Introducing myself and my journal

About Me:
I am founder and director of Friends of Tilonia, Inc. which takes its name from Tilonia, a small village in Rajasthan, India that is home of the Barefoot College.

The Barefoot College trains the poorest of the poor to become “Barefoot” professionals and supports them in addressing basic needs for water, electricity, housing, health, education and income within their own communities. Working with a team of “Barefoot” ecommerce managers, we have developed Tilonia.com to sell handcrafted home textiles produced by nearly 800 artisans in villages where the College and its affiliates operate.

I have over 20 years experience in developing new businesses and launching financial information services delivered to major financial firms. I am a member of Investors’ Circle, an angel network using private capital to promote the transition to a sustainable economy, and I mentor social enterprise start-ups at New York University’s Stern School of Business and Pratt Design Incubator.

I live in Brooklyn, NY and travel frequently to India to work with our artisan affiliates.

My Passions:
Artisanal products, heirloom tomatoes, daffodils

My Challenges:
Bootstrapping small businesses

My Vision for the Future:
Collectively-owned, collaboratively-managed artisan enterprises

My Areas of Expertise:
start-up, product launch & development, social enterprise