Today we’d like to take a break from our Meet the Teams posts to introduce you to one staff member in particular. Jayanthi Kuru-Utumpala, the Project Director of the Broadening Gender Accelerator Team from CARE Sri Lanka, was the first Sri Lankan to summit Mount Everest in May! Keep reading to learn more about her story and check out this news feature from the Daily Mail.
Jayanthi has achieved a great amount in both her academic and professional pursuits. She received an undergraduate degree in English Literature from the Delhi University in 2003 and was later awarded a full scholarship to the University of Sussex where she received her Master of Arts in Gender Studies. Jayanthi also received her 10 year tenure at the Women and Media Collective (WMC). Her dedication in her passions is obvious, but one achievement sets her apart from anyone else in the world. At just before 5:00am on 21 May 2016 Jayanthi became the first Sri Lankan to summit Mount Everest. It took five years to properly prepare the necessities for the journey. With the support of friends, family, and a campaign to crowdfund the expedition using indiegogo.com, Jayanthi was able to raise the USD 136,000 fee required for climbing the mountain. Everything came together just weeks before the scheduled departure date. Returning from her feat, Jayanthi will continue to use the skills she has gained from her journey in her role as a Project Director for CARE Sri Lanka. With her on the team, anything is possible.
