Tannistha Rakshit

National Vice President

Self-Help Groups Development (SHGD) Council

India

Tannistha Roy Rakshit, an engineer by training had set on her journey of sustainability leaving her well paid job in a technical college as an Assistant Professor. She decided to partner with a forest villager in the fringe of Gorumara National Park and showcase the way of hospitality which may be replicated by the forest villagers in their homestays. While working on best practices and destination development, she encountered with an organization called ACT (Association for Conservation & Tourism). Gradually with time, she was adopted as a member and now she leads the organization as the Treasurer of the Governing Body and the Cross Border Coordinator. In the last five

years of attachment with ACT, she has closely worked in the Himalayan region of West Bengal with remote and marginalized communities, especially in the field of women health, organic produce, market linkage, habitat restoration, waste management, regional responsible tourism campaigns and rural community empowerment. As a mother of two school going sons and dependence of immediate relatives on her, a hardworking husband, she still manages to volunteer for sustainable activities for rural tourism stakeholders. She believes that to achieve the SDGs, major skill development facilities needs to be set up for rural communities from biodiversity hotspots on an immediate basis. She also advocates better people to people relations along international border through tourism.