Finding Our Way into Policy + Community Pathways from BLR to ORF
Policy Post #215
Dear Reader,
As the year begins to slow down, we’ve been thinking about how rarely meaningful work is ever done alone.
None of us build policy ecosystems from scratch. We arrive through institutions we inherit, people who guide us, communities that shape our choices—and through commitments that find their way into real opportunities, sometimes with the help of platforms like Sinceriti. What looks like individual effort is almost always collective labour.
This week at PPI reflected that spirit—from Yash’s sessions at the Observer Research Foundation to our Bengaluru climate meet-up, and the people and pathways we’re spotlighting across this edition.
Many of these stories circle the same quiet question: how do people find their way into policy—and how do they stay? PPI exists in that space—by connecting people to conversations, communities, and resources, some of which you’ll find gathered toward the end.
Let’s get into Policy Post #215.
Policy Charcha 💬
The best of Podcasts, Videos, Essays, Fellowships and other Career resources from the world of Policy and Governance from the week gone by!
💡 Essay Highlight:
Bharat, Youth, and Power — Youth Power Foundation
This essay reflects on how young people engage with power, responsibility, and institutions in India today, moving beyond symbolic participation toward sustained, meaningful involvement.
A thoughtful read for anyone navigating public life, leadership, and long-term engagement in policy spaces.
👥 From the PPI Community #PolicySabha
Bengaluru Climate Meet-up
Our Bengaluru community came together for an in-person conversation on climate, policy, and collective action. These meet-ups continue to be some of PPI’s most meaningful spaces—where ideas move from screens into shared dialogue.
More city conversations coming soon!
📲 Highlight of the Week
Yash at the Observer Research Foundation (ORF)
Yash recently conducted a session at ORF, engaging with a sharp cohort on: Policymaking as a science, The evolving landscape of technology policy and his journey through the policy ecosystem
The conversation focused on rigour, values, and how ideas translate into institutions—and what it takes to build a meaningful path in public life.
📷 Video Highlight
Reforming the Indian State — The Seen and the Unseen
To reform India, economist Karthik Muralidharan argues, we must first reform the Indian state.
In Episode 375 of The Seen and the Unseen, Muralidharan joins Amit Varma to discuss his much-awaited new book—especially the chapters examining India’s bureaucracy, state capacity, and why implementation remains the hardest challenge in governance.
🔎 Databases and Guides:
Discover your ultimate career resource sheets for everything related to public policy! Our comprehensive mega-lists include 150+ hiring organisations, 200+ scholarships, and 150+ courses, podcasts and a lot more. Dive in and unlock your next big opportunity!
✨ Spotlight of the Week
Our newest initiative at Public Policy India!
Each week, Spotlight we’ll bring forward stories of people and organisations shaping India’s public policy and social impact landscape in their own unique ways
This week’s Spotlight: Ruchi Tripathi.
A Senior Policy Associate in the Rajya Sabha, Ruchi’s journey spans district-level governance work, the Ministry of Culture, legislative research, and mentoring students navigating entry into policy spaces. Alongside her parliamentary work, she collaborates on women-centric empowerment initiatives, consults with think tanks as an independent professional, and writes regularly for national publications.
Her work reflects what sustained policy engagement looks like—rigour, mentorship, and growth from within the system.
📣Why Your Career Story Needs More Than a Polished CV, Sincerely
Across the impact sector, applicants are discovering a tough truth: strong writing alone isn’t enough anymore. With AI smoothing out essays and cover letters, it’s becoming harder for hiring teams to understand what actually drives a candidate – the interests that exist long before an application is due. The result is a hiring ecosystem where intention is often invisible.
PPI is thrilled to bring Sinceriti to our community of changemakers. Built by senior leaders in the social impact sector (including a former Partner at Dalberg), the platform introduces a simple idea: every applicant receives 100 “commitment points” each year, which they allocate to the causes and organisations they truly value. These allocations are timestamped and locked, forming a steady trail of your interests over time – choices that reflect what you consistently care about, not what sounds impressive the night before a deadline.
Leading programs like the LedBy Accelerator and the Gandhi Fellowship have already woven Sinceriti into their selection process. For anyone shaping their path in the impact space, the platform is free. The team can be reached at contact@sinceriti.co
🌟 Avenues for Upskilling
Public Policy Puzzle
Public Policy Puzzle (PPP) is a platform on a mission to make public policy accessible, engaging, and useful for students, young professionals, and curious citizens. Through courses, resources, and interactive formats.
🌍Climate + Health Corner
In Partnership With Swasti, The Health Catalyst
How Climate Breakdown Is Putting the World’s Food Systems at Risk
This powerful visual article maps how climate change is already reshaping global food systems—through heat stress, droughts, floods, and declining crop resilience.
It shows how food security, public health, and climate vulnerability are deeply intertwined, with the heaviest burden falling on communities with the least room to adapt.
Careers Corner 💼
A curated list of some of the best jobs and internship opportunities this week from the world of public policy, the development sector, impact consulting and communications at large.
📩 Best bit - if you know of a job/internship opening that’s not listed here, kindly just add that as a comment on the sheet: giving 20,000+ people immediate access to it!
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