Community Leaders to Hold Conference at ICC Saturday

The India Development Coalition of America’s (IDCA) Second West Regional Conference, featuring 18 community leaders, will be held this Saturday, Nov. 19 from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the in Milpitas.

Starting at 8:30am with breakfast and registration, the speaking program will begin with a welcome and introduction session led by Dr. Mohan Jain, founder and President of IDCA, and followed by keynote speaker, San Jose City Councilman Ash Kalra.

This year’s conference co-chairs are Dr. Chaya Prasad of IDCA, Dr. Sailesh Rao from the nonprofit organization Climate Healers, and Dr. Nilima Sabharwal from the nonprofit organization Home of Hope, Inc.

The purpose of the conference is to promote networking, collaboration, learning, volunteering and sharing, and to support sustainable, grassroots projects in India to eradicate poverty while also mitigating climate change.

“The caliber of speakers, the depth of the topic discussion and the networking opportunities make this an important conference in the community,” says Dr. Chaya Prasad, the chairperson of IDCA's West Regional Chapter. “I feel it's critical to build up the attendance so the community is able to leverage all the conference has to offer.”

This year's conference topics are broad-based, but are all important pillars of conversation for the Indian-American community, including rural development, climate change mitigation, education, and livelihoods.

The conference is open to the public. The cost to attend is $75 and includes access to the full conference, plus breakfast,  lunch and dinner and an opportunity to network throughout the program.

List of Conference Speakers:

• KEYNOTE: Mr. Ash Kalra, San Jose City Councilman, San Jose, CA

• Dr. Chaya Prasad,  Chairperson, West Regional Chapter, San Jose, CA

• Dr. Mohan Jain, Founder & President and Trustee, IDCA, Chicago, IL

• Mrs. Satya Kalra, Founder & President, Path To Anandam, Danville, CA

• Mr. Don Hardy, Co-Founder and President, KTF Films

• Mr.Pranji Lodhia, Director, CORD USA , Palo Alto, CA

• Mr.Raju Reddy, Co-Chair,  and , Milpitas, CA

• Dr. Sailesh Rao, Executive Director, Climate Healers, Danville, CA

• Ms. Anna Sidana, Founder and CEO, , Palo Alto , CA

• Ms. Rama Prasad, high school student

• Mirielle Mather, Executive Director, Foundation for Sustainable Development, San Francisco, CA

• Dr. Nilima  Sabharwal, Founder and Chair, Home of Hope Inc,, Hillsborough, CA

• Ms. Nikki Somani, Founder, Home of Hope Inc.'s Youth Chapter

• Mr. Vishnu Sharma, Executive Director, Foundation for Excellence, Santa Clara, CA

• Professor Nita Kumar, Brown Family Professor of South Asian History, Claremont McKenna College, Claremont, CA / President, Nirman, Varanasi

• Mr. Bhalchander Vishwanath, Founder and CEO, United Prosperity, Fremont, CA

• Ms. Rupali Saiya, Founder, Crafts of Hope, Hillsborough , CA

• Mrs. Diana Rohini LaVigne, Chair, South Asian Journalists Association, Bay Area, CA

For more information on the conference, or to register, visit http://www.idcoa.cloverpad.org/Upcoming.aspx.

For more information on ICDA, visit www.idc-america.org or call 630-303-9592.