Poonam has spent much of the past 10 years learning how to develop and strengthen innovative health programming. She is passionate about capacity-building, and about working with organizations to build strong systems that allow programs to grow sustainably.

Bay Area Doula Project

Poonam was the volunteer co-director of the Bay Area Doula Project (BADP) for nearly 3 years. Under her leadership, BADP provided direct support for people having abortions or experiencing pregnancy loss throughout the greater Bay Area, but they also developed a holistic, comprehensive training model, created engaging, monthly community dialogues across numerous sexual and reproductive health topics (the Salon Series), grew a dynamic social media presence, and built collaborative partnerships with allies in the Bay Area and nationally. Poonam worked with teams of BADP volunteers to craft relevant, responsive programming, and created systems that allowed for professional development and leadership opportunities across the organization.

Full-Spectrum Reproductive Support Network

Poonam is an alumni member of the CoreAlign Generative Fellowship. When asked to tackle a “movement-level” issue, Poonam opted to focus on the lack of supportive structures for full-spectrum doula groups, and their potential for growth. Full-spectrum groups — groups that support people across all pregnancy experiences and outcomes –have been formed in many different areas around the country, but often do it their work in isolation. Poonam believed that a a connective space might allow groups to come together, to troubleshoot different issues as they continue to grow, and to build community with one another. She conducted a needs assessment, holding interviews with key leaders in 9 different groups in 8 states across the country. After many conversations and iterations of the project, Poonam worked with these 9 groups to create the Full-Spectrum Reproductive Support Network. A national network helps groups coordinate support for people who are pregnant and looking for care throughout the country; it makes it easier for groups to collaborate with one another, share resources and ideas, and create community; and lastly, it also facilitates the creation of new groups by providing ideas and strategies for people seeking to provide full-spectrum support in their area. Poonam coordinates monthly conference calls for the Network, manages their website and social media presence, and creates systems to streamline documentation and communication.