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SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES
Mercy Carpenter Mercy was raised in Brooklyn, NY. Her activism career started at the Children's Theater Company, where she learned about word peacemakers and performed in plays with social justice themes. She also
presented Michael Douglas at "Say Yes to Children" Campaign with Nelson Mandela and sang with the Unicef World Choir. She is presently working with the Brooklyn Foundation to gather information
on the effects of rapid gentrification by leading discussions in local communities.
Miranda Hovemeyer Miranda recently finished her Master of Arts in Religion degree at Meadville Lombard Theological School,
and is a program coordinator for the Interfaith Families Project of Greater Washington, D.C. As a secular humanist and improvisational comedian, she uses laughter to bring together people to participate in positive interfaith experiences. She is certified in interfaith conflict resolution by the United States Institute of Peace,
and is an active member of Odyssey Networks and the United Religions Initiative.
Mitesh Shah Mitesh has been affiliated with YJA for the past six years either as a member of the Executive Board, Co-Chair, or Board of Trustee. He is a senior business intelligence consultant from Atlanta and grew up in Alabama (yes, there are Jains everywhere!). Find him at the convention and you can talk about sports (
WAR EAGLE!), life, or maybe even play mafia with him!
Mohamed Elsanousi Dr. Elsanousi is the Director of Community Outreach and Interfaith Relations for the Islamic Society of North America. He served on Secretary Clinton's Task Force on Religions and Foreign Policy and holds a bachelor's degree in Shariah and Law from the International Islamic University in Islamabad, a Master of Laws from Indiana University, a graduate diploma in philanthropic studies from IU's Center
on Philanthropy, and a Ph.D. in Law and Society from Indiana University's School of Law.
Monica Shah Monica was born and raised in Detroit, MI and is a graduate of The University of Michigan. She has been a Pathshala student, youth group leader, YJA Executive Board member, and now is a Pathshala teacher for nursery students at the Jain Society of Metropolitan Washington. Monica
has an engineering degree with a MBA and works for a Fortune 100 CFO and different federal agencies. Outside of work, Monica's interests lie in dance, music, and travelling with her family.
Nirav Shah Nirav spends his days making satellites in sunny California. Born in New York and raised in Long Island, he moved to Los Angeles a year ago. Prior to coming to CA, Nirav was a researcher at MIT
where he earned a PhD in Aerospace Engineering. He has also worked in consulting. Nirav has presented at several YJA, YJP, and JAINA Conventions, as well as local temple events in Boston and Chicago. He looks forward to exploring the surprisingly deep meaning of the Navkar Mantra with you.
Nita Vakharia Nita teaches Jainism and Gujarati to children in grades 8-12 at the Edison/Franklin Township, NJ
Pathshala. She has also coached the New Jersey Jain Academic Bowl teams at JAINA Conventions since 2007. She led her teams to first place in 2009, 2011, and 2013. In 2005, she volunteered at Pujya Diptiben Shah's Sunrise Children's Camp and has organized these camps annually since 2006. Besides
being a CPA, she is also an ACCA (United Kingdom), and holds two master's degrees.
YOUNG JAINS: TODAY'S LEARNERS, TOMORROW'S LEADERS
MALUMINIO
