Shri Jagadananda is the co-founder and mentor of the Centre for Youth and Social Development (CYSD), an autonomous development organization working with the tribal and rural poor in Odisha. He has served in various government and non-government positions, including as the State Information Commissioner of Odisha, and a Member of the State Planning Board of Odisha. Presently, he is a Member of the Standing Committee (CSOs) at the NITI Aayog on Institutionalizing Partnership between Civil Society and the Government. He has held the offices as Chairperson, Voluntary Action Network India (VANI), the largest national network of social development agencies in India; Chair of Credibility Alliance, a national forum for promotion of accountability norms for Civil Society Organizations and the Chair of Sa-Dhan, a national network of Community Development Micro Finance Institutions with membership spread across the country. He was instrumental in the formation of the National Social Watch, a civil society initiative that monitors the implementation of social development programs in India. As the Convenor of Odisha Development Initiative, he has facilitated organization of three editions of Odisha Vikash Conclave, a multi stakeholder platform in the state. He was offered a senior visiting fellowship at CIVICUS-World Alliance for Citizen Participation, and worked on the issues of legitimacy, transparency and accountability within civil society at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, Cambridge, USA. His publication ‘Civil Society Legitimacy and Accountability’ is widely available in French, Spanish, Arabic and English languages.
Publication
