Khushbu Maheshwari is a Program Manager – India at Canopy, where she works to advance forest-friendly, low-impact, and circular material solutions across fashion, packaging, and next-generation supply chains. With a decade of experience spanning corporate, social, and environmental sectors, she focuses on building collaborative, systems-level approaches to transform complex material and waste supply chains.
At Canopy, Khushbu convenes supply chain stakeholders such as brands, producers, innovators to accelerate the adoption of responsible sourcing models and next-gen forests and biodiversity friendly materials. Her work integrates systems design, partnership building, and on-ground engagement to support durable change across global supply chains.
Khushbu has earlier worked with WWF India on advancing circular economy initiatives across plastics, textiles, and e-waste value chains, and also with Fashion for Good as an Innovation Associate, where she focused on end-of-use innovations, scaling recycling technologies, and led multiple textile waste projects.
Khushbu holds a Master’s degree in Development Studies, specializing in Circular Economy, from the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex. She brings a strong ability to convene private sector leaders, innovators, and communities, helping align industry transformation with environmental and social outcomes.
More about me
I have been interested in questions of waste and resource efficiency from a young age, which naturally shaped my interest in circular economy focused work. Across more than a decade of work in the environmental and social sectors, grassroots engagement has shaped my understanding of how trust, long-term relationships, and collaboration drive meaningful change.
A formative early experience for me was participating in Jagriti Yatra, a 15-day train journey across India that introduced me to inspiring entrepreneurs and strengthened my belief in collective action as a catalyst for social and environmental progress. Building on this, I later spent three years at Fashion for Good leading Sorting for Circularity India’s first project focused on textile waste circularity which took a systemic look at textile waste and highlighted the scale of opportunity for circular material systems.
I enjoy sharing my learnings with people and learning from them about how sustainability can scale across industries and everyday life.
Why forests are important to me
Having been born and brought up in a city, I have always felt a deep pull toward mountains, forests, and open landscapes. There is something about forests—their vastness, quiet strength, and sense of continuity that makes me pause and reflect. They feel like spaces that exist beyond us, not meant to be dominated or interrupted, but respected and protected. Being in nature reminds me of how small we are within larger systems, and how carefully we must tread within them.
Working within textile and packaging supply chains is one of the most critical ways to drive meaningful change in traditionally extractive business models. The idea of treating waste as a resource and redirecting it into supply chains that rely on wood pulp is both powerful and necessary at this moment. What draws me to Canopy is its focus on systems change: rethinking how materials flow, how markets function, and how collaboration across the supply chain can unlock scale. This approach enables deeper, more meaningful partnerships, exactly what is needed to shift entrenched practices and create lasting impact.
Dance moves (when no one is watching), traditional handloom textiles especially sarees, vegetarian food and hiking trails in the Himalayas.
Careless littering, reckless driving, and fast fashion being promoted as “cool” when better choices are clearly available.
If I were a wild animal, I would be a Himalayan Marmot. Living high in the mountains, marmots rely on vigilance, community spirit, and resilience to thrive in fragile ecosystems. Their burrows quietly shape the alpine landscape. I relate to that steady and collaborative presence, where small and attentive actions help landscapes remain balanced and resilient, all while staying cheerful, curious, and a little camera-friendly.
