Sylvia's Journal

My friend R is an alumnus of MIT. I had thought that the M stood for Massachusetts and that this was an Indian branch of the US MIT. Not so, the ‘M’ stands for Maharashtra, the state in which Mumbai and Pune are located. Through him I was invited to give a guest lecture at the MIT School of Government inside the World Peace University.

Until just minutes before my appearance it was not clear how much time I would have and who would actually be in the room. During a meeting with the Dean of the School we cleared up the confusion of me being a Construction Management expert (an inference based on the work we are seeking with the Department of Urban Development in UP, and Urban Development appearing to be synonymous with construction).

We settled on a 30 to 40 minutes ‘lecture.’ I was told there would be about 40 students. About two-thirds from the School of Government, most of the rest students from the Business School and then some faculty and a research assistant.

I indicated that I was not going to use any PowerPoints, which simplified things as I could easily adapt to whatever time slot was available. As a free agent I am very keen to preserve, as much as I can, my freedom of movement and choice. This is working in my favor.

I learned that not one person in the classroom planned to go into civil service – which I thought curious for a School of Government. But then again, the Indian system of government is quite different from the US system . This school trains and prepares the next generation of political leaders. The school has a strong Hindu/spiritual basis and a patron saint.

A Hindu prayer was broadcasted as we arrived at the classroom; everyone stopped in their tracks and stayed still in reverent silence. Daily, students are reminded, not only through the prayer, but also yoga and meditation and physical exercise classes that are part of the curriculum, what their calling ought to be (World Peace) and the values that need thus to be respected. 

At the start of the session I was seated, together with R and V with my back to the students watching my name on the projection screen and listening to one of the students reading my bio that R had sent them.

After that I had about 30 minutes for the session. I engaged in conversation with the students, having them talk, in pairs, about how they were going to resolve the dilemma of having promised everything to everyone during the campaign, and then, if elected, running into the reality of powerful stakeholder groups that would thwart any changes that these stakeholder groups didn’t like (usually promises made to the poorest segments of the population that would require some sacrifices by the elites).

There were only two women in the government class (and none in the business class). I tried to engage them but they were shy and not forthcoming. I was puzzled about this, knowing that there are plenty of strong female politicians to serve as role models. V thought it could have been the language. Even though classes are conducted in English it was clear not everyone was comfortable (at least in my presence) to express themselves in English. Still, it was a bit disappointing. 

At the end of the session I received a green silky stole and was given a framed picture of the school’s patron saint and a wooden plaque thanking me for my service to the school’s mission. Official and phone photos were taken, then a group photo and we were done.

Two young students had been assigned to guide us around, though they did not take part in the session as they had to be in class elsewhere. They had name badges that identified them as ‘student representative: female,’ and ‘student representative: male.’ 

After the session they joined us in a small conference room where we were served sweet chai and cookies. One of the students slipped into the room and asked permission to ask me a question. This was granted by the academic head. Since I mentioned I had worked for decades in Africa, he wondered whether I could connect him to someone in South Africa (but in particular Lesotho) as he was doing a project about political leadership in that country. As it so happened I knew just the right person there, an ex-MSH colleague very active in engaging young people in ethical political leadership. The connection was made overnight.

The student reps were both HR students (no issue or surprise about female students there (99% of the class is female!). They walked us to the main entrance of the World Peace University where a large shrine dominated the space and the walls were decorated with paintings of India’s freedom fighters as well as the patron saint.