Laxmi Parthasarathy

Laxmi Parthasarathy is the Director of Global Media Partnerships for Ashoka: Innovators for the Public. She joined a small team at Ashoka to lead the 35-year-old organization through a strategic change. Laxmi is also a media development professional and Vice Chair of the board of Crossroads International. Prior to joining Ashoka, Laxmi worked in Swaziland as the communications leader for the country's only gender based violence prevention NGO where she developed and executed a national media campaign for the Children's Protection and Welfare Bill and Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Bill (passed October 27, 2011), co-produced a national radio program providing support for survivors of sexual abuse, and conducted journalism workshops to build local capacity. In 2007, Laxmi founded MY ROOTS, a Toronto based newspaper distributed in all public and private elementary and high schools in north east Scarborough. Laxmi has worked on media, communications, and development projects in Canada, Swaziland, India, Rwanda, Mexico and the UK. She has presented on Social Entrepreneurship, Media Development and the Future of Journalism at Universities and Summits across North America and Europe. Laxmi received a BA from Carleton University and an MSc from the London School of Economics and Political Science where she assessed the effectiveness of rural community radio for development on supporting gender equity programs in Southern India. She was awarded Top 20 Under 20 in Canada and currently lives in Washington, D.C.