Mohan Dutta: Culture-Centered Approach

For the many professional Indians that live abroad, the struggles for a green card are integral to the journey of economic progress, of making a life abroad. Making a life for oneself abroad provides many opportunities and most importantly, a ladder to succeed economically. This is the premise of many an immigrant dream, the ultimate rendition of the IIT-IIM fantasy. I myself have pursued this dream, and understand the anxieties that surround the processes of securing a visa, getting a green card, securing permanent residence, and ultimately may be, securing a citizenship. When going through the reams of paperwork, it certainly is overwhelming to fill up document after document. The anxiety around the immigration process occupies the dinner table topic of many an immigrant conversation, sharing in stories of an unfair immigration system. In the sharing of the anxieties, professional immigrants often share their lack of understanding of what seems to them to be a racist syste...

I was unable to join the NUS IMOOC group trip to Willing Hearts in April, as such my views are based upon the video that was compiled at the end of the trip and prior experiences. When I heard that the NUS IMOOC group would be traveling down to Willing Hearts for a field trip, I was surprised. This was because though I have heard of Willing Hearts prior to undergoing this module in NUS, it is not well-known charity organization. We probably all have heard of charities such as National Kidney Foundation, Ren Ci and such, but rarely is there publicity about food pantries. Reading a reflection by Cephas on the field trip, reveals that perhaps Willing Hearts really does need greater publicity. Perhaps greater publicity would really be useful as it would be able to inform those who need help, that there is an avenue to source for hope. Through the video, I was able to see youths from junior colleges and corporations helping out at Willing Hearts, this made me think about the age-old p...

As the world experiences dramatic inequalities, an increasing burden of these inequalities are being transferred to the youth. Employment and access to a basic standard of living have emerged as vital concerns among students. Add to this the large amounts of student debts in countries such as the US that students have to take out in order to simply afford the exorbitant tuition fees, large parts of which go toward supporting large administrative structures and other parts go toward large unsustainable departments. The student loans often come with interest rates that add up to substantive amounts of debts that students have to pay up once they graduate. Naturally for the students and their parents, employment remains a major concern. Am I going to find a job? What I am going to do with this degree? how does this degree help me? As a Professor of Communication, I find these questions to be excellent. Indeed, students should be asking these questions. How are we preparing them...

I personally have not visited Willing Hearts but I am writing this based on a short video taken on that day as well as personal accounts from those who have been there.   As a country known for being cold and unfeeling, it is indeed refreshing to hear about Willing Hearts and its operation in Singapore.   From different accounts, it appears that the food preparation operation is planned and supervised by a small group of dedicated people while the food is prepared by one-off volunteers. On the other hand, the food is being delivered to specific locations where the recipients of the food packets are waiting.   It is heartwarming to know how much joy a packet of food can bring – something that most of us take for granted. However, after thinking deeper, two things struck me. First, the issue of manpower for the food preparation operation. As the preparation is done mainly by one-off volunteers, it is possible that there are days where there are no volunteers o...

Neha works for one of those offshore software production farms in one of those many cyberhubs that have sprung up in Shining India. With a not so spectacular career, a degree from a C grade engineering college where her father donated Rupees 60 lakhs to get her in, the software job has been Neha's window into the world of opportunities that awaits the new India, with promises of economic growth, development, and global leadership. Neha does not mind the late night shifts. After all,  she works for an American employer and gets to interact with Americans. She likes the put on accent. She also enjoys the economic freedom. She can go mall hopping, eat at trendy places, check out one of the many discs, take vacations abroad. All of this is made possible because of the deliverables of economic growth. As Neha considers her career trajectory ahead of her, she thinks of earning an MBA from a US university. It is at this juncture I meet Neha. The Indian elections are coming up...

When we were first told that we were headed to the Willing Hearts (WH) soup kitchen, where close to 100 volunteers expected were already there before 7am preparing food for the needy, I could not help but feel a little skeptical. Why would so many Singaporeans, known for their pragmatism and borderline coldness, be willing to sacrifice precious hours of sleep for no pay or any other forms of reimbursement? However, when we stepped into the food pantry, I was astounded by large groups of people inside, scrambling in assembly lines and all playing their part in ensuring that food would get to the needy by lunchtime. These volunteers, numbering an estimated 120 that day, more than usual, were predominantly either from OCBC & CJC or middle-aged volunteers overseeing the large-scale operations. The students were charged with cooking rice, peeling and slicing ingredients, while the OCBC Community Group members were scooping, portioning and packaging the food. Raw and cooked food sta...