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Admissions

MISSION

AWESOME Methodology: Developing innovative methods for holistic community profiling, optimized intervention design, iterative and feedback-based intervention advancement data, information, and knowledge that is generated through this methodology will be collated into a large database designed to leverage artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other analytical tools to inform further research, intervention design, and evidence based policy recommendations. Key areas of investigation within this track include: Field Methodologies, Psychology, Social Work, Anthropology, Sociology, Economics, Vulnerability Mapping, Human-environment Interaction, Cultural Studies, Media Studies, Systems Methodologies and Implementation Sciences.

Thematic Areas

AI for Empowered Citizens & Organizations

AWESOME
Ecosystem

Emerging Trends in Gender Studies

Gender Equality & Women’s Empowerment

TEAM Members

Dr. Nimita Pandey
TAG Lead
Assistant Professor
Research Interests: Innovation Studies; Science & Technology Policy, Emerging Technologies & Sustainable Development; Feminist Science
nimitapandey@dl.amrita.edu

Radhika Mohan
Research Associate
Research Interests: Resilience in Women, Family Well-Being, Safety and Security
radhikamohan@am.amrita.edu

⁠Kripa Gressel
Research Associate
Research Interests: Gender Studies, Personal and Social Values, Sustainable Development and Gender
kripag@am.amrita.edu

Dr. Srividya Sheshadri
Associate Director, Center for Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality
Research Interests: Implementation Science for Community Development, Education, and Empowerment; Vocational Education and Life Skills Training; Exploring Applications of Social Data Science
srividyasheshadri@am.amrita.edu

Aswathi P.
Research Associate
Research Interests: Data Strategies and Tools; Computational Social Science; Data Value Chains; Knowledge Systems; Data Science; Machine Learning
aswathip@am.amrita.edu

⁠Dr. Christopher Coley
Social Sciences Research Lead, Amrita Institute for Advanced Research, Chicago, USA
Assistant Professor
School of Social and Behavioural Sciences
Research Interests: Anti-Poverty Interventions; Women’s Empowerment; Environmental Ethics; Vulnerability and Risk; Communities of Practice; Computerized Vocational Education and Training; Life Enrichment Education
christopher@am.amrita.edu

Dr. Bhavani R. Rao
Dean
School of Social and Behavioural Sciences,
Director of AMMACHI Labs and the Center for Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality
Research Interests: Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality; Learning Technologies; Vocational and Educational Training; AI and Robotics for Social Good; Disaster Risk Management
bhavani@am.amrita.edu

Dr. Meltem Alkoyak-Yildiz
Head of Department
Department of Cognitive Sciences and Psychology
Research Interests: Learning Sciences, Cognitive Sciences, Compassion, Empathy, Technology Enhanced Learning and Teaching
meltemalkoyak@am.amrita.edu

⁠Dr. Drishti Marwaha
Postdoctoral Researcher, Center for Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham
Research Interests: Women’s Empowerment, Women and Healthcare, Health Economics, Gender Economics
drishti.marwaha@ammachilabs.org

Dr. Rajalakshmi S. A.
Assistant Professor
Research Interests: Educational Psychology, Social Psychology; Women’s Empowerment; Counselling Psychology; College Students, Moral Reasoning
sa_rajalakshmi@cb.amrita.edu

Dr. Gaurang Matthijs (Ties) Fakkel
Assistant Professor, Center for Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality, School of Social and Behavioural Sciences
Research Interests: Role of Psychosocial Factors such as Self-control, Social Competence, Locus of Control, and Parent and Peer Support in the Processes of Social Reproduction and Social Mobility. What Adolescents Believe to be Causes of Poverty; Social Inequalities among Youth, e.g., in Education, Climate Change, and Research Participation
matthijs.fakkel@ammachilabs.org

⁠Shambhavi Susan Witt, MSW
Senior Counsultant, Center for Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality, School of Social and Behavioural Science, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham
Research Interests: Social Work Administration Policy and Planning; Community Organizing; Gerontology; Self-determination and Advocacy; Volunteerism and Volunteer Administration; Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality; Sustainable Livelihoods; Spirituality and Quality of Life.
shambavi.susan@ammachilabs.org

Sithara G. S.
PhD Scholar, PhD in Social and Behavioural Sciences
Research Interests: Women Empowermen and Gender Equality, Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Prevention, Male Engagement in Gender Equality, Disaster Management and Resilience Building, Child Rights and Child Protection, Legal Frameworks for Gender Justice, AI in Policing and Crime Prevention, Ethical AI and Law Enforcement
sithara.gs@ammachilabs.org

Radhika Shetty
Research Associate
MBA in Marketing
Research Interests: Economic Empowerment of Women, Gender Harmony- Indic Perspective
radhika.shetty@ammachilabs.org

Funded Projects

Publications 2022 – 2025

  • Sheshadri, S., Radhakrishnan, U., Padmavilochanan, A., Coley, C., & Bhavani, R. R. (2025, January 16–19). Generative AI for analyzing participatory rural appraisal data: An exploratory case study in gender research [Conference presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Gomez, M. B., Coley, C. L., Arlikatti, S., & Sahib, P. R. (2025, January 16–19). Examining the digital gender divide: A case study of teachers and students in a rural village, North India [Conference presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Gressel, C. M., & Anil, A. (2025, January 16–19). The future of gender data: Navigating ethical frontiers in the age of AI and big data [Conference presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Bhanu, V. R., Marwaha, D., Nayar, N., Nandha, S., & Philip, A. (2025, January 16–19). Development of a life enrichment education curriculum for rural women in India [Poster presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Bhanu, V. R., Nayar, N., Ramesh, R., Padmavilochan, A., Natarajan, A., & Sheshadri, S. (2025, January 16–19). Blended learning for women’s business development in rural India: Enhancing technology adoption and bridging the gender digital divide [Conference presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Marwaha, D., Bhanu, V. R., Sayujya, R. S., & Nair, S. (2025, January 16–19). Development of a digital literacy curriculum for rural women in India [Poster presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Sithara, G. S., Ramesh, R., Bhanu, V. R., Nayar, N., & Sheshadri, S. (2025, January 16–19). Inclusive learning model for technology-enhanced vocational education through culturally responsive pedagogy [Conference presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Mbye, F., Badjie, O., Coley, C. L., & Simmons, W. P. (2025, January 16–19). A systematic literature review on digital activism: Empowering women through technology in developing countries [Conference presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Yeboah, G., Pandey, P., Gomez, M. B., & Coley, C. (2025, January 16–19). Exploring gender influences on perceptions of sustainable development education among future educators in Ghana [Conference presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Yeboah, G., Pandey, P., Gomez, M. B., & Coley, C. (2025, January 16–19). Gender inclusivity in technology-enhanced teacher education in Ghana [Conference presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Nedumaran, S. P., Padmavilochanan, A., & Bakiras, S. (2025, January 16–19). Empowering social interventions: An adaptive monitoring solution with integrated NLP analytics [Conference presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Sai, T. S., Rajalakshmi Sulur Anbalagan, Pidugu, G., & Muralidhar, S. K. (2025, January 16–19). Tele-mental health adoption among young women: Gender barriers [Conference presentation]. International Conference on Gender and Technology, Amritapuri, India. 
  • Bhanu, V. R., Nayar, N., Natarajan, A., Ramesh, R., Padmavilochanan, A., & Sheshadri, S. (2023, November 24-26). Blended learning for women’s business development in rural India: Enhancing technology adoption and bridging the gender digital divide [Conference presentation]. In 2023 IEEE Tenth International Conference on Technology for Education (T4E), Bombay, India. 
  • Sithara, G. S., Bhanu, V. R., Nayar, N., & Sheshadri, S. (2023, November 24-26). Inclusive learning model for technology-enhanced vocational education through culturally responsive pedagogy [Conference presentation]. In 2023 IEEE Tenth International Conference on Technology for Education (T4E), Bombay, India. 
  • Amritha, N., Marwaha, D., Bhanu, V. R., Singh, V., & Bhavani, R. R. (2024, September). Empowering rural women in India: SHG formation and training for social change using humanitarian technology. In 2024 IEEE International Symposium on Technology and Society (ISTAS) (pp. 1-7). IEEE. https://doi.org/0.1109/ISTAS61960.2024.10732061
  • Marwaha, D., Bhanu, V. R., Amritha, N., Kuttan, A., Harikumar, G., & Sheshadri, S. (2024, September). Evaluation of factors influencing the implementation of a government vocational training program for women in Ernakulam, Kerala, India: A principal implementers’ perspective. In 2024 IEEE International Symposium on Technology and Society (ISTAS) (pp. 1-6). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/ISTAS61960.2024.10732850
  • Soundariya, S., Lg, J. M., Sheshadri, S., McLain, M. L., Amritha, N., Ryf, B. E., & Bhavani, R. R. (2024, October). Empowering village women through CVET: Identifying challenges, solutions, and motivating factors in Tamil Nadu’s coastal seaweed farming. In 2024 IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC) (pp. 116-123). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/GHTC62424.2024.10771566
  • Ramesh, R., Sithara, G. S., Gireesh, G. S., Nair, R. R., Ajay, A., Von Lieries, J. S., & Bhavani, R. R. (2024, October). Training of rural women to monitor the water quality at the point of use to increase WASH empowerment in rural India. In 2024 IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC) (pp. 332-339). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/GHTC62424.2024.10771543
  • Ramesh, R., Sithara, G. S., Nair, R. R., Gireesh, G. S., Ajay, A., Von Lieries, J. S., & Bhavani, R. R. (2024, October). Enablers and barriers to improved drinking water sources and safe water practices in rural India. In 2024 IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC) (pp. 358-363). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/GHTC62424.2024.10771572
  • Mohan, R., Menon, P., Anjana, J. S., & Aswathy, J. (2024, April). Qualitative assessment of resilience: Lessons from rural women in South India. In International Conference on Gender Research (Vol. 7, No. 1, pp. 224-231). https://doi.org/10.34190/icgr.7.1.2118
  • Mohan, R., Menon, P., Rajan, N. P., & Adithya, M. S. (2024, April). Resilience amidst adversity: Exploring gender gisparities and psychosocial factors in Kerala. In International Conference on Gender Research (Vol. 7, No. 1, pp. 232-241). https://doi.org/10.34190/icgr.7.1.2119
  • Padmavilochanan, A., Anitha, P., Suresh, A. K., Refoulouma, S., Saravanakumaran, S., Sheshadri, S., & Rao, B. R. (2024, September). Tech for all: Innovating inclusive adoption measurement. In 2024 IEEE International Symposium on Technology and Society (ISTAS) (pp. 1-8). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/ISTAS61960.2024.10732464 
  • Padmavilochanan, A., Natarajan, A., Shekhar, L., Sheshadri, S., Parameswari, A., & Bhavani R. R. (2023, October). ICT significance for community engagement during COVID in rural India: An application suite. In 2023 IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC) (pp. 203-210). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/GHTC56179.2023.10354703 
  • Freire, I. T., Løvschal, M., Bollen, J., Carugati, F., Ndzenyuiy, M. N., Page, S. E., Rao, B. R., & Tylén, K. (2025). How do we collaborate?. In P. F. M. J. Verschure (Ed.), The nature and dynamics of collaboration (pp. 317-333). The MIT Press. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/15533.003.0024
  • McLain, M. L., Suresh, V., Sankaranarayanan, K., & Rao, B. R. (2025). Structure of collaboration in women’s self-help groups. In P. F. M. J. Verschure (Ed.), The nature and dynamics of collaboration (pp. 113-123). The MIT Press. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/15533.003.0012
  • Pandey, N., & Midha, N. (2024). Gender mainstreaming and the nexus. In Z. Adeel & B. Böer (eds), The water, energy, and food security nexus in Asia and the Pacific. Water security in a new world (pp. 141–155). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-29035-0_7
  • Nedungadi, P., Ramesh, M., Govindaraju, V., Rao, B., Berbeglia, P., & Raman, R. (2024). Emerging leaders or persistent gaps? Generative AI research may foster women in STEM. International Journal of Information Management, 77, 102785. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2024.102785
  • Bonin, S., Rashed, T., Nair, R., Chaudhary, S., V.R., B., Natarajan, A., & Bhavani, R. (2024). A financial maturity model for the empowerment of women’s saving groups. World Development Perspectives, 34, 100573. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100573
  • Fakkel, M., Peeters, M., Branje, S., & Stevens, G. W. (2024). Parental SES and family support as predictors of educational level: Testing the buffering effect of effortful control and peer support. Journal of Adolescence, 96(8), 1884-1900. https://doi.org/10.1002/jad.12389
  • Fakkel, M., Branje, S., Vollebergh, W. A., Stevens, G. W., & Peeters, M. (2024). Intergenerational upward and downward social mobility: The role of intelligence, effortful control, assertiveness, and peer competence in early adolescence. Emerging Adulthood, 12(5), 838-851. https://doi.org/10.1177/21676968241257585
  • Fakkel, M., Peeters, M., Vollebergh, W. A. M., & Branje, S. (2023). Parent-adolescent transmission of socioeconomic status: Testing serial mediation of conflict behaviors, emotion regulation, and empathy. Emerging Adulthood, 11(5), 1196-1210. https://doi.org/10.1177/21676968231183029
  • Fakkel, M., Peeters, M., Branje, S., Stevens, G. W., & Vollebergh, W. A. (2023). Decline in positive future orientations among adolescents during covid‐19: The role of socioeconomic status, parental support, and sense of control. Journal of Adolescence, 95(7), 1321-1332. https://doi.org/10.1002/jad.12204
  • Coley, C., Sheshadri, S. & Devanathan, S. (2023). Men’s experience of women’s empowerment and gender equality: A phenomenological study in Kerala, India. Global Social Welfare, 10(2), 105-115. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40609-022-00262-7
  • Coley, C., Sheshadri, S., Devanathan, S., & Bhavani, R. R. (2023). Contextualizing women’s empowerment frameworks with an emphasis on social support: A study in rural, South India. Community, Work, & Family, 26(1), 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/13668803.2021.1879021
  •  Sheshadri, S., Coley, C., Devanathan, S., & Rao, R. B. (2023). Towards synergistic women’s empowerment-transformative learning framework for TVET in rural India. Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 75 (2), 255-277. https://doi.org/10.1080/13636820.2020.1834438
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