17. Creating a Gender Equitable World with Swetha Totapally

Join your host Bhavna Toor as she uncovers with her guest Swetha Totapally the deep rooted gender biases women face right from their childhood thus emphasizing the need to address gender inequality as we intend to create a fair society. We also understand the intertwining of gender equity with broader societal issues like economic growth and market inclusion.

Explore the complex relationship between government financing, military policies, and gender-based violence, and learn how policy decisions impact the safety and rights of women and girls. This discussion emphasizes the necessity of comprehensive legislation, robust support services, and the pivotal role of civil society in shaping norms and supporting victims. 

Listen in to reflect on family values and actionable steps that can help promote gender equity in your own home and community. 

About the guest: 

Swetha Totapally is the Partner and Regional Director for Asia-Pacific, Dalberg Advisors. Over her 13-year career at Dalberg, Swetha has led the firm’s global gender practice and developed a portfolio focused on addressing issues such as violence against women and girls, sexual exploitation, and unpaid care work. Her work illuminates the social, economic, and political dimensions of these issues, driving decision-makers to recognize the need for transformative change within institutions and systems.

Swetha has led multiple large-scale research-to-action efforts which are designed to bring the experiences and perspectives of people to decision-makers. This includes the world’s largest and most comprehensive effort to understand users’ experience with Aadhaar—India’s national ID system; a series of studies during the Covid pandemic that captured how women were impacted, how well government entitlements were reaching people, and the effects of the pandemic on early childhood development. Her work on The State of Digitization in Kenya, and the Next Half Billion in India, explore how people are engaging digitally today with an eye to how they can better participate in digital economies. Clients include the United Nations, Omidyar Network, the Freedom Fund, and the Global Fund to End Modern Slavery. 

An advocate for building professional diversity within consulting, Swetha has shaped initiatives like the Dalberg Asia-Pacific Residency Program. She has helmed the region’s recruitment efforts and upheld Dalberg’s commitment to gender diversity within teams including senior management.  

Prior to Dalberg, Swetha worked at JP Morgan Chase, where she served as an advisor to financial institutions. She graduated from Yale University with a degree in Economics and Mathematics. She speaks English, Hindi, and Telugu. Swetha lives in Mumbai with her husband and three young children.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/swetha-totapally-94784738/

Website: https://dalberg.com/who-we-are/our-leadership/swetha-totapally/

Connect with the host, Bhavna Toor, Founder & CEO Shenomics at www.linkedin.com/in/bhavnatoor/ 

Know about her leadership trainings and coaching programs at www.shenomics.com