Strategy for justice and prosperity
Blue Lotus Strategies helps mission-driven organizations shape and navigate fast-changing landscapes — internally and externally — and nurture new thinking that achieves real progress.
The premise
Clients come to us because the world around them is shifting.
We see the currents. We help you navigate and shape them.
We help our clients think differently about their work and the world, then turn that thinking into progress through policy and program research, analysis, development; strategy; relationships; and hands-on support. We draw from decades of cross-sector experience while tailoring options and recommendations to each client and each context. The most effective strategies are the ones that you will actually execute, and are aligned with your capabilities, your culture, and your convictions.
Areas of service
ServicesPolicy, Program & Strategy Development
Conceptualizing new work streams and new programming, developing policy analyses and positions, rethinking strategy and ways of working in a changing landscape.
Research, Analysis & Convening
Interviewing experts, surfacing tensions, convening off-the-record discussions; conducting in-depth desk research; modeling impacts; and supporting public events in ways that incite new relationships and new ideas.
Policy & Politics Advisory
Advising organizations and campaigns on key issues at the nexus of substance and politics.
Extra Capacity & Specialist Connections
Trusted partner for organizations when a new strategy, new lens on existing work, or new project needs bespoke expertise, more brainpower, and additional hands.
Featured work
SHAPE AI: building an AI Bill of Rights for higher education
The situation
Student Defense saw uncertainty on the horizon as AI entered higher education, and wanted to get ahead of the potential impact.
What we did
Spearheaded the initiative, brought in additional consultants, hosted a convening, and helped shape a Student AI Bill of Rights.
Outcome
The initiative won $500K in its first tranche of funding from Humanity AI, a pooled philanthropic fund.
Who we’ve worked with
Approach
We meet you where you are.
Each client arrives with a unique set of challenges. We first identify your starting point and where you need to go, then design an engagement using only the services that are truly worthwhile. This may involve integrating specialized expertise, conducting regular check-ins to ensure alignment, and maintaining the flexibility to adapt to your evolving needs.
We bring a broad perspective.
We work across issue areas and often between them, connecting ideas, people, and fields that rarely talk to each other — policy and politics, advocacy and economics, the U.S. and other countries.
We enable a meaningful shift.
Clients come away with greater prominence and impact, a clearer understanding of their landscapes, stronger relationships across both their ecosystem and adjacent ones, new ways of thinking about their own work, and tools and infrastructure to better support their leadership and staff.
Founder
Indi Dutta-Gupta
Founder & CEO
Indi Dutta-Gupta advises nonprofits, foundations, worker organizations, public officials, and political candidates on economic, child, and family policy — drawing on two decades inside and outside government, consulting firms, and think tanks, having collaborated closely with unions and other work groups, service delivery organizations, litigation-focused groups, and other community and research and advocacy organizations.
Emily McGlynn
Founder, Glynmoran
Emily is an economist and an expert on climate, energy, and environmental policy, with over 15 years of experience in finance, academia, and government.
Rajesh (Raj) Nayak
Founder, Blue Agenda LLC
Raj works at the intersection of economic and labor policy through his firm, Blue Agenda LLC.
Maame (May) Amoyaw
Founder & Principal, Silver Link Strategies
May works at the full intersection of business development, economic development, and economic policy through her firm, Silver Link Strategies.
Dasha Ageikina
Data Scientist, Glynmoran
Dasha is a data scientist with deep expertise in causal inference and large-scale geospatial data analysis.
Alex Maza
Founder, Lucero Advisory
Alex has spent over a decade in strategy and analytics for national nonprofits and governments.
Our latest in the news
All recent media
Will Kansas recipients see Social Security rise in 2027? (opens in a new tab)- Social Security’s next COLA could erode on arrival (opens in a new tab)
Mornings with Zerlina: the economy and housing (opens in a new tab)
SNAP rolls have fallen by 4 million. New costs and work rules could shrink them further. (opens in a new tab)
Social Security COLA preview: will 2027 benefits go up? (opens in a new tab)
A simple way to make housing cheaper is languishing in the GOP House (opens in a new tab)
Contact
Wondering if your organization could shift to expand its impact?
Tell us a bit about what’s happening and we’ll figure out together whether we can help.