life chances of vulnerable communities living in the far-off villages of India by ensuring the delivery of quality education, the creation of sustainable opportunities to increase income, and awareness for equitable and improved quality of living.
OUR APPROACH
CITTA India believes that the journey to achieve the vision begins with respect and understanding. We take a localized approach that harnesses the power of local cultural history and existing community ties to bring education, equality, and economic opportunity to everyone in our partner communities. We look at our community work as an ecosystem and understand that to create true, lasting change we must provide support on multiple levels. Our model begins with support for quality education, which impacts almost every household in the region. Following this, we help build economic opportunities by discovering creative enterprises that utilize local resources, art, and cultural traditions. Across all of our work, we understand the importance of inclusion and equality and take extra effort to ensure the participation and benefit of marginalized communities— particularly women and girls.
In partnership with our local leadership team, CITTA India has launched its first project—the GYAAN Center, in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. GYAAN is a Sanskrit word that means ‘knowledge’ or ‘wisdom’ in a holistic sense. The campus includes three main buildings—an award-winning girls’ school, a women’s cooperative building for local enterprise, and a library facility that also houses a textile museum and performance space.
This center is the only one of its kind in the world and will harness the energy of art, education, fashion, and culture to help end poverty while increasing gender parity in one of India’s most challenging regions for women and girls. We are indebted to many people who have helped make this vision a reality. In particular, CITTA India supporter, Manvendra Singh Shekhawat, who provided the land for the facility, and CITTA India Director Chaitanya Raj Singh Bhati, the Maharwal of Jaisalmer, who was a key and trusted liaison with the local community. US-based architect, Diana Kellogg, designed the structures, while local stone craftsman, Kareem Khan, executed the vision for the school. World-renowned fashion designer, Sabyasachi Mukherjee, contributed to the project by creating uniforms for the students that celebrate local textile traditions.
GYAAN Center
OUR VISION
CITTA India aims to promote gender parity and improve the life chances of vulnerable communities living in the far-off villages of India by ensuring the delivery of quality education, the creation of sustainable opportunities to increase income, and awareness for equitable and improved quality of living.
OUR APPROACH
CITTA India believes that the journey to achieve the vision begins with respect and understanding. We take a localized approach that harnesses the power of local cultural history and existing community ties to bring education, equality, and economic opportunity to everyone in our partner communities. We look at our community work as an ecosystem and understand that to create true, lasting change we must provide support on multiple levels. Our model begins with support for quality education, which impacts almost every household in the region. Following this, we help build economic opportunities by discovering creative enterprises that utilize local resources, art, and cultural traditions. Across all of our work, we understand the importance of inclusion and equality and take extra effort to ensure the participation and benefit of marginalized communities— particularly women and girls.
In partnership with our local leadership team, CITTA India has launched its first project—the GYAAN Center, in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. GYAAN is a Sanskrit word that means ‘knowledge’ or ‘wisdom’ in a holistic sense. The campus includes three main buildings—an award-winning girls’ school, a women’s cooperative building for local enterprise, and a library facility that also houses a textile museum and performance space.
This center is the only one of its kind in the world and will harness the energy of art, education, fashion, and culture to help end poverty while increasing gender parity in one of India’s most challenging regions for women and girls. We are indebted to many people who have helped make this vision a reality. In particular, CITTA India supporter, Manvendra Singh Shekhawat, who provided the land for the facility, and CITTA India Director Chaitanya Raj Singh Bhati, the Maharwal of Jaisalmer, who was a key and trusted liaison with the local community. US-based architect, Diana Kellogg, designed the structures, while local stone craftsman, Kareem Khan, executed the vision for the school. World-renowned fashion designer, Sabyasachi Mukherjee, contributed to the project by creating uniforms for the students that celebrate local textile traditions.