Meera Shenoy

Meera Shenoy is regarded by many to be leading India’s social change. She is the founder of Youth4Jobs, an organisation that trains young, disabled professionals for the working world, and set up Not Just Art, a place for visual artists to promote their work. This award-winning revolutionary has been a vital figure in the fight against poverty in India, a core drive of Meera’s training programmes. When booked for events, she explores her incredible achievements and positive influence on Indian communities, to inspire audiences.

Best known for her work with Youth4Jobs, Meera set up the organisation in response to the devastating skills gap amongst young, disabled people in India. The organisation supplies training programmes and workshops, to increase inclusivity and diversity in the workplace. Targeting poor families, Youth4Jobs is breaking the cycle of poverty evident in thousands of families by organising sector placements for young professionals. Meera herself has worked with several influential groups, like the Ministry of Rural Development, to increase opportunities for young people.

Before founding Youth4Jobs, Meera helped to establish EGMM, an employment company. She proved to businesses that there was untapped potential in the rural youth of India, who, when given tailored training, could thrive in entry levels jobs. Highlighted in the Wall Street Journal and Knowledge@Wharton, Meera trained over two million young people before leaving the role to work at the World Bank.

Operating across 14 Indian states, Youth4Jobs received the National Award for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities in 2017 and was named the Best Placement Agency. Following the organisation’s vast influence, Meera founded Not Just Art, a digital platform for disabled artists to share their work with the world.

Meera has given valuable talks at both national and international conferences, addressing students, business leaders and general audiences alike. Her work has been recognised with several awards, including the Asia winner MIT Innovation Inclusion Award in 2019, Bihar Innovation Forum II Award in 2014 and the Vocational Excellence Award in 2015.

She was also inducted into the Happiness Hall of Fame, making Meera the only Indian at the time to be featured. Speaking about Youth4Jobs’ positive impact, she has presented a TED Talk and was invited to the UN office, to present case studies on her organisation. Expanding upon the contents of her popular book, You Can: From Smarter to Wiser, Meera’s speeches touch upon the lives and successes of disabled entrepreneurs.