We’re so excited to welcome Yeen Dolma Lama to the team as our new Senior Research Manager! Yeen brings a great deal of research experience to our team and is excited to help build out our research chops. Read on to find out about what she thinks of Caring Across’s mission, her connection to care, and why she’s on the hunt for a new bestie for her pup ?
What drew you to Caring Across, and what does our work mean to you?
I was drawn to Caring Across by the mission of the organization. It is such a vital mission. My grandmother used to say, “everything begins from the home.” Caring is at the center of everything – and everything begins in the home and you build out from there.
But I have experienced that care is often overlooked in mission-driven organizations. While bigger missions of trying to change the world are crucial – at the core of it lies the people that drive these missions. Everything starts from the home and Caring Across represents that mission for me.
What is your new role, and what are you most excited to dig into?
My new role is the Senior Research Manager. I’m really excited because this is a new role at Caring Across. I’m looking forward to exploring the research that Caring Across is doing and how that research connects across the campaign with the advocacy and campaigns team.
Research is the driver of the work I am currently doing – it’s the first step, and I’m really excited. Another major part of my work is project management – I’ve learned a lot already in terms of how Caring Across works with external researchers and collaborators. I’m really excited to get to learn from them and how they approach their work, while staying true to Caring Across’s mission.
What kind of work have you done in the past?
Over the years, I have worked in research & development and project management for nonprofits and multilateral organizations. Before Caring Across, I worked for the United Nations Children’s Fund where I helped launch a new worldwide platform to track their risk and policy-related data. Prior to that I worked in research and development in the higher education sector.
I am also a board member for Grassroot Movement in Nepal, a Nepalese non profit which supports and initiates grassroot movement focused on bringing sustainable and social change in rural Nepal.
What is your experience with care, and how did it bring you to do this work?
Growing up, I was the primary caregiver of my grandparents and my little sister. I was juggling taking care of my grandparents and being a parent to my little sister, all of that when I was still in high school. My schedule consisted of taking my grandparents to doctors appointments, attending my little sister’s parent teacher meeting, cooking, cleaning, and of course there was my own school work. My grandfather used to experience memory loss and my grandmother has arthritis and severe bronchitis.
Caregiving is something that started very early on in my life. To a certain extent, I know how the weight of that can affect people and families. The lack of resources that many caregiving families deal with can really impact them and their families long term.
What do you like to do outside of work?
I have a puppy named Milo! I like to take him on walks and schedule playdates for him. I always try to scope out puppies when I take him on walks and find him a potential best friend. I exchange numbers depending on how other dogs react to Milo or how he reacts to them. He used to have a best friend in our building before, but one day the dog just stopped playing with him, and when we saw him in the park he kept ignoring Milo! This happened multiple times. But now Milo has a new best friend, named Benji.
I’m also really into dancing. I love stage performance and have performed Bollywood, Nepali, and Tibetan dance at any given opportunity. I also did ballet for two years during my undergrad. I also enjoy yoga and always get compliments on how my body can twist and turn.
