Our Story

Dr. Archana “Itti” Bali

Born on April 8th, she was hardworking, straightforward, warm, and the brightest flower in our garden. The youngest of three siblings, she was a self-made scholar, studied in a government school, and tutored students to fund her college. She worked at NIIT, then joined Greenpeace, training youth and starting new branch offices along the way. She got her Masters in Science at NCBS, Bangalore in the first batch of Wildlife Conservation. Her Master's research was on the coffee plantations of Chikmagalur. She was chosen for the first George Schaller scholarship to pursue her Ph.D. in human-animal interdependence at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks.

A bike accident tore her ACL a few days before she was to fly to Alaska. We got urgent surgery done and she pushed herself to catch a flight within two weeks. Managing two stops in a wheelchair, she finally landed in Fairbanks, which became her home for the next seven years. Most of her friends, family, and colleagues visited her there to experience the wonders of Denali National Park, moose, and glaciers. She was a wonderful host and ensured her visitors enjoyed superb Alaskan hospitality, dog mushing races, Aurora Borealis, and the 24-hour day during the summer.

On January 8th, 2013 during her winter break in India, she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. The doctors gave her three months. However, she decided to go back to the USA, undergo surgery at New York Presbyterian hospital. She fought the recurring infections and side effects, travelled abroad to present papers and completed her Ph.D. Against odds, with sheer determination, grit and resilience she prolonged her life by twenty two months. When the doctors announced there was no more treatment possible, her spirit was broken. The quick thinker she was, she called her family, childhood friends, and cousins to New York to be with her, and took her last breath in their presence on September 8th, 2014.  

She was awarded her PhD posthumously in 2016, which was received by our brave mother. Coincidently, the UAF graduation ceremony was held on Mother's Day! It was sort of a closure but there was more to be done.

Her life skills, resilience, determination, grit, adaptability, intelligence, storytelling and warm personality set her apart. That is what we want future generations to learn and imbibe. Itti's Skill School Foundation is to empower and make lives better, just the way she would have loved to. Her idea was to do the right thing keeping the ecological balance, maintaining the biodiversity, respecting environment, nature, animals, birds and people. Itti’s Skill School Foundation is our humble step to honor the memory of our beloved sister, our guiding light, Dost, and BFF. We have a promise to keep, to uphold her lofty goals and keep her legacy of environmental awareness, education, and entrepreneurship alive and thriving. 

May we have the wisdom and compassion to empower more like Itti!