Our oceans, the lifeblood of this planet, are in a state of crisis. Human activities like climate change, pollution, overfishing, and habitat destruction are causing widespread devastation to marine ecosystems and catastrophic declines in biodiversity. This ecological imbalance represents one of the gravest existential threats we face as a global community. The statistics are overwhelming […]
Every year, Earth Overshoot Day marks a grim milestone – the date when humanity has used up more ecological resources and services than nature can regenerate in that entire year. It’s the point at which our demand exceeds the Earth’s biocapacity and we start operating in an overshoot, depleting our natural capital. In 2022, this
In an increasingly globalized world, the pursuit of knowledge knows no borders. However, traditional educational models have often been restricted by physical barriers, limiting access for individuals facing geographic, socioeconomic, or personal challenges. Enter remote learning – a transformative approach that is revolutionizing the way we perceive and deliver education, fostering social equity and democratizing
Education is a fundamental human right and the cornerstone of an equitable society. However, for many individuals around the world, accessing traditional daytime educational opportunities can be a significant challenge due to work, family obligations, or other circumstances. This is where evening and night schools play a crucial role, offering a lifeline for those seeking
The global retirement inequality crisis is a significant/pressing issue that affects several countries around the world and threatens the financial security of many millions of people globally. According to the World Economic Forum, women across the globe typically have 30-40% less money than their male counterparts in retirement, despite oftentimes living longer (globally, the average
Without health, there’s no wealth. While it’s a cliche and commonly touted saying, it is certainly true. The ability to live a long and healthy life has always been one of the most fundamental human rights, and our society has always strived to work towards improving the same. Yet, massive inequalities in life expectancy are
In our society’s current economic landscape, a pervasive and pressing issue looms large – the global retirement inequality crisis. A confluence of factors, from a shrinking labor force to rising income inequality, are all contributing to the rise of retirement inequalities, especially as fewer people are contributing to pension systems. Yet, the need to ensure
In today’s interconnected world, it’s easy to take certain privileges for granted. However, for a staggering 771 million people, access to clean water is nothing short of a distant dream – a harsh reality that affects approximately 1 in 10 individuals on our planet. The global clean water crisis is a pressing issue that demands
Algorithmic Fairness and Addressing Bias Algorithms, despite being powered by advanced technology, are creations of humans and are inherently influenced by the culture, perspective, and biases—both implicit and explicit—of their creators. Human thoughts, shaped by cultural perceptions, attitudes, and stereotypes, are mirrored in algorithms designed to replicate human behavior. Consequently, if human behavior is biased,
Algorithmic Bias in Finance In recent years, both traditional banks and the fintech industry have increasingly turned to advanced algorithms and machine learning techniques to make more precise and profitable decisions regarding creditworthiness for loan applications. The application of AI technology in finance aims to lower costs, expand economic opportunities, enhance financial inclusion, and improve
Raj Mehta is the Founder and CEO of the Fluid Ice Foundation. As a high school student in the Atlanta metro, Georgia, Raj always enjoys helping others, and aspires to give back to society at every opportunity that comes along. Raj is particularly passionate about financial inclusion, to expand access to financial services to the un/underbanked subsets of the population. Although the un/underbanked subsets of the population have always been excluded, the recent COVID pandemic has made it even more apparent, and caused them to be even further left behind. Raj sees himself as a “social impact catalyst” and a “changemaker” to help mitigate the financial divide, and he aims to make this a reality through his nonprofit – Fluid Ice Foundation. Raj is also a financial education instructor helping increase financial literacy awareness and education, especially amongst the underprivileged youth.
Raj is focused to be a social impact entrepreneur/innovator, championing sustainable innovation by transforming societal assets/capital to enable disruptive solutions providing a positive return to society.
On a more personal note, Raj enjoys mathematics and has won numerous prestigious math competitions (qualified to Mathcounts Nationals to represent the State of Georgia, AIME, AMC, etc.), is a proficient saxophonist (member, Georgia Music Educator’s Association (GMEA) Allstate Band), is an advanced chess player, and a professionally trained/skilled golfer. He is also an avid book reader in his spare time.
Vijay is the Banking and Capital Markets Leader for Deloitte South Asia. He has over 25 years of consulting experience spanning strategy, business planning, organizational transformation and M&A in India, as well as in Canada, the UK and South East Asia. Among other topics in banking and capital markets, he has significant experience in fintech solutions and related partnership models.
Vijay is also a founding team member of I_Imagine_India, an India-based philanthropic fund looking to empower non-government organizations and social entrepreneurs/pioneers in the field of education in India. I_Imagine_India’s goal is to enable small changes today in the field of primary/ pre-primary education, with the potential to deliver disproportionate learning outcome improvements over the longer term.
Vijay obtained an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (PGPX) and the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charter from the USA.
Vijay is an Advisor to the Fluid Ice Foundation in his personal capacity and not on behalf of Deloitte or I_Imagine_India.
Saiprasad Muzumdar, Advisor
Saiprasad ‘Zoom’ Muzumdar, is an experienced Senior Technology Leader in International Banking and Finance Sector. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering and a Master’s degree in Management. He has worked across the globe for International Fortune 500 companies such as Unisys, Citigroup, Lehman Brothers, Nomura, Royal Bank of Scotland/NatWest Group. He has conducted sessions on Financial Wellbeing for more than a decade with a mission to enhance financial inclusion and financial wellbeing through Financial literacy.
Amit Pandit, Advisor
Amit is a qualified chartered accountant with over 25 years of experience in banking, financial services, capital markets, risk advisory services & financial education. He has experience in building a primary market distribution network, investment banking and handling HNI relationships. He has been involved in personal finance restructuring of many individual businessmen. He has helped many business and individuals for their financial requirements be it for loan arrangements or debt management or asset management. He served as a director of the largest coop bank in India for over 13 years and as a director of a listed company for over 5 years.
He is also associated as a visiting faculty with various business schools for over a decade and takes up subjects of Personal Finance Planning, Wealth Management, Mergers & Acquisitions & Corporate Valuation. He also takes corporate training programs for finance. He speaks at various platforms on various finance, audit and risk related topics including ICAI, BCAS etc. Amit looks after the business building, financial & investor education function at Trugrow.
Amit enjoys his reading, is passionate about his teaching, likes travelling and exploring new destinations and is an avid foodie.
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