Advocacy Manager, Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders | India

Purnima Khandelwal is a public health professional and an advocate for family planning and sexual and reproductive health in India. She has over four years of experience in the public policy and development sector and has expertise in parliamentary and legislative research. In her current role, she supports the advocacy work on five projects of Médecins Sans Frontières in India, including sexual and gender-based violence. She is the founder of the Plastic-Free Period (PFP) campaign, a menstrual health initiative highlighting the problems with manufacturing and using commercial biodegradable menstrual pads containing plastics and chemicals. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in psychology from Lady Shri Ram College for Women and a Master’s degree in public policy from St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai. She was selected to the prestigious Legislative Assistant to a Member of Parliament (LAMP) Fellowship Program in 2016.

Rise Up Cohort: Youth Champion 2021