[2] After being managed by the Centre for Social Research and Development for six years, in 2002 Chautari became registered as a separate non-government organization (NGO) in Kathmandu, Nepal.

[3] Since its inception, Chautari’s core objective was to enhance the quality of public dialogue in Nepal, particularly in matters about development, democracy, civil liberties and social justice.

Premised on the democratic potential and practice of having face-to-face interactions, Chautari currently organizes two scheduled discussions and seminars a week with speakers and topics drawn from a wide social spectrum.

[citation needed] In addition to the discussion series, Chautari also conducts and supports research, with its main concentration being on media, gender, environmental justice, education, health, social inclusion, and democracy.

[8] All five components – the discussions, research, mentoring, publications and library – feed into each other and form an intrinsic part of what Chautari sees as its three chief strategic interests: promoting open dialogue amongst public intellectuals, journalists, academics, social activists, development practitioners, policymakers, and politicians; promoting collaborations amongst academics in Nepal’s various colleges, universities and academic NGOs regarding knowledge production; and promoting a new generation of researchers through mentoring and other means.