Dharamshala: The Social and Resource Development Fund (SARD), under the Department of Finance, organised a two-day training on Advocacy, Communications, and Fundraising from 6–7 February 2026 at the CTA Campus, Dharamshala. The training was designed to support the implementation of CTA’s Vision of resilience, self-reliance, and institutional capacity-building, with a particular focus on strengthening sustainable resource mobilisation across CTA institutions.

The primary objective of the training was to enhance participants’ strategic understanding of how advocacy, communications, and fundraising operate as an integrated system, while simultaneously building practical skills in donor engagement, effective storytelling, and proactive lead generation.

Day One focused on Strategic Communications and Advocacy, emphasising the integration framework that connects advocacy, communications, and fundraising outcomes. Sessions covered stakeholder ecosystem mapping, dignity-centred and resilience-focused storytelling, message development, and multi-channel communications planning. Participants also engaged in designing effective advocacy campaigns and explored how strategic communications can be leveraged to build long-term supporters and champions.

The final session of the day featured a virtual guest lecture by Puneet Bali, Head of the Smile Foundation, on “Building Support for Your Cause – Including Financial Support.” His session offered valuable insights into the Indian fundraising landscape, including Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), foundations, and High-Net-Worth Individuals (HNIs), and shared practical lessons on corporate partnerships, CSR fundraising strategies, major donor cultivation, and organisational scaling, drawing from the experience of the Smile Foundation.

Day Two centred on Fundraising Strategy and Sustainability, with a strong emphasis on lead generation as the centrepiece of training. Participants took part in hands-on exercises to develop an ideal funding portfolio for 2026, map their existing funding sources, and identify funding gaps and priority areas. The sessions promoted a proactive approach to fundraising and introduced six practical methods for identifying potential prospects. Exercises such as “20 Prospects in 20 Minutes,” drafting outreach emails, and donor engagement role-plays further strengthened participants’ practical fundraising skills.

Additional modules explored untapped fundraising opportunities, including Indian CSR, High-Net-Worth Individuals, and the global Tibetan diaspora, followed by sessions on donor cultivation, making effective asks, program sustainability, and operational efficiency. Participants also received guidance on effective concept note drafting, with a focus on key elements required to develop strong and compelling proposals.

The training was facilitated by Anjali Kaur, former Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Asia Bureau at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and currently Senior Associate at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).

A total of 23 participants attended the training, including 12 women and 11 men, representing various CTA departments and The Tibet Fund. The program marks the beginning of a ten-month learning cohort, which will continue through a series of structured follow-up sessions conducted primarily via virtual platforms throughout 2026, ensuring sustained capacity-building, accountability, and peer learning.

-Report filed by Department of Finance, CTA