The Just Being Team

Executive Director

I first came to Just Being as a student in the Mindfulness-Based Counseling: Listening with Embodied Presence programme. Today, I see myself as a devoted gardener of this living community, tending to its growth with care, patience, and sincerity. I hope to nurture a compassionate and vibrant space rooted in presence, learning, and collective wellbeing, while strengthening the foundations that allow it to flourish with steadiness and grace. I also look forward to connecting with each person in our community, listening to your journey, and exploring together how we might live more deeply from presence in the midst of everyday life.

Over the past decade, I have worked across governance, philanthropy, research, and public systems in India and internationally. My experience includes leading organizational development initiatives, designing people-centered systems, supporting government institutions, and building partnerships for meaningful social impact. Across each role, service has remained the common thread. My educational journey includes a Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, an MSc in Wastes Management from University of Northampton, an Executive Development Program in Human Resource Management from XLRI Xavier School of Management.

Beyond work, I am drawn to intuition, art, movement and the subtle practices that help us live with more truth and tenderness. I also recently entered the joyful initiation of being a cat parent, where I continue to learn about presence, boundaries, and unconditional affection. At the center of all I offer is a sincere wish to be of service, to help ideas come alive, relationships deepen, and communities grow in ways that honor both heart and purpose.

Head (Adjunct), Delhi Chapter

To me, each day of life is about building and rebuilding a bridge, to this place within myself that I call home. A place as cosy as a womb and as vast as eternity, embracing me and everyone, as we are, where we are. Building this bridge, finding my way home is not a one-time accomplishment. It is more like a daily prayer, a meditation - sacred, committed, unambitious yet trusting fully.

Often it feels like hard toil, at other times it is as joyful as playing with a child and sometimes as restful as a baby sleeping. Whichever way it is, it isn’t a mundane experience. It takes all of me and sometimes, when the weather is very stormy, it also requires a compassionate other, willing to accompany me, holding hands, walking together.

I have been blessed to experience this connection at various points in my life’s journey, sometimes with family or friends and at other times with the community at Just Being. I feel blessed to be able to extend this connection to others, in my role as a Mindfulness Based Counselor. I am based in Delhi I am currently pursuing the course on Mindfulness & Presence Oriented Psychotherapy at Just Being.

I also work in the area of strengthening leadership in education and child development. My educational background includes a Master’s degree in social work and a doctoral degree in education. My wish is `May all have well-being. May all be home.

Counseling and Organizational Programs Coordinator

Arriving at Just Being was a Home Coming for me.

Supported by a consistent mindfulness practice, continued learning and a queer-affirmative perspective, I am deeply committed to fostering an inclusive environment, meeting at the intersection, where all identities and experiences are honored through the counseling/listening spaces I offer.

My journey from being a Field Engineer to a Teach For India Alumni and into the field of Psychology, has supported me in coming closer to the qualities of being, seeing the world from a lens of interconnectedness and compassionately extending this knowing into the listening spaces.

I have assisted two batches of the Mindfulness based Listening with Embodied Presence course by Just Being Center and currently supporting the supervision spaces for the participants of the course. I have also been actively engaged with the Training and Peer Mentoring at Connecting Trust, which is a non-judgmental, non-advisory listening service for those feeling low, distressed and/or suicidal.

Events Coordinator

Gaayatri Damle is an accomplished professional with a strong academic foundation, holding a Bachelor's degree in Engineering and a Master's degree in International Business from one of the top business schools in France. Having played Marketing and Communications roles in India, Switzerland and Middle East in Corporates , Gaayatri brings in a lot of vigour and organised skillset. With a keen interest in the intersection of business strategy and human behaviour, she is deeply intrigued by the complexities of the human mind and psychology.

Beyond her professional and academic pursuits, Gaayatri has been dedicated to the practice of Pranic Healing for several years, exploring its profound impact on well-being and energy balance. Her passion for understanding human consciousness and psychological intricacies continues to drive her curiosity and personal growth. She is also actively associated with Connecting Trust for a cause of Suicide Prevention and Mental Health.

Trainings Coordinator

As an alumna of the Mindfulness-Based Counseling: Listening with Embodied Presence course at Just Being, I value holding gentle listening spaces that center compassion and wholeness—embracing all of ourselves, just as we are. I am a peacebuilding practitioner and scholar with 14 years of experience in youth and peace education, cross-border dialogue, conflict transformation, migration, and gender justice among conflict-affected communities in India, Uganda, Afghanistan, and the United States. For over a decade, I have worked with the South Asian NGO Women in Security, Conflict Management and Peace (WISCOMP), an initiative of the Foundation for Universal Responsibility of the Dalai Lama. In regions of protracted conflict, where psychological barriers of mistrust, suspicion, and trauma prevail, I am inspired by the possibilities of building bridges of dialogue, empathy, and coexistence among divided communities. My educational journey includes a Master’s degree in International Peace Studies from the University of Notre Dame, USA, and a Diploma in Conflict Transformation and Peacebuilding from Lady Shri Ram College for Women, University of Delhi.