We love sharing stories of the people of CMCA. Here’s a conversation with Dipa, former Volunteer Consultant – Lead for CMCA’s Civic Friendly Initiatives.
When did you join CMCA? And why?
Ever since my school days, I’ve been passionate about working in the social sector. As a student, I volunteered at a local orphanage. My first work experience in the non-profit sector, as an adult, was when I moved to Mexico and co-founded Indian Women’s Association of Mexico, a charity that raised funds for local orphanages. Fast forward to the end of 2006, I moved back to Bengaluru and, a few months later, I joined CMCA as a volunteer. When I started out, I helped with the curriculum and later moved to CMCA’s line of products ‘Civic Friendly Initiatives’.
You have been with CMCA for more than a decade. Would you say CMCA has changed you?
When I look back at how I got to where I am today, I see that CMCA helped me shed many inhibitions and become more confident. Also, the minute I get a chance to be involved in the community I stand up and do whatever I can. I’ve organised awareness sessions on menstrual hygiene for the domestic staff and filed an RTI against the encroachment of a lake. I take up that opportunity and I don’t ponder over it too much. That too has come from CMCA. CMCA was also part of the reason why I decided to get involved in my apartment’s Resident Welfare Association (RWA).
Tell us more…
For the past three years, I have been a member of the RWA’s Managing Committee, one year as Vice-President and two years as President. In these roles, I have tried to bring about positive change in the community. While a lot was done to ensure waste segregation at source, I have taken up other initiatives as well, like an afforestation project within my society. For the past nine years, I have also been getting the kids in the apartment involved in collecting old newspapers to raise funds for an orphanage. More recently, during the lockdown, I have formed a group with the apartment’s residents to distribute food and groceries to migrant workers and daily wage labourers.
It might seem a lot, but I think CMCA inspires all its employees to do something for the community. I even coined a term for this, ‘CMCAfied’! When someone new joins the organisation, there’s a clear line where you can make out that the person has got ‘CMCAfied’.
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CMCA has been accredited by Credibility Alliance under the category “Desirability Norms” – for good governance, accountability, transparency and continuous improvements. Credibility Alliance is a consortium of voluntary organisations committed to enhancing accountability and transparency in the voluntary sector through good governance.
