International development · Public policy · Social justice
Building fairer systems across the United States and South Asia
Homraj Acharya is an international development leader and public policy expert. Over two decades he has advised governments, led national reforms on child labour and education, and partnered with the International Labour Organization, the National Endowment for Democracy and the Government of Nepal. He is also an acclaimed poet and the author of nine books.
Expert Advisor
PeaceAbility
Executive Director
Mandala Development Initiative
Founder
Education in Every Home
Chairman
ESDO Nepal
Homraj Acharya
International development leader · Washington, D.C. and South Asia
has worked with
International development · Public policy · Social justice
Building fairer systems across the United States and South Asia
Homraj Acharya is an international development leader and public policy expert. Over two decades he has advised governments, led national reforms on child labour and education, and partnered with the International Labour Organization, the National Endowment for Democracy and the Government of Nepal. He is also an acclaimed poet and the author of nine books.
Expert Advisor
PeaceAbility
Executive Director
Mandala Development Initiative
Founder
Education in Every Home
Chairman
ESDO Nepal
Homraj Acharya
International development leader · Washington, D.C. and South Asia
has worked with
International development · Public policy · Social justice
Building fairer systems across the United States and South Asia
Homraj Acharya is an international development leader and public policy expert. Over two decades he has advised governments, led national reforms on child labour and education, and partnered with the International Labour Organization, the National Endowment for Democracy and the Government of Nepal. He is also an acclaimed poet and the author of nine books.
Expert Advisor
PeaceAbility
Executive Director
Mandala Development Initiative
Founder
Education in Every Home
Chairman
ESDO Nepal
Homraj Acharya
International development leader · Washington, D.C. and South Asia
has worked with
20+
years leading policy and development work in the U.S. and South Asia
11
ministries on Nepal's national steering committee on child, forced and bonded labour, where he served
~2000
stakeholders in seven provinces engaged in Nepal's first textbook audit
40+
brick kilns reformed under Better Brick Nepal, 17 certified child-labour free
60
countries in the diaspora network he led as NRNA Executive Director
20+
years leading policy and development work in the U.S. and South Asia
11
ministries on Nepal's national steering committee on child, forced and bonded labour, where he served
~2000
stakeholders in seven provinces engaged in Nepal's first textbook audit
40+
brick kilns reformed under Better Brick Nepal, 17 certified child-labour free
60
countries in the diaspora network he led as NRNA Executive Director
20+
years leading policy and development work in the U.S. and South Asia
11
ministries on Nepal's national steering committee on child, forced and bonded labour, where he served
~2000
stakeholders in seven provinces engaged in Nepal's first textbook audit
40+
brick kilns reformed under Better Brick Nepal, 17 certified child-labour free
60
countries in the diaspora network he led as NRNA Executive Director
the work
Five threads, one argument
Across kilns, classrooms, municipalities and the diaspora, the work returns to the same question: how do policies reach the people living at the margins of them?
End Child Labor
Better Brick Nepal, ILO study
Make education inclusive
Text book audit,EEH
Confront cate discrimination
The 2019 walk
Rebuild and adapt
Earthquake , climate , floods
Strengthen communities
Governance, peace literacy
End child labour in Nepal's brick kilns
Kilns supply the bricks that rebuild Nepal. For years, they also relied on the labour of children.
Better Brick Nepal grew from 5 pilot kilns to more than 40.
About 10,000 workers saw improved conditions. Each brick is one kiln.
In depth
A deal with kiln owners
As Nepal Country Director and Senior South Asia Advisor for the Global Fairness Initiative (2013 to 2018), he visited more than 200 kilns. Kilns that joined agreed to ban child, bonded and forced labour and accept independent annual audits, in return for technical and productivity support.
Bridge School model enrolled about 740 children a season in school and more than 1,000 in childcare
Pushed for donor-funded reconstruction to buy only certified bricks
Served on the National Planning Commission's Steering Committee on child, forced and bonded labour, spanning eleven ministries
2024 to 2025: led an ILO-funded study tracing child kiln workers to their home communities, pointing to childcare gaps, landlessness, normalized migration and the legacy of bonded labour
Featured by PBS NewsHour, The Christian Science Monitor and the Pulitzer Center
the work
Five threads, one argument
Across kilns, classrooms, municipalities and the diaspora, the work returns to the same question: how do policies reach the people living at the margins of them?
End Child Labor
Better Brick Nepal, ILO study
Make education inclusive
Text book audit,EEH
Confront cate discrimination
The 2019 walk
Confront cate discrimination
The 2019 walk
Rebuild and adapt
Earthquake , climate , floods
End child labour in Nepal's brick kilns
Kilns supply the bricks that rebuild Nepal. For years, they also relied on the labour of children.
Better Brick Nepal grew from 5 pilot kilns to more than 40.
About 10,000 workers saw improved conditions. Each brick is one kiln.
In depth
A deal with kiln owners
As Nepal Country Director and Senior South Asia Advisor for the Global Fairness Initiative (2013 to 2018), he visited more than 200 kilns. Kilns that joined agreed to ban child, bonded and forced labour and accept independent annual audits, in return for technical and productivity support.
Bridge School model enrolled about 740 children a season in school and more than 1,000 in childcare
Pushed for donor-funded reconstruction to buy only certified bricks
Served on the National Planning Commission's Steering Committee on child, forced and bonded labour, spanning eleven ministries
2024 to 2025: led an ILO-funded study tracing child kiln workers to their home communities, pointing to childcare gaps, landlessness, normalized migration and the legacy of bonded labour
Featured by PBS NewsHour, The Christian Science Monitor and the Pulitzer Center
the work
Five threads, one argument
Across kilns, classrooms, municipalities and the diaspora, the work returns to the same question: how do policies reach the people living at the margins of them?
End Child Labor
Better Brick Nepal, ILO study
Make education inclusive
Text book audit,EEH
Confront cate discrimination
The 2019 walk
Rebuild and adapt
Earthquake , climate , floods
Strengthen communities
Governance, peace literacy
End child labour in Nepal's brick kilns
Kilns supply the bricks that rebuild Nepal. For years, they also relied on the labour of children.
Better Brick Nepal grew from 5 pilot kilns to more than 40.
About 10,000 workers saw improved conditions. Each brick is one kiln.
In depth
A deal with kiln owners
As Nepal Country Director and Senior South Asia Advisor for the Global Fairness Initiative (2013 to 2018), he visited more than 200 kilns. Kilns that joined agreed to ban child, bonded and forced labour and accept independent annual audits, in return for technical and productivity support.
Bridge School model enrolled about 740 children a season in school and more than 1,000 in childcare
Pushed for donor-funded reconstruction to buy only certified bricks
Served on the National Planning Commission's Steering Committee on child, forced and bonded labour, spanning eleven ministries
2024 to 2025: led an ILO-funded study tracing child kiln workers to their home communities, pointing to childcare gaps, landlessness, normalized migration and the legacy of bonded labour
Featured by PBS NewsHour, The Christian Science Monitor and the Pulitzer Center
Make education inclusive
From carrying books into villages in 2002 to auditing the national curriculum two decades later.
In depth
Nepal's first textbook audit for diversity and inclusion
From 2022 to 2024 he directed the audit as principal investigator and wrote its proposal and participatory model. The initiative was owned by the Government of Nepal and inaugurated by Vice President Ram Sahaya Prasad Yadav on February 22, 2024.
Nearly 2,000 stakeholders consulted across seven provinces
Found Dalits, women, Muslims, Tharus and Madhesis under-represented
Exposed a fabricated Abraham Lincoln letter in the Grade 10 Nepali textbook, confirmed by the Lincoln Presidential Library
Coverage: Radio Nepal · The Annapurna Express · The Rising Nepal
Books reviewed: Nepali and Social Studies, three grades
Grade
2
Nepali · Social Studies
Grade
7
Nepali · Social Studies
Grade
10
Nepali · Social Studies
"We bring books to people rather than take people to books."
Founding motto of Books in Every Home, now Education in Every Home (Nepali Times, 2003)
Make education inclusive
From carrying books into villages in 2002 to auditing the national curriculum two decades later.
In depth
Nepal's first textbook audit for diversity and inclusion
From 2022 to 2024 he directed the audit as principal investigator and wrote its proposal and participatory model. The initiative was owned by the Government of Nepal and inaugurated by Vice President Ram Sahaya Prasad Yadav on February 22, 2024.
Nearly 2,000 stakeholders consulted across seven provinces
Found Dalits, women, Muslims, Tharus and Madhesis under-represented
Exposed a fabricated Abraham Lincoln letter in the Grade 10 Nepali textbook, confirmed by the Lincoln Presidential Library
Coverage: Radio Nepal · The Annapurna Express · The Rising Nepal
Books reviewed: Nepali and Social Studies, three grades
Grade
2
Nepali · Social Studies
Grade
7
Nepali · Social Studies
Grade
10
Nepali · Social Studies
"We bring books to people rather than take people to books."
Founding motto of Books in Every Home, now Education in Every Home (Nepali Times, 2003)
Make education inclusive
From carrying books into villages in 2002 to auditing the national curriculum two decades later.
In depth
Nepal's first textbook audit for diversity and inclusion
From 2022 to 2024 he directed the audit as principal investigator and wrote its proposal and participatory model. The initiative was owned by the Government of Nepal and inaugurated by Vice President Ram Sahaya Prasad Yadav on February 22, 2024.
Nearly 2,000 stakeholders consulted across seven provinces
Found Dalits, women, Muslims, Tharus and Madhesis under-represented
Exposed a fabricated Abraham Lincoln letter in the Grade 10 Nepali textbook, confirmed by the Lincoln Presidential Library
Coverage: Radio Nepal · The Annapurna Express · The Rising Nepal
Books reviewed: Nepali and Social Studies, three grades
Grade
2
Nepali · Social Studies
Grade
7
Nepali · Social Studies
Grade
10
Nepali · Social Studies
"We bring books to people rather than take people to books."
Founding motto of Books in Every Home, now Education in Every Home (Nepali Times, 2003)
Confront caste discrimination
In 2019 he walked the length of Nepal, west to east, to campaign against caste
discrimination and untouchability.
1,328 km in 54 days
Each tick is one day on the road. Started March 17, 2019 at Dodhara Chandani with Ashok Darnal and Rita Pariyar.
In depth
The Nepal Padayatra
The walk crossed the country from the Mahakali river in the far west to Mechi Bridge in the far east, stopping in towns along the way for public dialogue, including a speech at Jitpur in his home district of Kapilvastu.
Mobilized more than 100,000 citizens and 80+ municipalities
80+ media and public appearances during his years as an independent advocate (2019 to 2022)
Followed by the "Community Conversation" online series: 4,000+ participants in eleven countries
Coverage: South Asia Time · Setopati · Waikhari
Confront caste discrimination
In 2019 he walked the length of Nepal, west to east, to campaign against caste
discrimination and untouchability.
1,328 km in 54 days
Each tick is one day on the road. Started March 17, 2019 at Dodhara Chandani with Ashok Darnal and Rita Pariyar.
In depth
The Nepal Padayatra
The walk crossed the country from the Mahakali river in the far west to Mechi Bridge in the far east, stopping in towns along the way for public dialogue, including a speech at Jitpur in his home district of Kapilvastu.
Mobilized more than 100,000 citizens and 80+ municipalities
80+ media and public appearances during his years as an independent advocate (2019 to 2022)
Followed by the "Community Conversation" online series: 4,000+ participants in eleven countries
Coverage: South Asia Time · Setopati · Waikhari
Confront caste discrimination
In 2019 he walked the length of Nepal, west to east, to campaign against caste
discrimination and untouchability.
1,328 km in 54 days
Each tick is one day on the road. Started March 17, 2019 at Dodhara Chandani with Ashok Darnal and Rita Pariyar.
In depth
The Nepal Padayatra
The walk crossed the country from the Mahakali river in the far west to Mechi Bridge in the far east, stopping in towns along the way for public dialogue, including a speech at Jitpur in his home district of Kapilvastu.
Mobilized more than 100,000 citizens and 80+ municipalities
80+ media and public appearances during his years as an independent advocate (2019 to 2022)
Followed by the "Community Conversation" online series: 4,000+ participants in eleven countries
Coverage: South Asia Time · Setopati · Waikhari
Rebuild and adapt
Earthquakes, floods and a changing climate hit hardest where the rural and
urban divide leaves communities exposed.
In depth
From the 2015 earthquake to glacial floods
After the Gorkha earthquake he coordinated relief and, as President of the Building Back Right campaign, worked with the Nepal Engineering Association on structural assessments and with UNESCO and the UN on heritage recovery.
Founded the Global Collaborative for Sustainable Development (2019), working on climate, migration, labour and housing with business federations in Nepal and India
Ran the Smart Municipalities Project and the Nepal School Green Project
2026: book launch and SAIS panel raising support for survivors of Nepal's glacial floods
Coverage: The Kathmandu Post · Phys.org
~1,000
buildings assessed after the 2015 quake, 2,000 more reviewed
~50
schools in the Nepal School Green Project
2,500+
students and teachers reached
Rebuild and adapt
Earthquakes, floods and a changing climate hit hardest where the rural and
urban divide leaves communities exposed.
In depth
From the 2015 earthquake to glacial floods
After the Gorkha earthquake he coordinated relief and, as President of the Building Back Right campaign, worked with the Nepal Engineering Association on structural assessments and with UNESCO and the UN on heritage recovery.
Founded the Global Collaborative for Sustainable Development (2019), working on climate, migration, labour and housing with business federations in Nepal and India
Ran the Smart Municipalities Project and the Nepal School Green Project
2026: book launch and SAIS panel raising support for survivors of Nepal's glacial floods
Coverage: The Kathmandu Post · Phys.org
~1,000
buildings assessed after the 2015 quake, 2,000 more reviewed
~50
schools in the Nepal School Green Project
2,500+
students and teachers reached
Rebuild and adapt
Earthquakes, floods and a changing climate hit hardest where the rural and
urban divide leaves communities exposed.
In depth
From the 2015 earthquake to glacial floods
After the Gorkha earthquake he coordinated relief and, as President of the Building Back Right campaign, worked with the Nepal Engineering Association on structural assessments and with UNESCO and the UN on heritage recovery.
Founded the Global Collaborative for Sustainable Development (2019), working on climate, migration, labour and housing with business federations in Nepal and India
Ran the Smart Municipalities Project and the Nepal School Green Project
2026: book launch and SAIS panel raising support for survivors of Nepal's glacial floods
Coverage: The Kathmandu Post · Phys.org
~1,000
buildings assessed after the 2015 quake, 2,000 more reviewed
~50
schools in the Nepal School Green Project
2,500+
students and teachers reached
Strengthen communities and governance
Two cities, one practice: making public institutions work better for the people they serve.
Washington, D.C.
2003–04 Literacy Leader; adult literacy centres in Wards 5 and 8
2004–10 Executive Office of Mayors Williams and Fenty; city lead on school finance
Today Mandala Development Initiative, Silver Spring, MD
Nepal
2010–11 Executive Director, Non-Resident Nepali Association, a network in 60 countries
After 2017 Invited by newly elected mayors to strengthen local governance
Ongoing Trained parliamentarians in collaborative leadership
In depth
Peace literacy and civic life
The Mandala Development Initiative is a U.S. 501(c)(3) working on community strengthening, diaspora engagement, peace literacy and civic engagement. It is preparing a Peace Literacy in Schools pilot with about ten schools in Maryland and D.C.
Helped establish Nepal Open University while at the NRNA
Five performance awards in D.C. government; nominated for the Cafritz Award for Distinguished Public Service
Mentors youth, women's and Indigenous groups
Coverage: South Asia Time · Setopati · Waikhari
Strengthen communities and governance
Two cities, one practice: making public institutions work better for the people
they serve.
Washington, D.C.
2003–04 Literacy Leader; adult literacy centres in Wards 5 and 8
2004–10 Executive Office of Mayors Williams and Fenty; city lead on school finance
Today Mandala Development Initiative, Silver Spring, MD
Nepal
2010–11 Executive Director, Non-Resident Nepali Association, a network in 60 countries
After 2017 Invited by newly elected mayors to strengthen local governance
Ongoing Trained parliamentarians in collaborative leadership
In depth
Peace literacy and civic life
The Mandala Development Initiative is a U.S. 501(c)(3) working on community strengthening, diaspora engagement, peace literacy and civic engagement. It is preparing a Peace Literacy in Schools pilot with about ten schools in Maryland and D.C.
Helped establish Nepal Open University while at the NRNA
Five performance awards in D.C. government; nominated for the Cafritz Award for Distinguished Public Service
Mentors youth, women's and Indigenous groups
Coverage: South Asia Time · Setopati · Waikhari
Strengthen communities and governance
Two cities, one practice: making public institutions work better for the people
they serve.
Washington, D.C.
2003–04 Literacy Leader; adult literacy centres in Wards 5 and 8
2004–10 Executive Office of Mayors Williams and Fenty; city lead on school finance
Today Mandala Development Initiative, Silver Spring, MD
Nepal
2010–11 Executive Director, Non-Resident Nepali Association, a network in 60 countries
After 2017 Invited by newly elected mayors to strengthen local governance
Ongoing Trained parliamentarians in collaborative leadership
In depth
Peace literacy and civic life
The Mandala Development Initiative is a U.S. 501(c)(3) working on community strengthening, diaspora engagement, peace literacy and civic engagement. It is preparing a Peace Literacy in Schools pilot with about ten schools in Maryland and D.C.
Helped establish Nepal Open University while at the NRNA
Five performance awards in D.C. government; nominated for the Cafritz Award for Distinguished Public Service
Mentors youth, women's and Indigenous groups
Coverage: South Asia Time · Setopati · Waikhari
Watch
on screen
pbs newshour june 8,2016
After Nepal's earthquake, a push to rebuild without child labor
On errors in Nepal's textbook
Himal Kharab . interview
Why does Nepal's development lag ? (Bugdet ka kura,EP 38)
Nepali Paisa . interview
Can earthquake-stricken Nepal eliminate the brick industry's reliance on child labor
PBS NewsHour . interview
Watch
on screen
pbs newshour june 8,2016
After Nepal's earthquake, a push to rebuild without child labor
On errors in Nepal's textbook
Himal Kharab . interview
Why does Nepal's development lag ? (Bugdet ka kura,EP 38)
Nepali Paisa . interview
Can earthquake-stricken Nepal eliminate the brick industry's reliance on child labor
PBS NewsHour . interview
Watch
on screen
pbs newshour june 8,2016
After Nepal's earthquake, a push to rebuild without child labor
On errors in Nepal's textbook
Himal Kharab . interview
Why does Nepal's development lag ? (Bugdet ka kura,EP 38)
Nepali Paisa . interview
Can earthquake-stricken Nepal eliminate the brick industry's reliance on child labor
PBS NewsHour . interview
Meet Homraj
From a village in the Terai to the policy table
Homraj Acharya has spent more than twenty years working where public policy meets the lives it is meant to change. He has served in the Executive Office of two Washington, D.C. mayors, led a diaspora network spanning 60 countries, advised Nepal's National Planning Commission and newly elected mayors, and directed national-scale research with the ILO and the Government of Nepal.
He grew up in a farming village in Kapilvastu district in Nepal's Terai, herding water buffalo and teaching himself English.
A scholarship took him to the University of Colorado Boulder, where he earned a degree in sociology with distinction and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. A Crisp Fellowship then supported his master's at American University.
In 2002 he founded Books in Every Home, funding it at first from his own savings. Since then he has served two D.C. mayors, led the Non-Resident Nepali Association, built Better Brick Nepal, walked the length of Nepal against caste discrimination, and directed the country's first textbook audit for diversity and inclusion.
B.A. Sociology
University of Colorado Boulder, 2000 · Phi Beta Kappa
Master's, International Training and Education
American University, 2003 · Crisp Fellowship
Certified Public Manager
George Washington University, 2008
2026–Present
Expert Advisor, PeaceAbility
Also Executive Director, Mandala Development Initiative; Chairman, ESDO Nepal
2024–2025
Principal Investigator, ILO child-labour tracing study
Education in every home
2022–2024
Principal Investigator, national textbook audit
Education in Every Home with the Government of Nepal
2019–2022
Independent advocate and founder, Knowledge, Research and Training Associates
Nepal Padayatra; Smart Municipalities; School Green Project
2013–2018
Country Director, Better Brick Nepal
Senior South Asia Advisor, Global Fairness Initiative
2011–2013
Independent consultant, Nepal
Governance, education monitoring, migrant-worker support, executive MBA teaching
2026–Present
Expert Advisor, PeaceAbility
Also Executive Director, Mandala Development Initiative; Chairman, ESDO Nepal
2010–2011
Executive Director, Non-Resident Nepali Association
Diaspora network across 60 countries
2004–2010
Policy and Education Research Analyst
Executive Office of the Mayor, Washington, D.C.
2002-
Founder, Education in Every Home
Started as Books in Every Home
Also a writer · New book, 2026
Farmers of Blue Smoke
His ninth book is a poetry collection about people uprooted from land and belonging: migrant workers, diaspora communities and families navigating uncertain lives. The poems move between village and city, tradition and globalization, folklore and environmental change, and confront caste through image rather than lecture.
It was launched at American University on October 6, 2026, with proceeds supporting survivors of Nepal's glacial floods. Republica called it a living archive of Nepal's migration, memory and social transformation.
"Both intimate and questioning."
Dr. Sanjeev Upreti, writer
Meet Homraj
From a village in the Terai to the policy table
Homraj Acharya has spent more than twenty years working where public policy meets the lives it is meant to change. He has served in the Executive Office of two Washington, D.C. mayors, led a diaspora network spanning 60 countries, advised Nepal's National Planning Commission and newly elected mayors, and directed national-scale research with the ILO and the Government of Nepal.
He grew up in a farming village in Kapilvastu district in Nepal's Terai, herding water buffalo and teaching himself English.
A scholarship took him to the University of Colorado Boulder, where he earned a degree in sociology with distinction and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. A Crisp Fellowship then supported his master's at American University.
In 2002 he founded Books in Every Home, funding it at first from his own savings. Since then he has served two D.C. mayors, led the Non-Resident Nepali Association, built Better Brick Nepal, walked the length of Nepal against caste discrimination, and directed the country's first textbook audit for diversity and inclusion.
B.A. Sociology
University of Colorado Boulder, 2000 · Phi Beta Kappa
Master's, International Training and Education
American University, 2003 · Crisp Fellowship
Certified Public Manager
George Washington University, 2008
2026–
Expert Advisor, PeaceAbility
Also Executive Director, Mandala Development Initiative; Chairman, ESDO Nepal
2024–2025
Principal Investigator, ILO child-labour tracing study
Education in every home
2022–2024
Principal Investigator, national textbook audit
Education in Every Home with the Government of Nepal
2019–2022
Independent advocate and founder, Knowledge, Research and Training Associates
Nepal Padayatra; Smart Municipalities; School Green Project
2013–2018
Country Director, Better Brick Nepal
Senior South Asia Advisor, Global Fairness Initiative
2011–2013
Independent consultant, Nepal
Governance, education monitoring, migrant-worker support, executive MBA teaching
2010–2011
Executive Director, Non-Resident Nepali Association
Diaspora network across 60 countries
2004–2010
Policy and Education Research Analyst
Executive Office of the Mayor, Washington, D.C.
2002-
Founder, Education in Every Home
Started as Books in Every Home
Also a writer · New book, 2026
Farmers of Blue Smoke
His ninth book is a poetry collection about people uprooted from land and belonging: migrant workers, diaspora communities and families navigating uncertain lives. The poems move between village and city, tradition and globalization, folklore and environmental change, and confront caste through image rather than lecture.
It was launched at American University on October 6, 2026, with proceeds supporting survivors of Nepal's glacial floods. Republica called it a living archive of Nepal's migration, memory and social transformation.
"Both intimate and questioning."
Dr. Sanjeev Upreti, writer
Meet Homraj
From a village in the Terai to the policy table
Homraj Acharya has spent more than twenty years working where public policy meets the lives it is meant to change. He has served in the Executive Office of two Washington, D.C. mayors, led a diaspora network spanning 60 countries, advised Nepal's National Planning Commission and newly elected mayors, and directed national-scale research with the ILO and the Government of Nepal.
He grew up in a farming village in Kapilvastu district in Nepal's Terai, herding water buffalo and teaching himself English.
A scholarship took him to the University of Colorado Boulder, where he earned a degree in sociology with distinction and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. A Crisp Fellowship then supported his master's at American University.
In 2002 he founded Books in Every Home, funding it at first from his own savings. Since then he has served two D.C. mayors, led the Non-Resident Nepali Association, built Better Brick Nepal, walked the length of Nepal against caste discrimination, and directed the country's first textbook audit for diversity and inclusion.
B.A. Sociology
University of Colorado Boulder, 2000 · Phi Beta Kappa
Master's, International Training and Education
American University, 2003 · Crisp Fellowship
Certified Public Manager
George Washington University, 2008
2026–
Expert Advisor, PeaceAbility
Also Executive Director, Mandala Development Initiative; Chairman, ESDO Nepal
2024–2025
Principal Investigator, ILO child-labour tracing study
Education in every home
2022–2024
Principal Investigator, national textbook audit
Education in Every Home with the Government of Nepal
2019–2022
Independent advocate and founder, Knowledge, Research and Training Associates
Nepal Padayatra; Smart Municipalities; School Green Project
2013–2018
Country Director, Better Brick Nepal
Senior South Asia Advisor, Global Fairness Initiative
2011–2013
Independent consultant, Nepal
Governance, education monitoring, migrant-worker support, executive MBA teaching
2026–
Expert Advisor, PeaceAbility
Also Executive Director, Mandala Development Initiative; Chairman, ESDO Nepal
2010–2011
Executive Director, Non-Resident Nepali Association
Diaspora network across 60 countries
2004–2010
Policy and Education Research Analyst
Executive Office of the Mayor, Washington, D.C.
2002-
Founder, Education in Every Home
Started as Books in Every Home
Also a writer · New book, 2026
Farmers of Blue Smoke
His ninth book is a poetry collection about people uprooted from land and belonging: migrant workers, diaspora communities and families navigating uncertain lives. The poems move between village and city, tradition and globalization, folklore and environmental change, and confront caste through image rather than lecture.
It was launched at American University on October 6, 2026, with proceeds supporting survivors of Nepal's glacial floods. Republica called it a living archive of Nepal's migration, memory and social transformation.
"Both intimate and questioning."
Dr. Sanjeev Upreti, writer
Books
The writer
Alongside his development career he has published nine books of fiction and poetry in Nepali and English. His poems are taught at Tribhuvan University.
"The Kerosene Stove"
Anthologized in Indivisible: An Anthology of Contemporary South Asian American Poetry (University of Arkansas Press, 2010), p. 178.
Essays and op-eds
Writing on education policy, charter schools and state restructuring in The Himalayan Times and República, and an essay for the American University Library blog, "A Serendipitous Encounter" (2019).
Policy research
Co-author of Enhancing Public Education in Nepal: Learning from Charter Schools (Samriddhi Foundation, 2016).
Books
The writer
Alongside his development career he has published nine books of fiction and poetry in Nepali and English. His poems are taught at Tribhuvan University.
"The Kerosene Stove"
Anthologized in Indivisible: An Anthology of Contemporary South Asian American Poetry (University of Arkansas Press, 2010), p. 178.
Essays and op-eds
Writing on education policy, charter schools and state restructuring in The Himalayan Times and República, and an essay for the American University Library blog, "A Serendipitous Encounter" (2019).
Policy research
Co-author of Enhancing Public Education in Nepal: Learning from Charter Schools (Samriddhi Foundation, 2016).
Books
The writer
Alongside his development career he has published nine books of fiction and poetry in Nepali and English. His poems are taught at Tribhuvan University.
"The Kerosene Stove"
Anthologized in Indivisible: An Anthology of Contemporary South Asian American Poetry (University of Arkansas Press, 2010), p. 178.
Essays and op-eds
Writing on education policy, charter schools and state restructuring in The Himalayan Times and República, and an essay for the American University Library blog, "A Serendipitous Encounter" (2019).
Policy research
Co-author of Enhancing Public Education in Nepal: Learning from Charter Schools (Samriddhi Foundation, 2016).
In the news
Selected coverage, 2003 to 2026
PBS NewsHour
Nepali Times
The Christian Science Monitor
The Kathmandu Post
Radio Nepal
Republica
The Rising Nepal
The Himalayan Times
Feb 2026
How false contents land in the textbook
The Rising Nepal
May 2024
Bridging education and employment
The Kathmandu Post
Feb 2024
Calls for the more inclusive representation in public text book
Radio Nepal
Aug 2018
Brick klins hazard got recognized
ISHN
May 2015
Clean klins
Nepal Times
2026
Voices from Nepal's margins rise in Farmers of Blue Smoke
Republical
Apr 2026
Strengthening education through text book audit
The Annapurna Express
May 2019
Reeta Pariyar and friends marched across Nepal
South Asia Time
Jun 2016
Nepal's earthquake: A push to rebuild without child labor
The Christian Science Moniter
Feb 2003
Going by the book
Nepal Times
2020
ChangeMakers 2020 (USA)
Named No. 29 by Nepalism.com / USNepalOnline
2018
IOHA Collaboration Award
Received by the Global Fairness Initiative; accepted by Homraj for GFI
2004-2010
Five D.C. performance awards
Nominated for the Cafritz Award for Distinguished Public Service
2000-2003
Phi Beta Kappa · Crisp Fellowship
University of Colorado Boulder; American University
In the news
Selected coverage, 2003 to 2026
PBS NewsHour
The Christian Science Monitor
Nepali Times
The Kathmandu Post
The Himalayan Times
The Rising Nepal
Radio Nepal
Republica
Feb 2026
How false contents land in the textbook
The Rising Nepal
May 2024
Bridging education and employment
The Kathmandu Post
Feb 2024
Calls for the more inclusive representation in public text book
Radio Nepal
Aug 2018
Brick klins hazard got recognized
ISHN
May 2015
Clean klins
Nepal Times
2026
Voices from Nepal's margins rise in Farmers of Blue Smoke
Republical
Apr 2026
Strengthening education through text book audit
The Annapurna Express
May 2019
Reeta Pariyar and friends marched across Nepal
South Asia Time
Jun 2016
Nepal's earthquake: A push to rebuild without child labor
The Christian Science Moniter
Feb 2003
Going by the book
Nepal Times
2020
ChangeMakers 2020 (USA)
Named No. 29 by Nepalism.com / USNepalOnline
2018
IOHA Collaboration Award
Received by the Global Fairness Initiative; accepted by Homraj for GFI
2004-2010
Five D.C. performance awards
Nominated for the Cafritz Award for Distinguished Public Service
2000-2003
Phi Beta Kappa · Crisp Fellowship
University of Colorado Boulder; American University
In the news
Selected coverage, 2003 to 2026
PBS NewsHour
The Christian Science Monitor
Nepali Times
The Kathmandu Post
The Rising Nepal
Radio Nepal
Republica
The Himalayan Times
Feb 2026
How false contents land in the textbook
The Rising Nepal
2026
Voices from Nepal's margins rise in Farmers of Blue Smoke
Republical
May 2024
Bridging education and employment
The Kathmandu Post
Apr 2026
Strengthening education through text book audit
The Annapurna Express
Feb 2024
Calls for the more inclusive representation in public text book
Radio Nepal
May 2019
Reeta Pariyar and friends marched across Nepal
South Asia Time
Aug 2018
Brick klins hazard got recognized
ISHN
Jun 2016
Nepal's earthquake: A push to rebuild without child labor
The Christian Science Moniter
May 2015
Clean klins
Nepal Times
Feb 2003
Going by the book
Nepal Times
2020
ChangeMakers 2020 (USA)
Named No. 29 by Nepalism.com / USNepalOnline
2018
IOHA Collaboration Award
Received by the Global Fairness Initiative; accepted by Homraj for GFI
2004-2010
Five D.C. performance awards
Nominated for the Cafritz Award for Distinguished Public Service
2000-2003
Phi Beta Kappa · Crisp Fellowship
University of Colorado Boulder; American University
Homraj Acharya.
International development leader, public policy expert and author. Working across Washington, D.C. and South Asia.
Quick Links
Work
Meet Homraj
Writing
In the News
© 2026 Homraj Acharya
Silver Spring, Maryland · Kathmandu
Homraj Acharya.
International development leader, public policy expert and author. Working across Washington, D.C. and South Asia.
Quick Links
Work
Meet Homraj
Writing
In the News
© 2026 Homraj Acharya
Silver Spring, Maryland · Kathmandu
Homraj Acharya.
International development leader, public policy expert and author. Working across Washington, D.C. and South Asia.
Quick Links
Work
Meet Homraj
Writing
In the News
© 2026 Homraj Acharya
Silver Spring, Maryland · Kathmandu