Faculty

Geetanjali studied in Canada and the UK in the field of International Development Studies.  She has taught international development studies courses at the University of Sussex (UK), as well as at Simon Fraser University and Kwantlen Polytechnic University.

In addition to her academic teaching, Geetanjali has worked for more than 16 years as an international development practitioner and researcher in the UK, Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and North America.  Geetanjali continues to engage in international development consultancies, working most recently with HelpAge International, Right to Play International, Canadian Foodgrains Bank, the British Council, and United Nations.  She has also worked with donors such as Global Affairs Canada and the European Union, as well as with the Government of Mauritius.

Geetanjali actively engages with international NGOs that are based in BC and Canada, and she is a member of the BC Council for International Cooperation (BCCIC), United Nations Association in Canada-Vancouver Branch (UNAC-V), Canadian Association for the Study of International Development (CASID), and Canadian Association of Development Professionals (CAIDP).

Ph.D./D.Phil. Development Studies, University of Sussex, UK

“Poverty and Exclusion in an Ethnically-Plural Society – the case of Goodlands town, Mauritius”, supervised by Dr. Ann Whitehead and Dr. Elizabeth Harrison.  Recipient of Overseas Research Scheme Award, and Edward Boyle/Alberta Research Scholarship.

M.Sc. Social Policy and Planning in Developing Countries with Distinction, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), UK

“Towards Sustainable Livelihoods for small dry-land farmers in India – the role of local knowledge”, supervised by Dr. Jo Beall and Dr. Anthony Hall.  Specialised in Gender and Development and Rural Development, and trained in Participatory Rural Appraisal by Robert Chambers.

B.A. Honours Specialist in International Development Studies Co-op and Major in Human Geography with Distinction, University of Toronto, Canada

Recipient of Ali Tayeb Award for Excellence in Geography.

• Poverty, Social Exclusion, Horizontal Inequalities, Chronic and Inter-generational Poverty Dynamics, Intersectionality
• Gender and Development, Gender norms, Gender-Transformative Development
• Anthropology of Development, Decolonizing Development, and Ethnographies of Aid
• Complex Humanitarian Emergencies, Conflict and Development
• Role of Participation and Local and Indigenous Knowledge Systems in Development
• Gender and Natural Resource Management, Sustainable Livelihoods, and Sustainable Development
• Critical Perspectives on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals
• Social, Economic, and Political Development in Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Small Island Developing States
• Refugees and Forced Migration, and Humanitarian and Development Responses
• Education and Development, and Health and Development
• Public Policy in Multi-ethnic Developing Countries
• Social Research Methods (qualitative, quantitative, feminist, participatory)
• The Practice of International Development: Ethics, Development Tools and Project Management, Gender Mainstreaming, Gender Analysis, Theories of Change, Evaluations and Assessments, Capacity Development, Participatory and Gender Responsive/Transformative Approaches
• Development Actors: Donors, United Nations, World Bank, international NGOs, grassroots organizations and movements, and development consultants, practitioners, and volunteers
• Canada’s role in international development and humanitarian assistance, and Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy

Geetanjali has worked as a researcher for the Institute of Development Studies (UK), the Research Foundation for Science, Technology, and Ecology (India), the Gender Unit of the Southern Africa Development Community (Botswana), and the Mauritius Research Council. 

Current Research Projects:

March 2022-March 2024, SSHRC New Frontiers in Research Fund Special Call, Principal Investigator, $212,046, ‘Innovative community- and youth-led approaches to collect and analyze qualitative data and to support the empowerment of marginalized girls in the pandemic context in Mali and Senegal’.

Dec. 2021 to Sept. 2022, UFV Accelerate Research Fund, Co-Principal Investigator, $6000, ‘Exploring the Refugee and Newcomer Landscape in the Fraser Valley: Voices, Actions, and Partnerships’.

Oct. 2021 to Oct. 2022, UFV Strategic Initiatives Fund, Principal Investigator, $6500, ‘Capturing and Valuing the Lived Experiences of Refugees in the Fraser Valley through Digital Storytelling’.

May 2021-May 2022, SSHRC-Partnership Engage Grant, “Socio-cultural norms and gender responsive play-based education: a qualitative study of students, teachers, and families in Rwanda, Ghana, and Mozambique”, $24,947.

June 2021-September 2022, Fund for Innovation and Transformation/Inter-Council Network/Government of Canada, “Leaving No One Behind: Empowering Persons with Albinism, particularly women and adolescent girls, in rural regions of Sierra Leone”, $237,010.

June 2021-September 2022, Global Women’s Institute Grant, George Washington University (US), “Developing and piloting play-based tools and approaches for collecting evidence on gender-based violence amongst adolescents in humanitarian settings in Uganda and Lebanon”, $283,123.

• “Using play-based tools to understand refugee and adolescents’ experiences with gender-based violence in Lebanon and Uganda”, Conference for the Canadian Association of Refugee and Forced Migration Studies (CARFMS), November 2-4, 2022.
• “Gender transformation, innovation, and partnership: ‘Leaving no one behind’ project, University of the Fraser Valley and Albinism Royal Foundation Sierra Leone”, Ontario Council of International Cooperation (OCIC) Symposium 2022, Sept. 22, 2022.
• “’Leaving No One Behind’: Empowering Persons with Albinism, particularly women and girls in rural regions of Sierra Leone”, Foundation for Innovation and Transformation (FIT) Community of Practice on Gender, July 13, 2022.
• “The Use of Participatory Research Methods to explore gender norm change amongst adolescents in Ghana, Rwanda, and Mozambique”, Conference for the Canadian Association for the Study of International Development (CASID), May 17, 2022.
• “Applying a GBA+ Lens to the Foodgrains Bank’s ‘Scaling-Up Conservation Agriculture in East Africa’ (SUCA) Program, Cultivating Equality: Advancing Gender Research in Agriculture and Food Systems Conference, CGIAR, Oct. 12-15, 2021.
• “Applying Gender-Based Analysis + 2-part Workshop”, BC Council for International Cooperation, November 2020.
• “Linkages between Ethnicity and Poverty in Mauritius”, Government of Mauritius, February 2010.
• “An Exploration of Violence against Women: A Global Analysis”, Punjab University, India, March 2004.

• 2021, ‘Scaling-up Conservation Agriculture in East Africa’ Program: Gender Assessment of Impacts and Opportunities, Foodgrains Bank, Winnipeg, July.
• 2021, ‘Scaling-up Conservation Agriculture in East Africa (SUCA)’: End-line Evaluation Report [co-author], Foodgrains Bank, January.
• 2019, Gender and Ageing Policy Briefs: Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Regional Gender and Ageing Policy Brief: Southern and Eastern Africa, HelpAge International, November.
• 2019, Best Practices in Gender-Responsive and Decentralized Education Policy and Planning: Case Studies from East Africa, Sri Lanka, and India, British Council Nepal, October.
• 2018, Community/School-based Participatory Gender Analysis Toolkit, Right to Play International, Toronto, Canada.
• 2017, Gender Assessment: Strengthening Education Systems in East Africa (SESEA), Aga Khan Foundation Canada, Ottawa.
• 2013, [Co-author], Mapping Study of Civil Society Organisations in the Republic of Mauritius Final Report, European Union Decentralised Cooperation Programme II, March.
• 2010, National Empowerment Foundation Field Staff Toolkit Manual, Ministry of Social Integration and Economic Empowerment, Mauritius, November.
• 2008, Manual for Collecting Time Use Data and Time Use Questionnaire for Djibouti (in English and French, co-author), African Centre for Gender and Social Development, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), Ethiopia.
• 2008, Poverty and Exclusion in an Ethnically-Plural Society – the case of Goodlands town, Mauritius, Doctoral Thesis, University of Sussex, UK.
• 2007, Report on the Status of the Implementation of NEPAD: A Gender Perspective, African Centre for Gender and Social Development, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), Ethiopia.
• 2002, IDS Insights Special Issue on Urban Poverty: Mind the Gap–Peri-Urban Poverty, Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK, May.
• 2001, The Participation of Women and Men in Politics and Decision-making in Mauritius, Gender Unit of the SADC Secretariat, Botswana, June.
• 2001, Gender Lens Training Manual, Ministry of Women’s Rights, Mauritius, January.
• 2000, National Gender Action Plan Implementation Matrix, and Gender Sensitisation and Training Strategy, Ministry of Women’s Rights, Mauritius, August.
• 2000, ‘Towards Gender Equality in Political Participation and Leadership Positions: A Global Overview’, in Woman: Political Empowerment of Women, No. 4, Government of Mauritius.
• 2000, UN Mauritius Gender Briefing Kit, United Nations Development Programme Mauritius/Seychelles.

Scholar-Practitioner Experiences