FOUNDER JACQUELINE DE CHOLLET

Jacqueline de Chollet is the founder of the Veerni Project, established in 1993 to support girls’ education and empowerment in India. The initiative was inspired by a pivotal moment in Rajasthan, where she witnessed firsthand the economic exclusion of women. What began as a personal response to inequality has grown into a long-standing, community-rooted organisation dedicated to helping girls access secondary education, gain independence, and shape their own futures.

This initiative has grown into a lasting, internationally supported effort focused on girls’ education and empowerment, later reinforced through the Global Foundation for Humanity (1994) and Fondation Veerni (2017). Her work demonstrates a rare combination of grassroots insight and institutional impact and the full records from 1993 to 2025 have been archived in the Public Policy Papers collection of the Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library at Princeton University.

Alongside her work with Veerni, Jacqueline has built an extensive career in international social justice and humanitarian advocacy including Board Member of the International Rescue Committee (UK) and Commissioner for the Women’s Refugee Commission in New York, contributing to global efforts in refugee protection and women’s rights. Her experience also includes leadership in the UK social housing sector with Southern Housing (Deputy Chair) and the Southern Housing Foundation, reflecting her commitment to improving lives at both community and structural levels.

Jacqueline has also been an active supporter of the arts, serving as a trustee and advisor to major cultural institutions such as the National Gallery and the English Chamber Orchestra.

Her work has been recognised internationally through invitations to speak at major global conferences, including the UN Conferences in Vienna, Cairo, Beijing and Istanbul, as well as at leading academic institutions such as Harvard, Brown, and NYU. She is a published author, and her work has been featured widely in international media including NPR, the BBC, and Marie Claire.