In-Person event

Impact Accelerated: Data and AI Capacity Building Showcase 

Tuesday, February 17, 2026
12:00PM – 2:30pm IST 

The Claridges, Viceroy Hall12, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Rd, Tees January Road Area,
Motilal Nehru Marg AreaNew Delhi, Delhi 110011, India

About the Event

Join data.org with special guests from the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, for a data and AI capacity-building showcase. This in-person gathering will convene global leaders, practitioners, and partners from data.org’s capacity building initiatives, including the Capacity Accelerator Network (CAN), to highlight how data and AI skilling is improving the lives of millions. Through spotlight presentations, panel discussions, and student presentations, this event will explore practical approaches and innovative solutions accelerating the field of data and AI for social impact—and the people making that progress possible. 

2026 CFIG India CAN Event logo

Speakers

Kailash Bhatt

Chief Learning Officer

Karmayogi Bharat

Kailash Bhatt is the Chief Learning Officer at Karmayogi Bharat, with over 16 years of experience across the EdTech and learning ecosystem. He works at the intersection of learning strategy, digital transformation, and capacity building, with a strong focus on building scalable, future-ready learning systems. He believes learning is a…

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Gaurav Godhwani

Co-founder and Executive Director

CivicDataLab

Gaurav Godhwani is co-founder and executive director of CivicDataLab – a research lab harnessing data & responsible AI innovations to enable millions of changemakers and enhance civic engagements in India & other countries, especially in the Asia-Pacific. Over the years, he has been instrumental in shaping data initiatives like DataKind…

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Perry Hewitt

Chief Strategy Officer

data.org

Chief Strategy Officer Perry Hewitt joined data.org in 2020 with deep experience in both the for-profit and nonprofit sectors. She oversees the global data.org brand and how it connects to partners and funders around the world.

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Priyank Hirani

Director of Capacity Building

data.org

Priyank Hirani is the Director of Capacity Building at data.org, where he strategizes and implements initiatives to democratize data skills and enable social impact organizations to be data-driven

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Amrita Kapoor

CEO

Swadhaar FinAccess

Amrita Kapoor is the CEO of Swadhaar FinAccess. With 25+ years of experience in industry and academia, she brings expertise in strategy, training, innovation, and women’s empowerment.

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Varun Kashyap

Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer

Buzzworthy Ventures

Varun Kashyap is Co-founder of Humble Bee, an Indian government–recognized climate-tech social enterprise building a scientific, AI-enabled beekeeping ecosystem to empower 1 million smallholder, marginal, and tribal farmers, especially women, by 2030.

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Zeel Mehta

Product Lead (Myna Bolo)

Myna Mahila Foundation

Zeel is a product strategist and technologist with an MSc in Machine Learning & AI, specializing in building scalable solutions across enterprise technology, B2B SaaS, and social impact.

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Shamina Singh

Founder & President

Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth

For more than 20 years, Shamina Singh has been on the frontlines of developing and implementing solutions to make the global economy work for everyone, everywhere. Shamina is the Founder & President of the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, the philanthropic hub of Mastercard. She also serves as Executive Vice President of Corporate Sustainability.

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Shivam Shukla

Programs and Capacity Building Lead

data.org

Shivam Shukla is the Lead for Programs and Capacity Building at data.org, where he partners with the Director of Capacity Building to shape and deliver global initiatives aimed at cultivating 1 million purpose-driven data and AI practitioners by 2032.

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Cormekki Whitley, Ph.D.

Interim President and CEO

data.org

Cormekki Whitley is the Chief Operating Officer at data.org. As a member of the Executive team, Cormekki provides high-level fiscal oversight, oversees contract administration, and streamlines both in-house personnel and resource systems.

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Agenda

Arrival, Registration & Lunch
12:00pm – 12:30pm 
Opening Remarks  
12:30pm – 12:35pm 
Cormekki Whitley, Interim President and CEO at data.org
The Capacity Accelerator Network: Powering a Global Workforce 
12:35pm – 12:40pm
Priyank Hirani, Director of Capacity Building at data.org
Training for Impact: Lessons from Ashoka University  
12:40pm – 12:45pm
Dr. Partha Pratim Das, Professor, Department of Computer Science and Director, Center for Data Science and Analytics at Ashoka University
Skilling at Scale Through Government Partnerships 
12:45pm – 12:50pm
Kailash Bhatt, Chief Learning Officer at Karmayogi Bharat
From Training to Transformation: Building Capacity in India  
12:50pm – 1:10pm  
Priyank Hirani, Director of Capacity Building at data.org (moderator) 
Gaurav Godhwani, Co-founder and Executive Director, at CivicDataLab  
Pritika Hingorani, Chief Executive Officer at Artha Global 
Yash Rawal, India CAN Fellow at SEEDS 
Anuja Venkatachalam, India CAN Fellow, Khushi Baby 
Experiential Learning and Community 
1:10pm – 1:15pm
Shivam Shukla, Lead, Programs and Capacity Building at data.org
Break & Student Showcase 
1:15pm – 1:35pm
20-minute break for coffee, networking, and student presentation gallery. 
Innovation Challenges: Scaling Skills and Impact 
1:35pm – 1:45pm 
Varun Kashyap, Chief Strategy Officer at Buzzworthy Ventures
Zeel Mehta, Product Lead (Myna Bolo) at Myna Mahila Foundation
Perry Hewitt, Chief Strategy Officer at data.org
Tools for Transformation: data.org’s DMA and Finverse  
1:45pm – 1:55pm
Cormekki Whitley, Interim President and CEO at data.org
Amrita Kapoor, Chief Executive Officer at Swadhaar FinAccess
Closing Remarks 
1:55pm – 2:00pm 
Shamina Singh, Founder and President of the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth

More information

Contact us if you have any questions about this event.