Throughout my academic journey, I have been fortunate to be offered several leadership roles. Each one has been deeply fulfilling, and each has come with a profound sense of humility. Yet every role has also carried an unspoken price—one that is rarely discussed openly in public or scholarly conversations about academic leadership. That price is the expectation of performative neutrality. Because leaders are seen as speaking for the institution, we are implicitly—or sometimes explicitly—told to relinquish a public voice. No provocative social media posts. No sharp public commentary on matters deemed “controversial.” The assumption is that institutional representation demands silence on the issues that matter most. Consider, for example, the ongoing Israeli military campaign in Gaza, which many scholars of decolonization and international law have described as genocidal. Or the broader pattern of U.S.-backed Israeli settler-colonial violence and aggression, including recent actions invo...
Mohan Dutta: Culture-Centered Approach
This blog offers Mohan Dutta's reflections on the theoretical framework of the culture-centered approach, examining the interplays among culture, communication and marginalisation. It also explores resistance, the ways in which communities at the margins challenge structures. Writings on the blog are updated to reflect the organic analysis of structure and agency. These analyses are offered on a personal capacity and do not reflect the views of Prof. Dutta's employer.