Ramya Vivekanandan is a Senior Education Specialist at GPE, where she is the Thematic Lead for Teaching and Learning. In this role, she leads evidence work, supports engagement at the country level and contributes to shaping global education policy dialogue, all in relation to issues of learning, teachers and teaching. In addition to this, she also serves as the current chair of GPE’s Diversity & Inclusion Task Team.

Before joining GPE in 2017, Ramya worked for more than five years as a Program Specialist and Team Leader for Quality of Education at UNESCO's Asia-Pacific Regional Bureau for Education in Bangkok. She also worked for nearly six years at UNESCO HQ in Paris, mostly on issues of teacher policy and teacher education, and briefly on HIV and education and school health.

Prior to this, Ramya held a number of short- and medium-term assignments supporting girls' education and teacher education in sub-Saharan Africa, including with the Ministry of Pre-University and Civic Education in Guinea, Save the Children US in Malawi, and Creative Associates International in Senegal. Ramya holds a Master's in International Education Policy from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education.