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What is the role of intellectuals in our social media driven world?
What is the role of intellectuals in our world? A world that is almost anti-intellectual in its orientation – in the sense of being ephemeral, with fleeting attention spans, where the loudest – and most powerful voice – wins. I came across this speech by Dr.Edward Said, one of the leading Arab intellectuals whose book…
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How to teach difficult topics in times of crisis
We are going through a crisis in Israel/ Palestine that could have global repercussions, if it is not contained, very soon. The scale, proportion and intensity of this “war” is unprecedented, with the situation on the ground changing day to day. These discussions (and similar ones) are likely to find their way into the class…
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Travel, conversations and learning – How being part of conversations can shape your educational/ professional future
We often think of travel as movement. Physical movement to see people, places or attend events. But have you ever considered travel as a conversation? A conversation to enter a new space, a new way of thinking and new way of experiencing life? This is what I realized during my recent trips with my students.…
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Does tourism help with human development?A closer look.
As someone who is new to understanding tourism and its impact on human development, I came across an academic article that asks the question which is quite literally the chicken and egg situation: which comes first, tourism or development and does one lead to the other, even though they may be correlated, at times? …
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Why we need to reframe development
Experts in the space of international development agree that defining “development” and the processes that help us do it are difficult. For starters, one of the definitions of development is “the reduction of poverty and achievement of Millennium Development Goals.” Other scholars and practitioners have used other definitions, but the spirit remains similar. Amartya Sen,…
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What is Development – And why does it matter?
I am teaching a course during the summer term, which I have titled “Understanding development,” a class I developed over the past year or so. This is my second time teaching it and during each class, I try to challenge students about a conception of “development” they have, whether it is local or global. …
