staff

she/her/hers
Executive Director

Nowshin Ali is the co-founder of People In Need Inc. (PIN). She is also co-owner of Jalsa, a renowned Indian restaurant in Brooklyn. People In Need empowers immigrant women and youth with skills that help individuals advocate for themselves.  During COVID, People In Need Inc. has expanded operations to provide regular food, clothing, and basic supplies to thousands of families in need, as well as providing a community refrigerator and free diaper program. PIN also provides afterschool tutoring, women’s peer support, and soon, a culinary and entrepreneurial training program including a farm and craft stand.

Nowshin immigrated from India to the United States in 2014 with her now-teenaged son. In India, she earned a BA in Accounting and Master's Degree in Mathematics. She is a resident of Kensington and is a former Board Chair of the PTA of PS 217. She has been honored for her civic work, including by the Points of Light Foundation, Borough President Eric Adams, NY Senate 2021 Commendation Award, LinkNYC , and Congregation Kolot Chayeinu.

Alec is the Operations & Program Manager at People In Need Inc. He was born and raised in Houston, Texas, and moved to Flatbush to study nutrition at Brooklyn College. He joined PIN through Jalsa, where he cooked with co-founders Nowshin and Anurag. Prior to that, he was working in other restaurants and apprenticing at organic farms. Alec's love for food has brought him from the foodservice industry to farms to PIN where he is currently assisting with mutual aid organizing and strengthening the autonomy of marginalized immigrant women through education and community-led economic development.

Alec is passionate about food justice and advocating for increased access to land and regeneratively grown, local, nutritious, and culturally appropriate foods. He is a graduate of the latest cohort from the CUNY Food Justice Leadership Fellowship and also works as the Community Gardens Organizer at East New York Farms!