Speaker Series featuring Manisha Paudel

Our aim for this series is to provide an opportunity for individuals and organizations to engage diverse residents and employees from multiple sectors in the Quad Cities region, broaden their networks, and enhance their awareness of diversity issues.

About Paudel
Manisha Paudel is the Equity Coordinator for City of Des Moines, Iowa. As the first equity professional in local government in the entire Central Iowa region, Manisha focuses her collaborative efforts not just in the Des Moines’ city limits, but the surrounding areas as well. Prior to this position, she worked City of Tacoma (WA) as Senior Policy Analyst, City of Dubuque (IA) as Human Relations Specialist, and City of Davenport (IA) as Management and Accreditation Analyst. She visited Indonesia under the ICMA/Department of State Professional Fellows program.
 
Manisha also serves as a co-chair of Government Alliance on Race and Equity, a national membership network of local and regional government organizations working towards advancing and sustaining racial equity in governance. She is also a trained facilitator on Intercultural Competency, Fair and Impartial Policing, and International Association of Public Participation (IAP2) model.
 
Manisha has also acquired professional experience in Canada, East Timor, Eritrea, Indonesia, Kenya, Philippines, Nepal, and the U.S. She has held positions in UNICEF, local non-profit, local and federal government, and private sectors. A native of Nepal, Manisha also lived in Canada prior to moving to the United States. As a teenager, Manisha co-founded a youth magazine, Shabda, to provide a platform for first generation Canadian youth in the Greater Toronto Area to voice their concerns. She graduated from Drake University with a B.A. in International Relations and received her M.S. in Public Service Management from DePaul University. 
 
From child labor issues to environmental justice, Manisha is dedicated to focus her efforts on creating a just and equitable society for all. In her spare time, she likes to cook, eat at locally-owned restaurants, enjoy outdoors, watch documentaries, spend time with family, and explore the idea of belonging.