March 2023
I was honored to be back at University of Oxford facilitating a session on conflict resolution for young British Hindu leaders in the Varchasva program run by the Yog Foundation collaboratively with Faith in Leadership. The program inspires these incredible youth to live fully into their British identity (which is complicated because at one time this meant white) and their Hindu identity (which is complicated by colonial history, anti-Asian sentiment, and the new UK Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, who is of Indian heritage).
The focus started out on tips for conflict resolution of interpersonal and community disputes. But soon morphed into how to deal with inner conflict, negotiate our multiple identities, and live fully into who we are meant to be. I often find this when training: the session may start out with one theme, but change-up depending on the needs and energy of the group. Actually, that is kind of the story of my life. I start out with one plan but end up adjusting to an unexpected twist and doing something different. Fortunately, I have enough experience and tricks up my sleeve that this is usually pretty seamless to the audience.
The training room we used at University Church of St. Mary the Virgin was above the crypt that dates from 1128 C.E. which is where the original seminarians at what became University of Oxford used to meet. To be in the historic church was amazing and added gravitas to our event. The Vice Vicar, the Reverend Canon Doctor Charlotte Bannister-Parker, hosted us. She is a fascinating leader herself, now writing a book on how the Church of England and other faith traditions should be at the forefront of the environmental justice movement.
The best part of this trip was that I got to see my daughter Leora who is studying contemporary dance at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London. She is wonderfully creative and fun! We spent time with one of my “old” friends, Krish Raval, who is the visionary behind Faith in Leadership, and his daughter Lukshmi. There is a special bond between fathers and daughters!
