Satish Jha is a social entrepreneur and an early-stage investor in socially
relevant technology-based startups. He currently chairs US-based Simplified
Nutrition Online, is a Principal of Ashcroft Sullivan Jha (co-founded with former
US Attorney General John Ashcroft), and is the Chief Advisor of Boston Center
for Excellence in Healthcare.
He began his social awareness working with Jaya Prakash Narayan as a
teenager and soon after was asked by R N Goenka, owner of the Indian Express
Group, to start a national Hindi daily newspaper that was launched as Jansatta,
establishing leadership in Hindi journalism and achieving a circulation of
100,000 in 6 months. Subsequently, he was the Editor of one of the most
reputed weekly news magazines of its time, Dinamaan of The Times of India
Group.
He co-founded PUCL Bulletin, the first civil rights journal of India, along with
Arun Jaitley, Baramati Conference on Technology and Development with
Sharad Pawar, established Digital Partners in India that started the Social
Entrepreneurship movement and later merged with Grameen Technologies (of
Nobel winner Mohd. Yunus), cofounded DESI Power that created 100 KW
power generators using hybrid, renewable energy sources and was replicated
across 100 villages, nurtured Tarahaat.com, Drishtee, eHealthcare, IICSR, and
40+ startups from angel investing, forming boards, mentoring founders, raising
the next round of funds, finding clients and making a business viable.
In collaboration with Nicholas Negroponte, Satish Jha started One Laptop per
Child in India, which led to the adoption of screen-based learning in
government schools across several states in the country. He studied
international relations, political economy, management of technology,
government of science and management at The Fletcher School of Law &
Diplomacy, The Kennedy School of Government, the University of Maryland,
Erasmus University Institute of Social Studies, Holland and Institute Theseus/
EDHEC, France