Smruti is the founder and Co-Director of Global Mentoring Initiative. She has been working in the humanitarian and development sector for the last 25 years. She an active advocate for locally led response and accountability to affected population, including at the World Humanitarian Summit in 2016 and in the Grand Bargain policy process. She acts as a sounding board and provides mentoring support to local women leaders to effectively take up their role at high-level international policy forums.
She is involved in co-creating spaces to accompany international organisations and donors in the change processes for more equitable partnering and collaborations, focusing on shifting power, attitudes and behaviours; keeping equity, inclusion, anti-racism, decolonisation and accountability at the centre of the discussions. Care and welfare of humanitarian workers is crucial for delivering effective response and for individual and organisational health. Often local organisations who are the frontline responders and exposed to high risks. They do not have the same resources to take care of staff welfare which includes both mental and physical well-being as international organisations. However, they have coping mechanisms and we should learn from them and they should identify what type of context specific support exist and what they may require.