Riya Behl is a Strategic Associate to the Director General. She builds systems, processes and strategies for communications, media, events and outreach. She has founded multiple initiatives over the past decade – across media, research and development.  

Riya has worked closely on research and its dissemination for UN bodies, INGOs, research institutions, community festivals, civil society organisations and grassroots social movements. These include UN Women, Oxfam International’s Gender Rights and Justice team, the Institute of Development Studies, UK, Serendipity Arts Festival and SEWA Delhi.  

Her independent research on zines and self-publishing cultures was recently published by the Digital Cultural Studies Institute, and hosted by the University of North Texas Libraries as well as in ART India magazine. This work is based on a collective she co-founded, called Zinedabaad, which has featured in numerous national and international publications, including in the U.S. Library of Congress’s collection of Internet materials related to the Indian Political and Social Issues Web Archive. 

Previously, Riya worked as an Editor, Journalist and Educator at the People’s Archive of Rural India. She holds a Master’s degree in methods of participatory action research from the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, in the UK and a Bachelor’s in Anthropology, Sociology and Environmental Studies from Ashoka University, India. Riya likes to bring the collaborative and inclusive spirit of Ultimate Frisbee – which she has played at both institutions – to work every day.